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Robert O'Brien, key Trump adviser, tests positive for Covid-19 | |
(31 minutes later) | |
President Donald Trump's national security adviser, Robert O'Brien, has tested positive for coronavirus, the White House has confirmed. | |
Mr O'Brien, 54, has been self-isolating and working from home. | |
The aide has mild symptoms and there was no risk of exposure to Mr Trump or Vice-President Mike Pence, a statement said. | |
Mr O'Brien is the highest-ranking official in Mr Trump's administration known to have tested positive. | |
It is not clear when he and the president last met, but they appeared together two weeks ago on a trip to Miami. | |
The White House statement read: "He has mild symptoms and has been self-isolating and working from a secure location off site. There is no risk of exposure to the president or the vice-president. The work of the National Security Council continues uninterrupted." | |
One source told Bloomberg that Mr O'Brien had been out of his office for a week and that the adviser had contracted the virus after a family event. | One source told Bloomberg that Mr O'Brien had been out of his office for a week and that the adviser had contracted the virus after a family event. |
Anyone near the president is tested regularly for Covid-19. | Anyone near the president is tested regularly for Covid-19. |
A number of people in and around the administration have tested positive, including a military member who works as a White House valet, Mr Pence's press secretary Katie Miller, and a helicopter squadron Marine. | |
Who is Robert O'Brien? | |
Trained as a lawyer, he has had a long diplomatic career working for both Republicans and Democrats. He is believed to be the highest-ranking Mormon member of the Trump administration. | |
He was picked to replace John Bolton as national security adviser last September, after Mr Bolton left amid a rancorous fallout with President Trump. | |
Mr O'Brien shares similar views to Mr Trump on a number of issues, including criticism of the UN and opposition to the Iran nuclear deal. | |
Mr O'Brien travelled to Paris this month to discuss foreign policy issues with European counterparts, and gave a speech in Arizona in June comparing Chinese President Xi Jinping with Soviet leader Josef Stalin. |