US President Donald Trump has said the next few days will be the "real test" in his fight against COVID-19, after a day of contradictory messages from the White House about his condition following his diagnosis.
In a four-minute video posted on Twitter on Saturday, apparently recorded from his hospital room, Mr Trump said he “wasn’t feeling so well” when but that he felt “much better” and hoped to be “back soon".
“Over the next period of a few days, I guess that’s the real test, so we’ll be seeing what happens over those next couple of days,” Mr Trump said, seated at a round table in front of an American flag.
He also thanked the medical professionals looking after him and said he was looking forward to finishing up his presidential campaign "the way it was started".
“This [diagnosis] was something that happened, and it’s happened to millions of people all over the world, and I’m fighting for them … We’re going to beat this coronavirus, or whatever you want to call it, and we’re going to beat it soundly,” he said.
The address came hours after differing assessments of his health from administration officials left it unclear how ill the president had become since he tested positive for coronavirus on Thursday night.
A White House team of doctors said on Saturday morning that Mr Trump’s condition was improving and that he was already talking about returning to the White House. One doctor said Mr Trump had told them “‘I feel like I could walk out of here today.’”
But within minutes, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows gave reporters a less rosy assessment, telling them: “The president’s vitals over the last 24 hours were very concerning and the next 48 hours will be critical in terms of his care. We’re still not on a clear path to a full recovery.”
Mr Meadows, whose initial comments were delivered on condition that he not be identified, altered his tone hours later, telling Reuters that Mr Trump was doing “very well” and that “doctors are very pleased with his vital signs.”
Mr Meadows did not clarify the discrepancy in his comments.
Mr Trump was flown from the White House to Walter Reed, near Washington, about 17 hours after he announced his illness. Administration officials, who described the move as precautionary, said he would stay at the hospital for several days.
Another source who was briefed on Mr Trump’s condition said the president was given supplemental oxygen before he went to the hospital. The decision to hospitalise Mr Trump came after he had experienced difficulty breathing and his oxygen level dropped, according to a source familiar with the situation.
White House doctor Sean Conley told reporters outside the hospital on Saturday that Mr Trump had not experienced difficulty breathing, and was not given oxygen at Walter Reed.
Sean Conley, physician to the president, provides an update on the condition of United States President Donald Trump Source: ABACA
“The team and I are extremely happy with the progress the president has made,” Dr Conley said.
In a written update issued on Saturday night, Dr Conley said Mr Trump had spent most of the day "conducting business" and had been "up and moving about the medical suite without difficulty".
"While not out of the woods yet, the team remains cautiously optimistic," he said.
Donald Trump exits Marine One while arriving to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Friday, Oct. 2, 2020 Source: AAP
Flurry of new infections
Meanwhile, the White House has been working to trace a flurry of new infections, with more people close to the president disclosing they have tested positive for COVID-19.
The latest is one of the president's personal assistants, Nick Luna, who tested positive after having travelled with Mr Trump several times recently, a White House official who requested anonymity confirmed on Saturday night.
Chris Christie, one of several aides who helped Mr Trump prepare for the first debate, former White House top aide Kellyanne Conway and Mr Trump's campaign manager, 42-year-old Bill Stepien, have contracted the virus. So have at least three other Republican senators - Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Mike Lee of Utah and Ron Johnson of Wisconsin.
Mr Tillis and Mr Lee sit on the chamber's Judiciary Committee, which is slated to hold hearings for Amy Coney Barrett, Mr Trump's conservative nominee to fill a vacant seat on the Supreme Court.
Public health experts have expressed alarm at the number of cases that appear linked to a celebration of Judge Barrett's nomination at the Rose Garden on 26 September.
At least seven people who attended have now tested positive, including Mr Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, Ms Conway, Mr Tillis, Mr Lee and University of Notre Dame President John Jenkins.
A crowd watches on at the White House Rose Garden last week as Donald Trump announces Amy Coney Barrett as his nominee to the Supreme Court Source: AP
Trailing in the polls
These are uncharted waters for the US election with Mr Trump - who is well behind his Democratic opponent Joe Biden in the polls - having to freeze much of his campaign.
Mr Biden now finds himself alone on the campaign trail - and able to argue that his more cautious approach to COVID-19 has been vindicated.
Mr Biden has made Mr Trump's frequent downplaying of the pandemic and mixed messaging on mask-wearing a central campaign theme, while Mr Trump has tried to shift the narrative to areas where he feels stronger, like the economy.
The former vice president, who stood on a stage with Mr Trump for 90 minutes during their ill-tempered first debate Tuesday, announced that he and his wife Jill tested negative Friday.
Underlining his sudden advantage in the bitter race, Mr Biden, 77, travelled to Grand Rapids, Michigan on Friday, going ahead with a previously scheduled campaign stop.
However, Mr Biden also reminded voters that he has pushed consistently for a serious approach to the coronavirus, which has killed more than 208,000 Americans, unlike his opponent who has mocked the Democrat for his rigorous use of masks.
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