White House staffers say they are relying on 'Twitter and TV' to tell them who has become infected

(Image credit: Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

published 5 October 2020

Several people who spent time with President Trump last week before he tested positive for COVID-19, including former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R), found out about his results through the news, The Wall Street Journal reports.

White House officials told the Journal a medical team is conducting contact tracing, working to notify individuals who were exposed to infected staffers. On Friday, Christie, who helped Trump prepare for last Tuesday's debate against Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, said that he had yet to hear from anyone at the White House. Christie tweeted on Saturday that he had tested positive for COVID-19, and later shared that as a precaution, he checked into a New Jersey hospital.

Christie was at the White House on the morning of Sept. 26 for debate prep, and was in close proximity with multiple people who later tested positive for COVID-19, including Trump's close adviser Hope Hicks, former White House counselor Kellyanne Conway, Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien, and Trump himself. Later that day, Christie and Conway gathered in the Rose Garden for Trump's announcement of Judge Amy Coney Barrett as his Supreme Court nominee. Not very many people wore masks to this event, and several guests have since tested positive, including Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), who was spotted hugging and kissing other guests.

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.