Trump’s got Corona — What does that mean?

It’s official: This morning President Trump tweeted that he and Melania have tested positive for the Coronavirus. This could indeed be a pivotal moment in this fierce election campaign. In the hottest phase of the campaign it forces Trump to stay at home in quarantine. This is a game-changer.

First, because Trump is a people person. He thrives on big rallies and being in the spotlight. His Covid infection has put an abrupt halt to this. He will most certainly miss the rallies in the key states of Arizona, Wisconsin and Floria as well as the next presidential debate on 15 October.

Second, because Trump dominates the media. Trump knows how to get his message out and receive massive media exposure. He’s practically perfectioned the old populist trick of coming out with such an outrageous statement that the press has no other way than to report about it. This way he has dominated the headlines. With Corona this can go two ways: either he sits in quarantine bored with time on his hands and puts out outrageous tweet after tweet. Or — not unlikely — he sits at home bed-ridden and actually taking a break. That could mean there could actually be a significant amount of time with little reporting on Trump. This has a direct impact.

Speaking from German experience: the far-right populist party “Alternative for Germany" has always been high in the polls when they got a lot of media exposure. During those times, where the media decided not to write about them or put them on covers, they would go down in the polls. The same could hold true for Trump. If the media doesn’t report about him but rather about the issues America faces, Trump gets less media exposure, and isn’t able to get his message out to the voters. This could be a strategic time frame in which Joe Biden is able to dominate the headlines, talking to the American people, alongside whatever reporting their might be about the development of Trump’s Corona infection.

Third, because Trump’s image of invincibility. Trump is a hard-ass and a bully. He portrays himself as strong and basically invincible. If he suddenly has a tough infection and bed-ridden, it highlights that he is also vulnerable. That even he can be affected by this virus. It could show that Trump is also just human and chip away at his image of invincibility.