this is "nightline." tonight. president trump helicoptered to the hospital. testing positive for coronavirus. showing signature symptoms. the drug dock talcocktail presi trump is getting. >> i think i'm doing very well, but we're going to make sure that things work out. >> now, retracing the chief executive's steps days before the diagnosis. just who had close contact with the commander in chief? >> we actually called some of the people who had been traveling and in close contact. >> connecting the dots. senior staff and others who could be at risk. what it means for the election and the presidential prognosis. >> "nightline" starts right now. with byron pitts. >> good evening. thank you for joining us.

more than 7.3 million americans have tested positive for the novel coronavirus. now president trump is one of them and in the hospital. the ramifications when the president is the patient. a short walk and a thumb's up as president trump, stricken with covid-19 left the white house for walter reed medical center, marine one flying to the bethesda maryland military hospital where he's expected to remain for a few days. >> it was an incredible sight. the president walked out of the white house on his own, gave a wave and got onto marine one. but think about it. he's essentially being medevaced. he got out on his own, got into a car, went into the medical facility. >> after landing, the president tweeting this video. >> i'm going to walter reed hospital. i think i'm doing very well, but we're going to make sure that

things work out. the first lady is doing very well. so thank you very much, i appreciate it. i will never forget it. thank you. >> president trump clearly wants to send the message that even though he's going to the hospital, he's still fully functional and in charge. >> president trump says he and the first lady tested positive for covid-19 late last night. multiple sources telling abc news that the president is experiencing the signature symptoms of covid-19, fever, chills, nasal congestion and a cough. this afternoon, the president's doctors sharing that the president was being treated with quote, a polyclonal antibody cocktail. >> these would be used to help jump start the immune system and protect them from the virus essentially. >> the president's doctor sharing the president remains fatigued but in good spirits and the first lady remains well with a mild cough and headache. and the physician releasing a statement that the president is

doing very well. he's not requiring any supplemental oxygen and that he has started remdesivir therapy. >> this is an incredible moment. we have not seen a president face a serious health challenge like this, really, since ronald reagan was shot in 1981. >> the president's diagnosis and hospitalization are a shock for the nation and his administration. which has repeatedly downplayed the pandemic. the president who has rarely worn a mask publicly has continued to hold large-scale rallies without mandating social distancing or mask wearing. on saturday, hundreds jammed into the rose garden as he announced his supreme court nominee, amy coney barrett. >> there are several who were at that event who have now tested positive. >> mike lee, hugging one person after another. he has since tested positive. also in the crowd that day and

rater testi later testing positive, kellyanne conway. and father john joenkins. neither were wearing masks. >> as more cases start to build up, it's becoming clearer and clearer that it was one. >> former new jersey governor chris christy was also in attendance. >> i was tested every day that i went to the white house. the last test i took was on tuesday morning, and i was negative. and, we, you know, are now going, i'm going to go and get a test this morning. to see if that status has changed. i feel fine. i don't feel any symptoms at this time. no one was wearing masks in the room when we were prepping. the president, during that period of time and we were, the group was about five or six people in total. >> on monday afternoon, the president and vice president

walked out into the rose garden maskless, to give an update on the nation's coronavirus testing strategy. >> and it's important to remember that as younger and healthier people return to work, and as we massively increase testing capacity, we will identify more cases and asymptomatic individuals in low-risk populations. this should not cause undue alarm. >> the next day the president traveled to cleveland for the first presidential debate. during their first debate, the president and joe biden maintained social distancing, never shaking hands. but questions remained about the amount of prolonged forceful conversation. >> you can't just rely on testing and social distancing and mask wearing. it's the combination. and when you think about indoor spaces, the ventilation is super critical. >> the president mocked biden for wearing a mask. >> i don't wear masks like him. he could be speaking 200 feet

away and he shows up with the biggest mask i've ever seen. >> in the front row, dr. jill biden seen with her face covered, a sharp contrast to the president's family, mostly not wearing masks, violating the rules of the cleveland clinic. at one point, a staffer approaching them with masks. they rejected them. >> joe biden wearing a mask approached the former vice president for a hug. since then, they have tested negative for the virus. on wednesday evening, the president was back on the campaign trail, holding an outdoor minnesota. >> minnesota will decide whether we defeat this pandemic and return to record prosperity. >> the crowd mostly mask-friee s well. >> even before he tested positive, some of the top

advisers told us they observed him feeling fatigued. some were worried he could have potentially been exposed to covid-19. >> and on that flight home aboard air force one. hope hicks started to feel ill. abc news white house jordyn fits was on that plane. >> did was striking, because at the time, she was wearing a mask, she had her hair pulled back. and she had switched out of here heels into flats and we've since learned that she quarantined during that flight home aboard the presidential aircraft. >> hicks tested positive for covid-19. the white house learning of the results thursday morning. but by the time the results came in, the president was moving forward with his plans to hold a fund raiser at his club in bedminster, new jersey. a number of top aides who were close to hicks the day before were not on board.

outside the event, video showing a drive through security tent. joe miss coe poe attended. >> he looked so tough when i saw him. i saw him thursday in bedminster, and i've never seen him more on top of his game. >> rick meta and kathryn hermis also attended. >> kathy and i were at least 30 to 40 feet away from the president, ample hand sanitizer, people socially distancing. >> today kaylee >> socially distanced. it was an outdoor event and it was deemed safe by white house operations to attend that event. >> who exactly assessed that it was safe for the president. you know he had exposure, to

travel to new jersey. >> white house operations maid the assessment. in consultation with others. thank you guys so much. >> by thursday night, the president was talking about hicks' positive result. >> you know hope very well. she's fantastic and has done a great job. i just went out for a test. they just did did, it will come back later, and the first lady also, because we spent a lot of time with hope. so we'll see what happens. >> hours later at tweeted the first lady and i tested positive for covid-19. the first lady isolating in the white house, their son barron has tested negative and is in quarantine. >> it doesn't mean you're in the clear. you can eventually test positive for the virus. >> the president has long been insisting that the worst of the pandemic has past. he has repeatedly said he felt no vulnerability to the virus.

insisting that since everyone in close proximity to him is tested keeping him safe. >> when i walk into the west wing, most of the staffers there are not wearing masks, carrying on as if life is normal. so it is very different from the way most of us are living right now where we have dramatically modified our lifestyles. >> tonight the president remains in walter reed medical center and is expected to continue working from there for the time being. the events today just about a month before election day, shaking up campaigns. the president sidelined from doing signature rallies in person. >> he had a packed schedule of campaign rallies ahead. of course there are two more presidential debates scheduled. now all of that is in doubt and entirely unclear what effect this has for the last month of this incredibly contentious and administration presidential campaign. >> the democratic presidential nominee, joe biden, requesting that all negative ads are pulled

in light of the president's diagnosis, tweeting, this cannot be a partisan moment. it must be an american moment. we have to come together as a nation. with the election around the corner, supreme court nomination hanging in the balance, in a nation in crisis battling a global pandemic, what happens from here is unknown. >> and coming up, what we know about the presidential treatment plan. owing who we are is hard. it's hard. eliminate who you are not first, and you're going to find yourself where you need to be. ♪ the race is never over. the journey has no port. the adventure never ends, because we are always on the way. ♪ ♪ people are waking up tog with what's possible

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on onls. earlier tonight i spoke with dr. jennifer ashton and the dean of brown university school of health. they broke down the nature of president trump's experimental treatment plan and how it's possible the virus could have spread. thank you both for joining us. the president tested positive on thursday night, he says. based on that diagnosis, is it possible to know when he became infected? >> that's the thing. you really can't do that

detective work right now. it's part of contact tracing to see who he was in contact with who now may be positive, but in terms of sympt siympt siympt syt days. there's a presymptomatic stage of about 48 hours, so a person can start to shed virus 48 hours before they develop symptoms, and by day 11, 97 people who test positive will test positive. other than that, from 0 to 14 days, everybody is different. >> the president has held large rallies and held multiple fundraisers. do you think he could have spread the virus to many more people? and what's your recommendation to anyone who may have come into contact with him?

>> yes, unfortunately because of his schedule, a lot of people might have been exposed. so anybody who spent any meaningful time with him within six feet, cdc uses a 15-minute cut-off. if you spent substantial time in and around the president you probably need to quarantine and get tested. and certainly, talk to your doctor as well. >> in a followup to you, sir, how is president trump's overall health? he's 74 years old. does that put him in a higher risk category? >> you know, it does. age, we know, is the biggest predictor of having a complication. people over 70 are in a higher group, men over women, we don't know what kind of coe morbidities he has, but he is overweight. if he has any of those other conditions, they're all going to put him at higher risk. >> earlier today, governor

christie said he was with the president helping prepare for tuesday's debate, but he did not receive a call from the white house notifying hem of the diagnosis, doc, is this proper protocol, and what else should they be doing? >> anybody who's been near the president, who has spent time, and certainly, governor christie who spent a lot of time with the president should have been notified and quarantined. i don't know why it didn't happen for governor christie. >> what do we know about the treatment the president is getting? if the president were your patient, what would you be most concerned about at this point? >> first, let's talk about this experimental treatment. it's a cocktail of appointment e you can think about them as the convalescent plasma that comes from people who have recovered

from covid-19. and these antibodies really attack that spike protein on the surface of the virus and stop the virus from replicating. so, in small trial they've looked at 275 patients. it had a good safety profile. it shortened the duration of symptoms and severity of symptoms slightly, and it really was shown to stop the virus from replicating. so it's designed, redesigned, re out-of-hospital use which makes it a very desirable tool in thee toolbox. despite that, his medical team made the decision to transfer h him to the hospital for further observation, management and testing. >> president trump had an array of people and protocols to prevent him from getting covid and yet he still contracted the virus. so what does that say, what

that mean for the rest of us? >> diseases do not discriminate based on your job title, your address, how much money you make or anything else. this virus has shown us that it is highly transmissable. and it's sneaky. and so when you don't use the measures that we really have been encouraged to use, by public health officials from the beginning, like distancing and mask wearing, it really is an environment that is ripe for this virus to spread and transmit, and we're seeing evidence right now at the white house. >> there is so much we can do do reduce our likelihood and reduce our risk, a lot of which the white house just wasn't doing, some of which dr. ashton's talked about, including social distancing. wearing a mask, i think that is really critical. and then of course the testing protocols that they did have. what i tell people, if you do the things under your control, wear the mask, avoid large

indoor gatherings and wash your hands, can you go a long ways towards presenting yourself and your family. >> thank you for your insight, your comfort, stay safe. >> thanks, byron. >> and we'll be right back. 3 out of 4 people achieved 90% clearer skin at 4 months after just 2 doses. skyrizi may increase your risk of infections and lower your ability to fight them. before treatment your doctor should check you for infections and tuberculosis. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms such as fevers, sweats, chills, muscle aches or coughs, or if you plan to or recently received a vaccine. ♪ nothing is everything ask your dermatologist about skyrizi. ♪ nothing is everything start your day with secret. secret stops sweat 3x more than ordinary antiperspirants. with secret, you're unstoppable. no sweat! try it and love it or get your money back. families with young children

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we'll have the latest on the president's condition on gma in the morning and always at abc news.com. that's "nightline" for this evening. we'll see you right back here next week. thanks for the company, america, goodnight.