After joining Joe Biden for a campaign trip to Georgia last Tuesday, a senior aide to President-elect Joe Biden tested positive for coronavirus.
Representative Cedric Richmond (D-La.) traveled together with Joe Biden for a campaign trip to Georgia to show support for the two Democratic Senate candidates that will be running for the runoff election in January. However, after said trip, the Representative started developing symptoms and tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday. The COVID-19 test results arrived following the positive result last Wednesday of a journalist who also joined them on the trip.
Louisiana Rep. Cedric Richmond, who is set to resign from #Congress to join the incoming Biden administration as a senior adviser, tested #positive two days after traveling to #Atlanta to attend a campaign rallyhttps://t.co/Mjs66IGI43
— The Hindu (@the_hindu) December 18, 2020
Meanwhile, the President-elect Joe Biden was seen removing his mask while speaking with the people in Georgia after giving a speech. Although this is the case, his transition office is complacent that Biden is at little risk.
Biden spokeswoman Kate Bedingfield even said, “Richmond was not in close contact, as defined by the CDC, with the President-elect.” The office spokeswoman also alleged that Joe Biden has already undergone PCR testing for the virus and stated that COVID-19 was not detected.
Bedingfield also added that Richmond was not on the same plane as Biden when they traveled from Delaware to Georgia. The journalist was said to be a part of the traveling press pool and is likewise tested positive was said to have been on the flight.
Representative Richmond, who is expected to serve as the White House senior adviser to Joe Biden, started developing symptoms last Wednesday. He then took a rapid test for COVID-19 and turned out positive. Bedingfield continued, “As is our standard protocol after an initial positive test, he took a PCR test on Thursday… which also came back positive.”
President-elect Joe Biden traveled to Georgia to campaign for the Democrat candidates Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff. The candidates are running against Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue. The runoff election on January 5 will direct control of the Senate next year.
Bedingfield also added that the transition office determined that Rep. Richmond was in CDC defined close contact with two persons. However, neither of them was Joe Biden, Warnock, or Ossoff staff. She added that these two individuals who drove a car during the campaign trip had been notified that they were in close contact with a person who tested positive and is now self-quarantining.
This week, President-elect Joe Biden was seen coughing and clearing his throat more than usual. This was evidently seen when he delivered his speech last Tuesday, although the Biden office stated that he has constantly tested negative for coronavirus.
The news of a second member of Biden’s party testing positive for coronavirus is a worrying advancement. Mainly because of Joe Biden’s advanced age of 78 years old.
Previously, President Trump also tested positive for COVID-10 in October and stayed in the hospital for four days after news broke that a close aide of his who joined him on trips also tested positive.
This photo of @JoeBiden taking his mask down briefly in Georgia has to be part of why Fauci wants @JoeBiden to get a vaccine ASAP. pic.twitter.com/aTdAVahY78
— Annie Linskey (@AnnieLinskey) December 15, 2020
Joe Biden’s interactions with American voters in Georgia without a mask prompted Annie Linskey, Washington Post reporter, to tweet. She wrote,
“This photo of @JoeBiden taking his mask down briefly in Georgia has to be part of why [Dr. Anthony] Fauci wants @JoeBiden to get a vaccine ASAP.”
The President-elect is not scheduled to be vaccinated until next week. He is expected to take office on January 20 and be the oldest ever incoming president of the United States.
