2nd unnamed official tells CNN situation not deteriorating; third anonymous official says US president is currently okay but there are worries this could change quickly

US President Donald Trump leaves the White House for Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on the South Lawn of the White House on October 2, 2020 in Washington, DC (Drew Angerer/Getty Images/AFP)
US President Donald Trump leaves the White House for Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on the South Lawn of the White House on October 2, 2020 in Washington, DC (Drew Angerer/Getty Images/AFP)

 

Unnamed sources told CNN on Saturday that there were real concerns about US President Donald Trump’s health, with one saying that the American leader was having some trouble breathing.

“This is serious,” the adviser added.

A second source familiar with the situation said that Trump was “OK for now, but our fear is that things can change quick.”

However, a third official told the outlet that there was no need for alarm because the president’s situation was not deteriorating.

Just a month before the presidential election, Trump’s revelation that he was positive for the virus came by tweet in the early hours of Friday after he had returned from a political fundraiser.

He had gone ahead to the event, saying nothing to the crowd though knowing he had been exposed to an aide with the disease that has infected millions in America and killed more than a million worldwide.

Marine One with US President Donald Trump aboard leaves the White House to go to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center after he tested positive for COVID-19, October 2, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Marine One with US President Donald Trump aboard leaves the White House to go to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center after he tested positive for COVID-19, October 2, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

 

The comments from the anonymous officials came after the White House said Trump’s expected stay of “a few days” at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center was precautionary and that he would continue to work from the hospital’s presidential suite, which is equipped to allow him to keep up his official duties.

Trump walked out of the White House Friday evening wearing a mask and gave a thumbs-up to reporters but did not speak before boarding Marine One. Members of the aircrew, Secret Service agents, and White House staff wore face coverings to protect themselves from the president onboard the helicopter.

US President Donald Trump, center, stands with Judge Amy Coney Barrett as they arrive for a news conference to announce Barrett as his nominee to the Supreme Court, in the Rose Garden at the White House, September 26, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
US President Donald Trump, center, stands with Judge Amy Coney Barrett as they arrive for a news conference to announce Barrett as his nominee to the Supreme Court, in the Rose Garden at the White House, September 26, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

In a video taped before leaving for Walter Reed, Trump said, “I think I’m doing very well, but we’re going to make sure that things work out.” He remained fully president, all authority intact.

“Going well, I think! Thank you to all. LOVE!!!” he wrote in his first tweet from the hospital Friday night.

First lady Melania Trump also tested positive, the president said, and several others in the White House have, too, prompting concern that the White House or even Trump himself might have spread the virus further. He said in his video that his wife was doing very well.

Several administration officials pointed to the Saturday Rose Garden announcement of Trump’s nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court as the possible connection between cases that spanned Washington Friday.

As reported by The Times of Israel