Press secretary joins growing list of White House covid diagnoses

White House Press Secretary Kaleigh McEnany announced via twitter she has tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday morning, after a string of daily tests dating back to Thursday had previously come back negative.

“After testing negative consistently, including every day since Thursday, I tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday morning while experiencing no symptoms,”  McEnany said in her twitter statement.

McEnany referred to herself as an “essential worker” in defending her choice not to quarantine after coming into recent contact with known carriers of the disease. She said in her tweet she has now begun the quarantining process.

McEnany is the latest in a string of covid diagnoses affecting close associates of President Donald Trump, who publicly announced his positive test result early Friday morning. The spree began with White House aid Hope Hicks, whose diagnosis was made public on Thurs., Oct. 1, and has since spread to more than 10 of President Trump’s associates, including his wife, campaign manager and two Republican senators.

By Jamie Wiggan /Thenews2