TMZ/Getty

Donald Trump Tested Positive for COVID ... Before First 2020 Debate

UPDATE

11:03 AM PT -- President Biden just took a shot at Trump ... asked if he thinks Trump put him at risk during the debate, when Trump was apparently positive for COVID-19, Biden said, "I don't think about the former president."

UPDATE

brutal pic.twitter.com/IiuirTYukt

— Adam Parkhomenko (@AdamParkhomenko) December 1, 2021
UPDATE

It was a mic drop moment ... with Biden smiling before waving and walking away from the podium.

UPDATE

8:37 AM PT -- Trump went on FOX a few days after the debate and seemed to suggest he may have got the virus from his up close and personal meetings with Gold Star families.

UPDATE

"I met with Gold Star families. I didn't want to cancel that ... I can't say, 'back up' ... they wanna hug me and they wanna kiss me, and they do" -- Trump on now suggesting Gold Start families gave him coronavirus pic.twitter.com/7F2dBzRFgi

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 8, 2020
UPDATE

Trump's comments are being resurfaced in a video clip on social media ... but remember, Meadows says Trump was positive before hosting the Gold Star families at the White House.

Donald Trump had tested positive for COVID-19 just days before meeting up with Joe Biden for their first presidential debate -- this according to his ex-Chief of Staff.

Mark Meadows makes the claim in a new book, 'The Chief's Chief,' describing how DT allegedly received a positive result on Sep. 26 ... 3 days before the Ohio debate. Meadows does say Trump took a second test which turned up negative, but that reportedly was an antigen test, which is not as reliable as the PCR test. The PCR test can detect COVID levels the antigen test can't.

Nonetheless ... Meadows says Trump was hell-bent on debating Biden, saying, "Nothing was going to stop [Trump] from going out there."

It's a shocking revelation. Apparently, Trump was symptomatic with a positive PCR test, which means he should have quarantined for 10 days, but he did the opposite.

He held a Rose Garden ceremony to introduce his last Supreme Court nominee -- Amy Coney Barrett -- to the public. Meadows says Trump was already showing symptoms but the president went to the event maskless. Not surprisingly, it turned out to be a super spreader event.

He also had a ceremony for Gold Star families at The White House ... again, he did not wear a mask even though he had COVID, at least according to Meadows.

The way Meadows describes it ... Trump was about to head to a rally in PA, when Meadows received a call from his doc, telling them to halt everything since POTUS had just tested positive. Meadows says he informed Trump, and the guy apparently had a colorful response.

MM writes Trump's answer "rhyme[d] with ‘Oh spit, you’ve gotta be trucking lidding me."

C-SPAN

As if it weren't bad enough, Trump arrived at the debate late ... too late to be tested, and moderator Chris Wallace said at the time they were trusting Trump was negative based on the honor system.

Trump calls Meadows' description of events "fake news." He says he did not have COVID prior to or during the first debate. He cites a test proving he did not have COVID prior to the debate. That's not necessarily inconsistent with Meadows' account ... because even if he had a negative antigen test he still had a positive PCR test, according to MM.

If Meadows' account is true, there's no other way to cut it ... it's shockingly reckless, uncaring for others and, frankly, disgusting.

Originally Published -- 7:17 AM PT

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