White House rocked by new COVID case

A staff member considered a close contact of Vice President Mike Pence has been diagnosed with COVID-19, adding to the growing cluster.

The White House has just revealed that a high up staff member has tested positive to the deadly coronavirus, sparking fears of a cluster close to the President.

The White House put out a statement today informing the public that Vice President Mike Pence’s chief of staff, Marc Short, has tested positive to the virus.

The Vice President has already been tested and confirmed that he hasn’t caught the virus.

The scare comes after President Trump was diagnosed with COVID-19 earlier this month, on October 1.

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Remarkable: VP’s chief of staff Marc Short has tested positive for coronavirus, is considered a close contact of the VP & yet Pence will “maintain his schedule” — which includes lots of travel & campaigning. pic.twitter.com/06Rm7Jm1lX

— Jeremy Diamond (@JDiamond1) October 25, 2020

“Today, Marc Short, Chief of Staff to the Vice President, tested positive for COVID-19, began quarantine and assisting in the contact tracing process,” Mr Pence’s Press Secretary Devin O‘Malley said in a statement.

“Vice President Pence and Mrs. Pence both tested negative for COVID-19 today, and remain in good health.

“While Vice President Pence is considered a close contact with Mr. Short, in consultation with the White House Medical Unit, the Vice President will maintain his schedule in accordance with the CDC guidelines for essential personnel.”

Within hours of Short’s diagnosis, it came to light that another person within Pence’s inner circle had recently tested positive to the virus — which was perhaps how Short had caught the disease in the first place.

Pence’s adviser Marty Obst also recently tested positive, according to The New York Times.

The diagnoses of Mr Short and Mr Obst add to the growing coronavirus cluster in the White House.

On October 8, the American Broadcasting Company reported 34 people in the Whitehouse had been infected, according to an internal memo sent to staff.

That number is now much higher.

As well as President Trump contracting the virus earlier this month, so has longtime aide Stephen Miller and Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany.

Marc Short is now added to that list.

US Vice President Mike Pence arrives at a "Make America Great Again!" campaign event at Oakland County International Airport in Waterford, Michigan, on October 22, 2020. Picture: Jeff Kowalsky / AFP

As revealed in the press statement, Mr Pence won’t let the diagnosis get in the way of performing his duties ahead of the presidential election, in nine days’ time.

Mr Pence leads the White House Coronavirus Task Force, causing many to wonder how seriously he is taking the disease if he’s willing to jump straight back into the thick of things with two confirmed cases in his inner circle.

These concerns come just days after Trump was videoed driving around in his limousine, while he was still an active case of the coronavirus.

That prompted huge concerns that the president wasn’t treating the virus as a deadly illness.

The coronavirus has taken the lives of 225,000 Americans so far. A further 8.64 million have been diagnosed with the disease this year.