Brazilian Diplomat Nestor Forster, Who Had Dinner with Donald Trump, Tests Positive for Coronavirus
Brazilian diplomat Nestor Forster, who dined with Donald Trump last weekend, has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to a tweet from the Embassy of Brazil in Washington, D.C., on Friday.
“Brazil’s Chargé d’Affaires Ambassador Nestor Forster has learned tonight that he has tested positive for Covid-19,” the statement read. “Following medical advice, Amb. Forster will extend his self-quarantine, which he had already placed himself into as a precautionary measure, for another two weeks.”
The ambassador dined with Trump, 73, and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro during a visit to the Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida, on Saturday, according to the Palm Beach Daily News.
Editwas20/Wikipedia Nestor Forster
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Fabio Wajngarten, the communications director for Bolsonaro who also attended the diplomatic dinner, tested positive for coronavirus earlier this week, according to Brazilian newspaper Estad?o and the Associated Press.
The Brazilian official posted a photo of himself standing next to Trump over the weekend, in which he and Trump appear to be touching shoulders.
“The White House is aware of public reports that a member of the Brazilian delegation‘s visit to Mar-a-Lago last weekend tested positive for COVID-19; confirmatory testing is pending,” Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham said in a statement Thursday.
While “exposures from the case are being assessed, which will dictate next steps,” Grisham said, “Both the President and Vice President had almost no interactions with the individual who tested positive and do not require being tested at this time.”
“To reiterate CDC guidelines, there is currently no indication to test patients without symptoms, and only people with prolonged close exposure to confirmed positive cases should self-quarantine,” Grisham added. “We are monitoring the situation closely and will update everyone as we get more information.”
In a press conference on Friday, Trump declared a national emergency — “two very big words” — in response to the novel coronavirus pandemic. He said that the declaration would unlock about $50 billion in emergency funds that the federal government can use to further support efforts to combat the coronavirus, which causes the COVID-19 respiratory disease.
During the same news conference, a reporter asked Trump whether he was worried about his own health after being in close contact with someone who tested positive for the virus days after posting a photo of himself with Trump and Vice President Mike Pence.
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“No, we have no symptoms whatsoever,” Trump responded. “We had a great meeting with the president of Brazil. We did have dinner with him. We sat next to each other.”
Later he maintained he has “no idea” who Wajngarten is and claimed their interaction lasted a matter of seconds.
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