United States | Covid-19 in the White House

The virus has hit President Donald Trump and his re-election hopes

The president’s covid-defiance is putting off plenty of voters, including some Republicans

Oct 10th 2020

PRESIDENTIAL HISTORY is replete with lies and evasions concerning the state of the commander-in-chief’s health. Grover Cleveland underwent secret cancer surgery, in the dead of night, aboard a yacht anchored in Long Island Sound. An ailing Franklin D. Roosevelt won the election in 1944 while claiming to be in the pink—and died three months into his new term. Rumours persist that Ronald Reagan began showing signs of dementia while in office. That the current administration has been less than straightforward about when Donald Trump contracted covid-19, what his subsequent movements were and how sick he remains might have been the most normal drama of his entire presidency.

This article appeared in the United States section of the print edition under the headline “A sick body politic”