No, I don’t think he’s faking it. It’s not a 4th dimensional blow-Biden-out-of-the-water/prove-it’s-a-hoax chess move. Occam’s razor: the simplest explanation is the likely one, and the simplest explanation is that Donald Trump really has contracted the coronavirus, probably from Hope Hicks, and so has Melania and a steadily-widening circle of people who shared air with her over the past few days and weeks.
They’re already calling it the Rose Garden Massacre. Talk about an October surprise! It’s not one I particularly welcome, despite my loathing of Trump and everything he represents. We’re living in interesting times, and as the ancient Chinese keep telling us, that’s rarely a good thing.
Will Trump’s illness cast a wrench in the works of the election? I think the wrench, in the form of Trump poisoning the waters with lies about fraudulent mail-in ballots and threats to send thugs to intimidate voters at polling places, has been chewing up the gears for some time already. Honestly, how much worse can things get?
Well, okay, probably pretty worse. What do I know?
My personal takeaway is, holy shit, COVID-19 really is highly contagious! Look at the speed with which it’s spreading among Trump’s crowd. We really do need to be afraid of it. We really do need to isolate, and mask up when we can’t. We really do need to avoid crowds, and stay the hell away from those who won’t wear masks. We’re watching the virus run rampant in real time among the most closely-watched group of people in the world.
If this doesn’t bring the threat home, what will?
*Mogul: Secret Service code name for Donald Trump.