Trump Removes Mask Immediately Upon Arrival at White House... Biden Says "Masks Save Lives"

Don't Fear COVID-19, Yet Another Photo Op Performance
"Campaigning Soon to Resume" Announced
Biden Targets Swing States, Emphasizes "Masks Are Important"

President Trump is removing his mask on the balcony after being discharged from the hospital and arriving at the White House.
[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] Donald Trump, the President of the United States who contracted the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), was discharged on the 5th (local time) and returned to the White House. It was three days after his hospitalization. President Trump immediately declared he would resume his election campaign and removed his mask as soon as he returned to the White House, undermining claims that he had learned from COVID-19.

At around 6:40 p.m. that day, President Trump left Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Maryland, boarded a waiting vehicle, and then flew to the White House via his private helicopter.

Dressed in a suit and wearing a mask, he only said "Thank you very much" and did not respond to reporters' questions. Instead, he clenched his fist and gave a thumbs-up to emphasize that there were no issues with his health.

President Trump arrived at the White House at around 6:55 p.m. He then went up to the second-floor balcony, removed his mask, and saluted toward the helicopter. In a video he released immediately after arrival, he claimed, "Do not be afraid of COVID-19. Do not let COVID-19 dominate you. I recovered in two days. A vaccine will be available soon."

Just before leaving the hospital that day, President Trump posted on Twitter, "I will soon return to the campaign trail. Fake news only shows fake polls," expressing strong dissatisfaction with media reports about his hospitalization and the drop in approval ratings after the TV debate.

President Trump announced his COVID-19 diagnosis in the early hours of the 2nd and also announced his discharge schedule himself. According to The New York Times, despite his aides' objections, President Trump insisted on being discharged.

Since President Trump said he would resume campaigning, it is possible that he will leverage his experience overcoming COVID-19 to engage in a direct confrontation.

However, since he must remain isolated for some time even after returning to the White House, campaigning is expected to be difficult. White House physician Sean Conley emphasized that President Trump is "not out of the woods yet," indicating he is not fully recovered.

President Trump sparked controversy again by performing a gesture of removing his mask and saluting on the White House balcony after arriving at the South Lawn by helicopter that day. CNN criticized him for holding another photo-op event following his surprise outing outside the hospital the day before.

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden criticized President Trump's actions during a town hall meeting held in the battleground state of Florida that day, stating, "Masks are important. Masks save lives," and emphasized that if elected, he would mandate mask-wearing and social distancing.