YouTube A screenshot from the Trump live video
Video shows President Donald Trump getting into the Marine 1 helicopter that is taking the president to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. You can watch videos later in this article.
To be sure, most people who get COVID-19 do not die. That’s true also of people who are the president’s age – 74. However, his older age and weight are risk factors. According to USA Today, Trump is going to Walter Reed as a precautionary measure.
He is experiencing fatigue and a low-grade fever. ABC News reported that Trump was suffering from chills and congestion; Donald Trump Jr. told the network that the president sounded tired but was upbeat. He also said he’d never seen his father sick in 40 years.
USA Today reported that, according to the president’s doctor, Trump “received a single 8 gram dose of Regeneron’s polyclonal antibody cocktail as a precautionary measure.”
“@RealDonaldTrump is a true warrior. He will fight through this with the same strength and conviction that he uses to fight for America each and every day. I ask you to join me in praying for his recovery. I have never been more proud of someone and what they have had to endure,” Eric Trump tweeted.
According to the Los Angeles Times, the president has been showing only “minor symptoms.”
Here’s another view:
Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said, according to USA Today, that the president “remains in good spirits, has mild symptoms, and has been working throughout the day.”
“Out of an abundance of caution, and at the recommendation of his physician and medical experts, the President will be working from the presidential offices at Walter Reed for the next few days. President Trump appreciates the outpouring of support for both he and the First Lady,” she added.
Here’s what you need to know:
The Republican National Committee Might Choose a Replacement Candidate if the Worst Happened
GettyU.S. President Donald Trump arrives at a campaign rally for Republican Senate candidate Mike Braun at the County War Memorial Coliseum November 5, 2018 in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Although most people who have COVID-19 do not die or become incapacitated, and there’s all hope Trump will be fine, some are wondering how the process would play out if the worst occurred.
Professor Richard Pildes, an expert on elections and U.S. government, spoke about the topic to the Washington Post’s Joshua Tucker. Pildes outlined two possible scenarios: The president becoming incapacitated, withdrawing or, God forbid, dying, either before election day or before he’s inaugurated if he wins a second term.
The professor says that, if the president were to die or become incapacitated before election day, the Republican National Committee’s 168 members “would have the power to replace the party’s nominee for president.”
However, according to what Pildes told The Post, even though that’s the process, ballots have been certified and Trump’s name would likely remain on them anyway. It’s too late to reprint them. He pointed out it’s possible the RNC could go to court over that point.
What happens if an incapacitated Trump wins but can’t serve before inauguration day. According to Pildes, some states don’t bind their electors to the winner. Although he said that area of the law gets complicated, he believes they’d vote for an RNC chosen candidate. The House would select if the electors split.
UC Irvine law professor and voting expert Rick Hasen wrote about this topic on his Election Law Blog. He wrote:
The problem here is that ballots are already out and millions of people have already voted. At this point it seems impossible for candidates to come up with a new name to replace a name on the ballot without starting the whole election process over, which is not possible in the 30+ days before election day. Congress could pass a bill delaying the election but I find it hard to believe it would do so.
What would happen then? “There would be a question if legislatures would allow presidential electors of each state to vote for someone other than the deceased candidate. Only some state laws provide for this eventuality,” he wrote, adding that such a process would be punctuated “with uncertainty.”
Other Presidents Have Been Incapacitated During Their Terms
According to Politico, William Henry Harrison died a month into his term in 1841. There was also the case of James Garfield, who was shot but lived for more than two months. The vice president “studiously avoided any appearance that he had assumed the mantle of office,” Politico reported.
According to Politico, Dwight Eisenhower was left briefly incapacitated by a stroke, heart attack, and abdominal procedure. Richard Nixon was his vice president but he didn’t become acting president. He “did preside over Cabinet meetings,” the site explained. And then there was the case of Woodrow Wilson, who had a stroke and was partially paralyzed for 1.5 years. It wasn’t clear who had “presidential authority.”
Out of all of this came the 25th Amendment, which, according to Politico, allowed “principal officers of the executive departments” to find the president unfit and pass presidential authority to the VP. It takes 2/3rds of both Houses of Congress to do the same if the president fights the declaration. The Guardian says this would take the agreement of “8 cabinet officers.”
If Vice President Mike Pence also couldn’t serve (he doesn’t have COVID-19), presidential powers would fall to the Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.
According to The Los Angeles Times, the presidential election has never been postponed, not even during wars. According to The Times, presidential terms are limited by the Constitution so if the election was not held by January 20, Pelosi would become president.
READ NEXT: Kristy Ann Wilker: Fort Wayne, Indiana, Nurse Fired Over George Floyd Rant