President Joe Biden of the United States has tested positive for COVID-19 during a campaign trip to Las Vegas and is currently experiencing mild symptoms, according to the White House.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre announced the positive test for the 81-year-old Democrat after the president of UnidosUS, a Latino civil rights organization, stated that Biden would not be able to speak at a scheduled event due to the diagnosis.
“He is vaccinated, boosted, and experiencing mild symptoms,” Jean-Pierre added. As he boarded Air Force One to depart Las Vegas to recuperate in Delaware, Biden told reporters, “Good, I feel good.” However, he climbed the stairs slowly, holding the railing tightly and pausing a few steps in and again near the top.
The illness comes at a crucial time for Biden, who has been losing ground in battleground states against Republican Donald Trump, who is headlining a triumphant convention this week after surviving an assassination attempt .
The White House stated that Biden planned to spend a long weekend at his Delaware beach house. It was unclear how long the illness would keep him off the campaign trail.
Minutes after the announcement, the president’s motorcade promptly headed to the Las Vegas airport following a radio interview in the city.
Biden had greeted a couple of dozen people at a Mexican restaurant prior to going into the radio interview. He was running late to deliver a speech to Latino civil rights group UnidosUS when the organizer, Janet Murguia, announced he had tested positive for COVID. There were groans in the conference room at the news.
“He said to tell my folks that we’re not going to get rid of him that quickly, we’re going to have a chance to hear from him in the future directly,” Murguia said.
Biden, who had spent two nights in Vegas on the campaign trail, is locked in a battle with some fellow Democrats who worry he is too old to seek re-election and want him to step aside in favor of another candidate.
He has been defiant in the face of the calls to quit the race, telling one interviewer that only the “Lord Almighty” could persuade him to go.
“He will be returning to Delaware where he will self-isolate and will continue to carry out all of his duties fully during that time,” said Jean-Pierre.
Earlier, Biden faced a setback when a prominent Democratic member of the US House of Representatives, Adam Schiff of California, suggested it was time for him to “pass the torch” to someone else.
