A photo showing a Brazilian government official (r) posing for a photo next to President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence at Mar-A-Lago has tested positive for the 2019 novel coronavirus.
A Brazilian official who met and dined with President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago over the weekend has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to media reports Thursday – but Trump said he’s ” not concerned. “
The official, Fabio Wajngarten, posted an Instagram image of himself posing with Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, who is leading the White House’s coronavirus task force. It was not clear when the photo was taken, or by whom; it was posted on Wajngarten’s account four days ago, according to Instagram.
“I did hear something about that,” Trump told reporters Thursday, when asked about the matter. “We had dinner together in Florida at Mar-a-Lago with the entire delegation. I don’t know, if the press [said he was there, then] he was there.” Mar-a-Lago is Trump’s Florida resort.
Trump appeared to shift his focus to Brazil’s president, Jair Bolsonaro, as he continued his response.
“But we did nothing very unusual. We sat next to each other for a period of time, had a great conversation. He’s doing a terrific job in Brazil, and we’ll find out what happens . I guess they’re being tested right now? ” Trump said. Bolsonaro was also present at Mar-a-Lago days earlier, according to the reports.
US President Donald Trump (L) shakes hands with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro during a diner at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, on March 7, 2020
Jim Watson | AFP | Getty Images
Pressed for comment on the reports, Trump added: “Let’s put it this way, I’m not concerned.”
Wajngarten is Bolsonaro’s press secretary.
It is unclear if Trump has previously been in direct contact with anyone who has tested positive for the coronavirus. But he has recently interacted with multiple U.S. Officials who went into self-quarantine after learning that they had been in contact with an individual who was since diagnosed with the disease.
Rep. Doug Collins, R-Ga., Shook hands with Trump last Friday when t he president traveled to Atlanta to visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , where officials there briefed him on their response to coronavirus.
Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., Flew on Air Force One with Trump on Monday on a flight from Orlando, Florida, To Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. Gaetz reportedly learned on that flight that he had been in contact with a person who was diagnosed with the coronavirus. He said he would self-quarantine about an hour after he got off the plane with Trump.
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