Getty Trump and Jair Bolsonaro
A major newspaper in Brazil, O Dia, is reporting that the president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, has coronavirus (COVID-19). Fox News has also confirmed the report that Bolsonaro has coronavirus. However, Bolsonaro and his son then took to social media to deny the president of Brazil has coronavirus, adding to confusion over the issue.
President Trump later revealed that he tested negative for coronavirus.
Jair Bolsonaro’s official Facebook page stated on March 13, 2020 that he tested negative for coronavirus, writing, “HFA/SABIN atestam negativo para o COVID-19 o Sr. Pres. da República Jair Bolsonaro.” His son then tweeted, “Result of Jair Bolsonaro @jairbolsonaro for coronavirus it was NEGATIVE.”
In a news conference on March 13, 2020, Trump said he wasn’t planning to self-quarantine. “We have no symptoms whatsoever. We had a great meeting with the president of Brazil, Bolsonaro, great guy….and as you know, he tested negative… we did have dinner with him. We were sitting next to each other,” Trump said. “It was reported that he may have it, and he doesn’t, fortunately.”
John Roberts of Fox News wrote on Twitter, “After telling @FoxNews that his father had a preliminary POSITIVE test for coronavirus, Eduardo Bolsonaro now tells @FoxNews the test was NEGATIVE. Bolsonaro says has been in touch with the White House.”
President Donald Trump met with Bolsonaro at Mar-a-lago as video and photos show. Photos show the Brazilian president and Trump having physical contact when they met on March 7, 2020. In one, they shake hands. In another, Trump puts his hand on Bolsonaro’s back. They also dined together.
The Brazilian president’s son previously told Fox News that additional tests are being done to confirm the diagnosis. However, that son, Eduardo Bolsonaro, then took to Twitter on March 13, 2020 to deny the reports. “Too much lies and little information. Coronavirus exam done with the team that were with JB in USA have not yet been completed. There are always those people who tell lies in the media and if the story is confirmed they say ‘I told you!’, if not will be just 1 more fake news,” he wrote.
(ENG)Too much lies and little information. Coronavirus exam done with the team that were with JB in USA have not yet been completed
There are always those people who tell lies in the media and if the story is confirmed they say “I told you!”, if not will be just 1 more fake news
He then retweeted another person’s tweet that read, “The president’s son denies that the results are ready. It is clear that the chances are high that the PR has been exposed, but betting beforehand is a big risk…”
That comes after news reports that Bolsonaro’s press aide tested positive for the virus. He too was captured in a photo standing next to President Trump. Some have wondered: Could the president have coronavirus? Is that possible? The White House released a statement on March 12, 2020 in response to those concerns, stating that the president – and Vice President Mike Pence – have not been tested for coronavirus (COVID-19). The White House downplayed concerns, but that was before credible reports emerged that Bolsonaro has tested positive for the virus.
US President Donald Trump (L) greets Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro during a dinner at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, on March 7, 2020.
Jornal O Dia, which is a major daily newspaper in Brazil, wrote of Bolsonaro: “His face was pale and haggard, his eyes a little teary from his live last Thursday. The President was tested positive for the coronavirus.” The underlying story reports, “the first test for coronavirus infection was positive in the President of the Republic Jair Bolsonaro.”
A headline on the story, when translated, reads, “Information from direct sources in the Planalto shows that the first test of the president was positive.”
The opening of the story says: “The pale and dejected countenance – with a little teary eyes – in the national TV statement this Thursday (12th) at night – right after he made a live on the Facebook page with a mask – was the foreshadowing of a Friday 13 unprecedented in the presidential suite: the first test for coronavirus infection was positive in the President of the Republic Jair Bolsonaro.”
There was conflicting information about whether Bolsonaro had tested positive for coronavirus on Thursday March 12, 2020. Some Brazilian sites were reporting that he had but others said they were discredited. His son tweeted that the president of Brazil “is not exhibiting any signs of the disease.”
However, then, on Friday, March 13, 2020, The Guardian reported that the major Brazilian newspaper now says the president of Brazil does have coronavirus.
The Mirror also reported that Bolsonaro had tested positive but that a second test was being conducted to confirm the diagnosis.
Here’s video of Trump meeting Bolsonaro at Mar-a-Lago on March 7, 2020.
Here’s what you need to know:
The Meeting Between Trump & Bolsonaro Was Described as a ‘Festive Dinner’
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.
According to the New York Times, describing the meeting, “President Trump hosted President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil for a festive dinner at his Florida estate on Saturday but refused to rule out steel and iron tariffs that have created tension in the relationship between the two most populous countries of the Western Hemisphere.”
The Times story added: “Eduardo Bolsonaro sat with his father at the president’s table on Saturday night, joined by Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner on the other side, along with Robert C. O’Brien, the national security adviser.”
In the statement before the Bolsonaro positive test, the White House said: “The White House is aware of public reports that a member of the Brazilian delegation’s visit to Mar-a-Lago last weekend tested positive for COVID-19; confirmatory testing is pending. Exposures from the case are being assessed, which will dictate next steps. Both the President and Vice President had almost no interactions with the individual who tested positive and do not require being tested at this time.”
“As stated before, the White House Medical Unit and the United States Secret Service has been working closely with various agencies to ensure every precaution is taken to keep the First & Second Families, and all White House staff healthy. To reiterate CDC guidelines, there is currently no indication to test patients without symptoms, and only people with prolonged close exposure to confirmed positive cases should self-quarantine. We are monitoring the situation closely and will update everyone as we get more information.”
Statement from @PressSec.
That statement came before the latest reports that Bolsonaro has tested positive. They come from a leading Brazilian newspaper, according to The Guardian, after a day of conflicting reports about the Brazilian president’s health.
President Trump Was Photographed With the Infected Press Aide
According to McClatchy DC, Trump “stood next to Fabio Wajngarten, an aide to Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro” in an Instagram picture, which also features Bolsonaro and Pence. The president of Brazil met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago last Saturday.
“We had dinner together in Florida in — at Mar-a-Lago, with the entire delegation. I don’t know if the press aide was there. If he was there, he was there,” Trump said to reporters, according to McClatchy.
The guy standing to Trump’s left just tested positive for coronavirus, according to Brazilian media. Fabio Wajngarten posted this photo, taken during meetings at Mar-a-Lago, five days ago.
NPR reported that, per the Brazilian government, Wajngarten has now tested positive for coronavirus. Trump added to reporters, according to NPR: “Let’s put it this way: I’m not concerned.” The site reported that Florida Sen. Rick Scott is self quarantining because of meeting Wajngarten.
According to the Guardian, Bolsonaro dined with Trump and Instagram photos show “the press secretary, Bolsonaro and Trump all in close proximity.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “The virus is thought to spread mainly from person-to-person.
Between people who are in close contact with one another (within about 6 feet).
Through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes.
These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs.”
CDC adds: “People are thought to be most contagious when they are most symptomatic (the sickest). Some spread might be possible before people show symptoms; there have been reports of this occurring with this new coronavirus, but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.”
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