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GRAND RAPIDS: Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden said Friday that President Donald Trump’s coronavirus diagnosis shows the importance of taking the pandemic seriously and told Americans that wearing masks is more important than being a “tough guy.”
Biden’s remarks while campaigning in the battlefield state of Michigan, hours after testing negative twice for the virus, served as an implicit criticism of the Republican president.
Trump has downplayed the lethality of the virus for months, frequently avoided masks and held campaign rallies for thousands of people with little social distancing.
Trump’s illness brought even more attention to the novel coronavirus pandemic just over four weeks before the Nov.3 election.
The president was experiencing mild symptoms and will be out of the way indefinitely.
The White House said Trump would be moved to a special suite at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, for the next few days as a precaution.
At a union in Grand Rapids, Biden said he and his wife, Jill Biden, prayed for Trump and the first lady, Melania Trump, to have a speedy and full recovery.
He delivered the entire speech while wearing a blue medical mask, a departure from previous events where he normally removed his mask before speaking.
“This is not a question of politics,” Biden said.
“It is an invigorating reminder to all of us that we have to take this virus seriously.
“It will not automatically disappear.”
Biden urged all Americans to follow scientific guidelines, including wearing masks, washing hands frequently, and staying 6 feet away.
Health officials, including the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Robert Redfield, have said that the masks are a crucial tool in slowing the spread of the virus.
“Be a patriot,” Biden said.
“It’s not about being a tough guy. It’s about doing your part. “
During Tuesday’s chaotic presidential debate, Trump mocked Biden for wearing a mask at his events, even when he is away from other people.
Trump’s diagnosis is likely to reinforce Biden’s message about the president’s failed response to the disease, which has killed more than 207,000 people in the US, and undermines Trump’s argument that an end to the pandemic Is in sight.
Opinion polls show that voters trust Biden more than Trump to handle the pandemic.
“It’s hard to say ‘it’s under control’ when you’re a victim of it,” said Democratic strategist Chris Kofinis.
“If we talk about the pandemic for the next four weeks, Donald Trump loses.”
During a grassroots virtual fundraiser on Friday, Biden’s running mate Sen. Kamala Harris and former President Barack Obama wished the Trumps a speedy recovery.
“Doug and I share our deepest prayers for the health and recovery of the president and the first lady,” said Harris (her husband is entertainment attorney Douglas Emhoff).
“Let it be a reminder to all of us that we must remain vigilant and take care of ourselves, and take care of each other.”
As Biden’s motorcade traveled through Grand Rapids, dozens of supporters stood along the road renouncing the posters.
One woman held a small American flag and a cardboard sign that read: “Masks Work.”
Biden’s campaign is temporarily removing ads criticizing Trump for his handling of the coronavirus after his diagnosis, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Biden leads Trump in national opinion polls, though polls in the battlefield states that will decide the contest show a closer race.
A Reuters / Ipsos poll last month showed Biden leading Trump by 5 percentage points among likely voters in Michigan.
