Robert O’Brien, President Trump’s national security adviser, has tested positive for COVID-19, the White House confirmed on Monday.
O’Brien “has mild symptoms and has been self-isolating and working from a secure location off site,” the White House told Bloomberg News, which first reported the news. “There is no risk of exposure to the president or the vice president. The work of the National Security Council continues uninterrupted.”
Speaking with reporters on Monday, White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said he believed O’Brien’s daughter had been infected with the virus first but that O’Brien had a “light case” of COVID-19. Trump also told reporters on Monday that he hasn’t seen O’Brien “lately.” “I have not seen him. I’m calling him later,” Trump said.
Given his proximity to the president, O’Brien and other senior staff on the National Security Council are tested for COVID-19 daily. His last public appearance with Trump was on July 10 in Miami, according to ABC News.
Earlier this month, the Trump campaign fundraiser Kimberly Guilfoyle — who also is dating Donald Trump Jr. — tested positive for COVID-19, while Katie Miller, the press secretary for Vice President Mike Pence and spokeswoman for the White House’s coronavirus task force, tested positive in May.