Trump cites son Barron's recovery from COVID-19 as a reason why schools should reopen

Donald Trump in Des Moines.
(Image credit: Alex Edelman/AFP via Getty Images)

President Trump told a crowd in Iowa on Wednesday night that his youngest son, Barron Trump, recovered quickly from COVID-19, and that's one reason why schools must reopen soon.

Earlier in the day, first lady Melania Trump revealed that Barron, 14, had the coronavirus. He is a "strong teenager and exhibited no symptoms," she said, and he has since tested negative.

While at a rally in Des Moines, Trump said Barron had COVID-19 for "such a short period of time. I don't even think he knew he had it because they're young and their immune systems are strong and they fight it off — 99.9 percent. And Barron is beautiful and he's free, free."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Teachers have been apprehensive about returning to in-person learning amid the pandemic, as they don't want to catch the virus and they don't want it to spread among their students, either. Trump, however, said that after his son tested positive, "within, like, two seconds, it was Barron is just fine now. He's tested negative, right? Because it happens. People have it and it goes. Get the kids back to school."

To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.