US president Donald Trump’s oldest son, Donald Trump jnr, tested positive for coronavirus infection earlier this week and is isolating, according to three people familiar with the matter.
A spokesman for Mr Trump jnr said in a statement he is asymptomatic for Covid-19, the disease caused by the virus.
Mr Trump jnr tested has been “quarantining at his cabin since the result”, the spokesman said.
Mr Trump jnr is the latest person close to the president who has tested positive for Covid-19. Barron Trump, the president's youngest son, tested positive last month. Melania Trump, the first lady, also tested positive in October. In July, Trump's girlfriend, Kimberly Guilfoyle, tested positive. President Donald Trump tested positive for the virus in October and was hospitalised as his symptoms worsened. The president underwent a series of invasive therapies typically reserved for people seriously sick with Covid-19.
Mr Trump jnr's announcement comes hours after Rudy Giuliani's son, Andrew Giuliani, a special assistant to the president, announced on Twitter that he had tested positive. This week, two Republican senators, Rick Scott of Florida and Chuck Grassley of Iowa, also said they had the virus.
In addition, an aide to vice president Mike Pence, Hannah McInnis, tested positive earlier this month, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Pence’s aides
Several of Mr Pence’s aides have been infected, including his press secretary and chief of staff. Mr Pence himself has not.
Mr Giuliani attended a news conference his father hosted on Thursday where he and other Mr Trump-allied lawyers repeated unsubstantiated claims that voter fraud had led to the president’s defeat for re-election.
One of the lawyers, Jenna Ellis, said on Friday on Twitter that she and Rudy Giuliani had tested negative for infection.
The coronavirus pandemic is surging around the country, with new cases regularly topping 150,000 per day since last week. More than 254,000 Americans have died from the virus since February. – Bloomberg/Reuters