President's positive test brings added focus to COVID-19
MILWAUKEE - President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump have received waves of support from public officials and across the political spectrum on Friday, Oct. 2 following their positive COVID-19 test results.
The president said he and the first lady are doing "very well." In Wisconsin, the news has some residents thinking about the pandemic's impact.
"Less people are wearing masks, more people are getting sick," Oak Creek resident Breslyn Jacobus said.
It comes at a time when political tension is high and opinions on mask usage and social distancing are polarizing.
"It doesn't have to be two extremes, doesn't have to be causing fear, it doesn't have to be ignoring it," said David Bates of Waukesha.
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
For many in Milwaukee County's Estabrook Park on Friday, news of President Trump and the first lady contracting COVID-19 did not change their minds about the pandemic.
"I think everyone at this point knows the risks associated with it, and he made his own choices," Adam Faraca of Milwaukee said.
A Marquette University Law School poll in August showed the correlation between politics and safety precautions -- finding 97% of Democrats agree with mask requirements, compared to 39% of Republicans.
"For the people who follow, are supportive of Trump, I think a lot will depend on his attitude now. I hope it changes people's feelings about the masks," said Lynne Jacoby of Milwaukee.
Wisconsin has reported record-breaking numbers of positive coronavirus tests over the past several days.
Somehow, someway, many said they hope the new of the president and first lady's illness will bring people together.
"I think this is a real turning point," Bates said. "There has to be a middle ground of taking reasonable precautions and maybe this will get us there."
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FOX6 News spoke with others off camera on Friday who said it is too soon to tell how the president's diagnosis will affect their opinions.
A lot depends, some said, on how ill the president and first lady ultimately become because they are just beginning treatment.
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