# Trump and Melania test positive for COVID-19 **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [October 2, 2020, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010 "2020-10-02T05:07:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 57
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1127 "2020-10-06T02:05:50Z")
Dependent on how fast the crash happens, and how much delay occurs for political considerations, the difference between being in a hospital and having to be transported there emergently, can be life or death, recovery or permanent disability. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1128 "2020-10-06T02:06:53Z")
Zoom debate with mute function activated. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1129 "2020-10-06T02:07:45Z")
I remember when I was a resident working in Emergency. The patient was a wealthy banker who had just moved from Toronto to Boondocks City, where I was working. He couldn’t understand why he was feeling badly. Before moving, his company had recently paid for him to see the most vaunted private doctors who had done every test and image, first class, platinum service which cost many tens of thousands of dollars. It seemed to me they did everything but look at the patient. The consultant agreed with my diagnosis of malignant melanoma, no test required. ---
**Author:** ![DWMarch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwmarch/32/1010_2.png) [@DWMarch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DWMarch)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1130 "2020-10-06T02:24:06Z")
Trump is going to be white girl wasted when those roids wear off. Except it’ll be in the body of a morbidly obese 74 year old man who eats garbage. ---
**Author:** ![Lamoral](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lamoral/32/16078_2.png) [@Lamoral](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamoral)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1131 "2020-10-06T03:17:28Z")
Is Trump _morbidly obese?_ He’s overweight, but looks fairly height-weight proportional. “Morbidly obese” makes me think of Chris Christie and J.B. Pritzker. ---
**Author:** ![DWMarch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwmarch/32/1010_2.png) [@DWMarch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DWMarch)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1132 "2020-10-06T03:31:03Z")
I guess we’ll find out soon enough. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1133 "2020-10-06T03:32:41Z")
You know, I’m going to say it: I’m freaked as fuck the man checked out and went home. It’s an utterly bananas move. It could cost him his life. I hope not, but it’s in front of us, that chance. I’m not real invested if Donald Trump passes, but I really _really_ don’t want the President to die, whoever he is. That we’re in this place is insane. ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1134 "2020-10-06T03:34:27Z")
> [@DWMarch](#): > > Trump is going to be white girl wasted when those roids wear off. Except it’ll be in the body of a morbidly obese 74 year old man who eats garbage. He’s still digesting his inner child. And of course, many many hamberders. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1135 "2020-10-06T03:36:45Z")
> [@Lamoral](#): > > Is Trump _morbidly obese?_ He’s overweight, but looks fairly height-weight proportional. He’s definitely obese, but probably not morbidly obese. In 2019 he was said to be 6’3" and 243 lbs. That’s a BMI of 30.4, which is obese. If he were really 5’10" and 280 lbs, he would have a BMI of 40.2 and be morbidly obese. While the 2019 numbers were obviously a stretch, he probably isn’t quite 280 lbs or as short as 5’10". ---
**Author:** ![Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kolak_of_twilo/32/73_2.png) [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolak_of_Twilo)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1136 "2020-10-06T03:39:01Z")
Morbid obesity is typically considered to start when a person has a BMI of 40 or more. Trump hasn’t been very forthcoming about his weight and even his height is disputed since he is known to exaggerate. If he is 6’0" tall and weighs 300# that would put his BMI around 41. I am 6’2" and weigh 238 which puts me in the obese category with a BMI of 30.5. I’m a big guy and people tell me I look height-weight proportional but I can tell I still need to drop 40 or so pounds. The President looks much heavier than I do, at least to my eye. ---
**Author:** ![Deeg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/deeg/32/2955_2.png) [@Deeg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Deeg)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1137 "2020-10-06T03:56:23Z")
That’s probably a good idea because sadly I would not put it past Trump to leave some COVID booby traps behind. ---
**Author:** ![Deeg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/deeg/32/2955_2.png) [@Deeg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Deeg)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1138 "2020-10-06T04:00:02Z")
Will he crash? I assumed there was a way to bring them down easy if the moment required it. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1139 "2020-10-06T04:19:20Z")
> [@squeegee](#): > > You know, I’m going to say it: I’m freaked as fuck the man checked out and went home. It’s an utterly bananas move. It could cost him his life. I hope not, but it’s in front of us, that chance. I’m not real invested if Donald Trump passes, but I really _really_ don’t want the President to die, whoever he is. That we’re in this place is insane. His niece, Mary Trump, was on CNN tonight, on the Don Lemon show. She couldn’t say exactly why he checked out when he did, but she did say something interesting about the Trump family, that may reveal a reason. As we all know, Mr. Trump likes to bluff and bluster and interrupt reporters (and Mr. Biden, at last week’s debate). He believes, and this is confirmed by his base’s reactions to his rallies and appearances, that this makes him look strong. As Mary Trump pointed out, the Trump family abhorred weakness–and illness indicates weakness. As I listened, I found myself wondering how the Trump kids (Donald and his brother, for example) made it through colds and sniffles and typical childhood illnesses. Did Fred regard them as weak, and impart something along the line of, “You are sick and therefore you are weak. Never appear weak, so don’t get sick.” Anyway, and this is only conjecture on my part, Trump might have felt that the longer he was in Walter Reed, the weaker he was appearing to the world at large. And he didn’t want that; he wanted to appear strong and in control. So he checked out (perhaps against physicians’ recommendations), and went home. As I said, this is conjecture, but given Mary Trump’s remarks on CNN tonight, it could be very possible. ---
**Author:** ![Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/half_man_half_wit/32/21766_2.png) [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Half_Man_Half_Wit)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1140 "2020-10-06T05:12:47Z")
I think that at the moment, there’s no real grounds for fretting about Trump’s health too much. It seems the most reasonable assumption—moreover, the one that won’t have you looking like a conspiracy loon afterwards—is that he basically had a mild case, and the doctors maybe somewhat overstretched themselves in his treatment. Anything else seems to assume facts not in evidence. So I expect that he’ll be mostly fine, with maybe some lingering symptoms; in which case, we should stop discussing his illness, and go back to his tax records instead. Otherwise, if he does, in fact, crash, we’ll know soon enough. The most worrying aspect of this is, of course, that he probably will take his experience as an affirmation of his stance of corona as not being that big of a deal, which puts thousands of lives at risk; which is all the more reason to focus on any means to try and get him out of office come January. But—provided he doesn’t seriously relapse—I don’t think focusing on his own sickness will be effective in that regard. ---
**Author:** ![nelliebly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nelliebly/32/5422_2.png) [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1141 "2020-10-06T06:06:07Z")
> [@Deeg](#): > > Will he crash? I assumed there was a way to bring them down easy if the moment required it. With steroids, you usually taper off over the course of several days or longer. This gives your adrenal glands a chance to rev up gradually. If you were to just stop suddenly, you’re likely to feel extremely tired, achy, nauseous–kind of like after watching the debate. I foolishly stopped a 50 mg. per day course of prednisone cold turkey, and it wasn’t pretty. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 8:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1142 "2020-10-06T08:43:44Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > In the ‘balcony scene’ that took place last hour, Trump was visibly catching some breaths through his mouth. There may well be respiratory issues, even with all the medication he was put on to make the Triumphant Return to the White House look, well, triumphant. Well, yes - the dex doesn’t fix lungs that aren’t working well, they just make it so you aren’t uncomfortable with that by reducing inflammation and making you feel GREAT! > [@psychobunny](#): > > In my opinion, the steroids may be propping him up and he could crash hard when they wear off or stop working. That’s my opinion, too. > [@puzzlegal](#): > > If he crashes, I think they’ll take him to the hospital rather than just letting him choke to death in his own bed. But what do I know? If he crashes hard enough at the White House it might not be noticed in time. It occurs to me that the doctors might have wanted Trump out of Walter Reed because of the circus around Trump might have interfered with taking care of other patients. If he’s at the White House at least he might be infecting fewer other people. > [@Lamoral](#): > > Is Trump _morbidly obese?_ He’s overweight, but looks fairly height-weight proportional. “Morbidly obese” makes me think of Chris Christie and J.B. Pritzker. He might be on the low end of “morbidly obese” but I suspect the “morbid” would more likely be co-conditions because, regardless of what he whats people to believe, he’s not really in that good of shape. Business suits can hide a lot of weight. > [@squeegee](#): > > You know, I’m going to say it: I’m freaked as fuck the man checked out and went home. It’s an utterly bananas move. It could cost him his life. I hope not, but it’s in front of us, that chance. I’m not real invested if Donald Trump passes, but I really _really_ don’t want the President to die, whoever he is. That we’re in this place is insane. Basically my take on this. I don’t give a fuck about Trump the person. I do care that the president of the US might die, because it’s very disruptive when that happens. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1143 "2020-10-06T10:58:47Z")
> [@Spoons](#): > > Anyway, and this is only conjecture on my part, Trump might have felt that the longer he was in Walter Reed, the weaker he was appearing to the world at large. And he didn’t want that; he wanted to appear strong and in control. So he checked out (perhaps against physicians’ recommendations), and went home. As I said, this is conjecture, but given Mary Trump’s remarks on CNN tonight, it could be very possible. I agree with this conjecture. But I think there’s another reason he’s taking this ridiculous tack. He knows he done fucked up. He was making fun of Biden for wearing a mask in the last debate, and what does he do just a couple of days later? He vindicates Biden and all the other mask-wearing libs by getting sick. Of course he’s going to try to play it off, because if he is honest about how sick he really is, the stupider he looks. He is a stupid man, but he’s smart enough to know this. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1144 "2020-10-06T11:20:46Z")
> **[Trump's Maskless Balcony Stunt Was a Portrait of American Empire in Decline](https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/a34277602/trump-no-mask-white-house-balcony-covid-19-walter-reed/)** > > We have been heading down this road to ruin for some time now, but the end stages are somehow uglier and more empty than seemed possible. The prose is cringe-inducingly overwrought, but the message is correct. ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1145 "2020-10-06T12:40:03Z")
> [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](#): > > The most worrying aspect of this is, of course, that he probably will take his experience as an affirmation of his stance of corona as not being that big of a deal, which puts thousands of lives at risk I know of at least one of his supporters who takes it that way. Saw it on Facebook while he was still preparing to leave the hospital, before he had even actually done it: someone saying that he’s showing the world that “this strain of cold/flu” is not such a big deal as the media keep trying to make it. I’ll wager that’s not the only person who feels that way. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2020, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010/1146 "2020-10-06T12:57:38Z")
> [@monstro](#): > > He knows he done fucked up. He was making fun of Biden for wearing a mask in the last debate, and what does he do just a couple of days later? He vindicates Biden and all the other mask-wearing libs by getting sick. Of course he’s going to try to play it off, because if he is honest about how sick he really is, the stupider he looks. He is a stupid man, but he’s smart enough to know this. I think you’re giving him credit for too much honest self-awareness. I don’t believe he has _any_. He has never once in his life “known he has fucked up.” He doesn’t see any relationship of any kind between Sleepy Joe wearing his _prop_ mask and himself wearing one for reals at the hospital. He doesn’t see himself as being of the same species as other people. He’s Super Man. _“Hey! Maybe I’m immune!”_ He beat COVID through sheer will power and force of personality, something those 200,000+ suckers, losers, and weaklings couldn’t do. My 2 cents. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010.md?page=56) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-and-melania-test-positive-for-covid-19/922010.md?page=58)