US President Joe Biden on Wednesday tested positive for COVID-19 with mild symptoms, shortly after conceding he would consider dropping his re-election bid if doctors diagnosed him with a serious medical condition.
The 81-year-old Democrat gave reporters the thumbs up and said “I feel good,” as he cut short a trip to Las Vegas and flew to his beach home in Delaware to go into isolation, which would take him off the campaign trail for days.
Biden thanked well-wishers on X, adding that “I will be isolating as I recover, and during this time I will continue to work to get the job done for the American people.”
Photo: AFP
TIMING
The infection comes at a critical moment for Biden’s campaign, with the president seeking to show he is up to the job after a disastrous debate performance against rival, former US president Donald Trump, sparked concerns about his health and calls from some Democrats for him to step aside.
It is also the latest development in a tumultuous few days in an already frenetic White House race that saw Trump survive an assassination attempt at a campaign rally.
Biden was forced to cancel a speech to a union representing Latino workers who would be crucial for his election bid, having attended a campaign event earlier in the day and given a radio interview.
His spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden was vaccinated and boosted, was now taking the COVID-19 medication Paxlovid and “continues to carry out the full duties of the office while in isolation.”
White House doctor Kevin O’Connor said Biden had complained of a runny nose, a cough and “general malaise,” but that “his symptoms remain mild.”
Biden was seen walking from his limousine to his plane at Las Vegas without a mask.
“Good,” he said when asked how he felt. “I feel good.”
Asked what could make him rethink his presidential bid, Biden told the Black media outlet BET in an interview taped on Tuesday in Las Vegas: “If I had some medical condition that emerged, if somebody, if the doctors came and said ‘you’ve got this problem, that problem.’”
PRESSURE MOUNTING
However, US broadcaster ABC News on Wednesday reporter that Democratic US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer had told Biden over the weekend that it would be “better for the country if he were to bow out,” in what would be a fatal blow.
A spokesperson for Schumer played down the report, saying: “Unless ABC’s source is Senator Chuck Schumer or President Joe Biden the reporting is idle speculation.”
Meanwhile the Washington Post and New York Times reported that Schumer and US House of Representatives Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries had warned Biden that his candidacy puts the party’s electoral prospects at risk.
Adding further pressure, CNN reported that former US House of Representatives speaker Nancy Pelosi privately told Biden he cannot win and could harm Democrats’ chances of recapturing the lower chamber of the US Congress.
The Thai government on Friday announced that Taiwanese would be allowed to stay in the country for up to 60 days per entry, under the Southeast Asian country’s visa-free program starting from today. Taiwan is among 93 countries included in the Thai visa-waiver program, which has been expanded from 57 countries, with the visa-exempt entry extended from 30 to 60 days. After taking office last year, Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has vowed to grant more visa waivers to foreign travelers as part of efforts to stimulate tourism. The expanded visa-waiver program was on Friday signed by Thai Minister of the Interior Anutin
PEACE AND SECURITY: China’s military ambitions present ‘the greatest strategic challenge to Japan and the world, Japan’s annual defense white paper said yesterday Japan yesterday warned that China risked escalating tensions with Taiwan with an increase in military exercises that appeared aimed in part at readying Beijing’s forces for a possible invasion. Japan’s annual assessment of security threats, including those posed by China, North Korea and Russia, comes as Taiwan closely monitors Chinese People’s Liberation Army air and sea exercises, including one with the Shandong aircraft carrier in the Pacific Ocean. The drills are the latest in a series including maneuvers in the Taiwan Strait last year that a senior US general said would be key to any invasion. “Because of that increase in military activity,
CHIPS AND DEFENSE: Trump said the US had lost its chip business and Taipei should pay it for defense, and added that ‘we’re no different than an insurance company’ Taiwan-US relations are solid, and both sides are in agreement that peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region are everyone’s concern, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday following comments by former US president Donald Trump that Taiwan “should pay” for US defense. Taiwan is thankful to the US for supporting Taiwan’s bid to participate in international organizations, Cho told a news conference in Taipei. “I know the people very well, respect them greatly. They did take about 100 percent of our chip business,” Trump told Bloomberg on June 25 in an interview that was published on Tuesday. “I think
SECURITY CONCERNS: An FBI agent said it was surprising that the shooter, whose motive remains unknown, was able to open fire before the Secret Service killed him On the heels of an apparent attempt to kill him, former US president Donald Trump yesterday called for unity and resilience as shocked leaders across the political divide recoiled from the shooting that left him injured, but “fine,” and the shooter and a rally-goer dead. The presumptive Republican presidential nominee said the upper part of his right ear was pierced in the shooting His aides said he was in “great spirits” and doing well. “I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin. Much bleeding took place,” he