Covid 19 coronavirus: Trump campaign fundraising in the spotlight

State health officials in New Jersey have contacted more than 200 people who attended a campaign fundraiser at the Trump National Golf Course in Bedminster on Thursday (US time), hours earlier. of the president announcing that he had Covid-19, while trying to contain the spread. of the deadly virus.

Meanwhile, Somerset County officials contacted employees who worked on the event, most of whom live in the county.

In a joint statement issued Sunday, officials asked guests and employees to monitor their symptoms and, if they were around President Trump or his staff, to quarantine them for 14 days.

The officials, who began searching for the information on Friday, said Sunday that the White House had sent them a list of 206 guests.

They refused to say when they had received the names. Guests were advised not to get tested for five to seven days before the event.

“While the risk is low, a negative test before that time cannot definitively rule out Covid-19 not developing,” the statement said.

White House spokesman Judd Deere said the president had no contact with any donors or staff who “are considered ‘close’ per CDC guidelines (more than 15 minutes and within 6 feet (1.8 m) “.

“During the roundtable and remarks event, the president was more than 6 feet away from all participants,” he said.

Dallas businessman Daniel Hux, who attended the event, said he was feeling fine Sunday and had just undergone another test, as he and other donors had done before the fundraiser.

“I am grateful that our president safely engaged his supporters during the event,” Hux said in a statement. “My prayers are with our president and the first lady.”

Hux, who owns a mortgage company, declined to say where he had traveled in the interim. He said he was never within six feet of the president, but was quarantining him just in case.

Dr. Rich Roberts, a New Jersey pharmaceutical executive who made a video describing the event, said he sat in a seat away from Trump during an indoor panel discussion, which he said involved about 19 people and lasted as long as once 45 minutes or more.

Roberts did not respond to messages from The Associated Press on Sunday about the video, which was posted on a local news site, The Lakewood (NJ) Scoop.

Charlie Kolean, also from Dallas, said the coronavirus test he took upon returning home from New Jersey came back negative Sunday. Will have another in a few days.

Kolean, who works in investments, said that from what he noticed at the event, members of the Trump campaign were masked and socially distant, as were Bedminster staff, who also wore gloves.

During the photo opportunity with the president, the 25-year-old said that donors were to stand 6 feet from the president, on a marker attached to the floor.

“I know there were rumors that he was lethargic or tired. That was not the case at all at this event. He was very energetic, happy to be there. I didn’t notice any difference in his health from the previous times I saw him. “Kolean said.

– AP