There's a weird combination of "Gee, I hope he's OK" plus "Serves the prick right" going on.
I'm not the least bit inclined to give that jerk any quarter at all, even though I really don't wish shitty things on anyone, and I don't celebrate the destruction of any human being.
But I'll say this: It won't hurt my feelings if it turns out he's in for a long painful illness that leaves him crippled or dead. I will not mourn his passing if it comes to that.
USA
- New Cases: 47,389
- New Deaths: 920
‘The virus spares no one’: World reacts to Trump’s positive coronavirus test
LONDON — As the world woke up to the news Friday that President Trump and first lady Melania Trump had tested positive for the novel coronavirus, just one month ahead of the November U.S. election, foreign leaders and lawmakers began reacting and expressing their well wishes.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among the first to respond Friday, writing on Twitter: “Wishing my friend @POTUS @realDonaldTrump and @FLOTUS a quick recovery.” German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson also offered support.
“Like millions of Israelis, Sara and I are thinking of President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump and wish our friends a full and speedy recovery,” Netanyahu, a close Trump ally, tweeted.
“My best wishes to President Trump and the First Lady. Hope they both have a speedy recovery from coronavirus,” said Johnson, who was diagnosed with the infection in late March and spent a week in a London hospital, where he received oxygen therapy.
Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a tribute to Trump, reportedly writing in a telegram: “I am confident that your vital energy, high spirits, and optimism will help you cope with the dangerous virus.” The Kremlin said this week that Putin plans to be vaccinated soon against the coronavirus with an experimental Russian vaccine.
Trump has often faced widespread criticism from abroad over his handling of the pandemic. Foreign researchers have repeatedly criticized the Trump administration for failing to adequately take into account scientific advice in the coronavirus response, as the death toll in the United States continues to climb past the 207,000 mark.
In July, Trump donned a mask for the first time in public after months of downplaying their importance in the global effort to slow transmission and previously mocking Democratic rival Joe Biden for wearing a face covering.
“Nobody is immune from #COVID19,” the United Nations Office for disaster risk reduction, tweeted Friday, responding to the news of Trump’s positive test.
The head of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, also sent the president “best wishes” on Friday, despite Trump accusing the body of “severely mismanaging” the coronavirus outbreak and threatening to permanently cut U.S. funding to the WHO.
French government spokesman Gabriel Attal wished the president a “swift recovery” but also struck a more critical note. Trump’s positive test result is “a sign that the virus spares no one, including those who are the most skeptical about its reality and gravity,” Attal said.
A senior member of the British government, Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick, wished the 74-year-old U.S. leader a quick recovery. “Setting aside politics, we all want to see him and his wife get better soon,” Jenrick said on Sky News.
Following this week’s fiery presidential debate between Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden, others questioned what the president’s positive diagnosis meant for the future of the U.S. election and the health of others who had recently come into contact with him or the first lady.
“If he infected Biden, then what?” tweeted Tomas Valasek, a Slovak lawmaker and a former ambassador to NATO.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is fourth in the presidential line of succession, is wrapping up a five-day trip to Europe, where he has traveled to Greece, Italy and lastly, Croatia. Pompeo said Friday he and his wife, Susan, had both tested negative for the virus.
Pompeo has more consistently worn a mask when appearing in public than Trump. He said he was last with Trump on Sept. 15.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also joined the growing list of politicians sending their well wishes, saying he hoped the Trumps would “overcome the quarantine period without problems.”
Like Trump, other world leaders have also tested positive for the coronavirus during the global health crisis.
After Johnson’s condition worsened after he was infected with the virus in March, he was moved to an intensive care ward for oxygen treatment. His diagnosis triggered questions about Britain’s government succession plan and who would run the country if Johnson, now 56, did not recover.
When he was discharged from hospital, Johnson thanked health-care staff and his nurses, adding that it “could have gone either way” for him.
Trump’s mockery of wearing masks divides Republicans
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro tested positive for the virus in July. The 65-year-old populist leader had often dismissed the severity of the virus, referring to the illness as “a little cold” earlier this year.
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