“A destabilizing event that comes after he spent months downplaying the severity of COVID, refusing to regularly wear a mask, undercutting top scientists, and so severely mismanaging the response to the pandemic that more than 200,000 are now dead.”https://t.co/YS4zmxlGKQ

— Democratic Coalition (@TheDemCoalition) October 2, 2020

*Editor’s Note: Elephant Journal articles represent the personal views of the authors, and can not possibly reflect Elephant Journal as a whole. Disagree with an Op-Ed or opinion? We’re happy to share your experience here.

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Read next: Trump & FLOTUS Covid-Positive: This could get him a Second Term.

Plus: Guess who tested Positive for COVID-19. & The Great Donald Trump 2020 October Surprise Season Finale!

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Donald Trump tested positive for COVID-19. 

Most of us woke up this Friday to the most shocking news of 2020. The bar was already set high for breaking news but Trump took things to the next level by tweeting about his positive test result last night. 

What now? 

Social media is exploding, anchorman on all networks stayed up all night, and nobody knows what is going to happen next. 

We are 32 days away from the election and the sitting president has to go into quarantine. As if that wasn’t already enough, the next step will be to find out who was in close contact with him and also needs to get tested. 

The list of potentially infected officials is pretty long. Mike Pence, Jarred Kushner, Kayleigh McEnany and basically, everyone within the White House could be tested positive for the Coronavirus soon. 

Let’s not forget the scariest part of this: Joe Biden was in a room with him for 90 minutes this week. 

Both candidates are at high risk because of their age. What happens if Biden and Trump get hit hard by the virus? 

The 2nd of October will be remembered as the most troubling day in modern history. The president of the United States needs to be quarantined and we are about to find out who else around him caught the virus. 

Make no mistake—this is not the time for jokes. I can imagine how people wake up to this news and start laughing. By noon there will be thousands of memes about this. At some point, Trump will make a public statement. Will he be able to calm things down? 

How are other leaders reacting to this news? What is China going to say? Will any regime try to exploit this moment of weakness? How far will liberals go in mocking him? 

There is a parade of elephants in the room, but what should we be worried the most about? 

For quite some time the president has been talking about the “October surprise.”

To be clear, I have no information backing up what I am about to write, but I would like all of us to have this in mind: 

Maybe it is a hoax.

I am not trying to act like Trump, but it is 2020. He spoke about an “October surprise,” his polls are not looking good, and it wouldn’t be the first time he is lying to us. 

There is no evidence for him setting this up, but would anyone be surprised if that was a media stunt? What if he shows up this afternoon touting a treatment that has already healed him? 

Probably it is real and he is infected. In that case, he could still take advantage of that. 

If liberals start mocking the president for being sick it could swing the vote toward the sitting president. How would Fox News, far-right militias, and MAGA cult members react to a lack of decency on the liberal side? 

Trump might be able to spin this into a narrative of him being a hero. His supporters will be raging about every single joke about the health situation of the sitting president. Let’s hope the aggression stays on social media and does not unleash on the streets. 

We don’t know much at this point, but I urge all of us to be mindful about what we post today. 

No need for more oil to be spilled into the fire. The United States is facing the most severe threat to national security in modern history.

Maybe it is time to come together. We have been through a lot in the last four years and especially this year. We are 32 days away from the election. 

There is no plan for this scenario. 

The president tested positive for a deadly virus and contact tracing might put the majority of the White House staff into quarantine. If Joe Biden also got infected, his campaign team might also need to stay away from the public for two weeks. 

Foreign leaders and radical domestic groups might try to take advantage of this situation. Conservative media could try to bash liberals for cynical reactions. 

Let’s all show some decency. It is not the time to joke and certainly not the time for speculations. 

At the same time, we know there will be memes and rumors flooding the internet soon.

Let’s be mindful of what we say as it could be used against us shortly.

I know it will be hard to hold back, but it will be necessary.

Let’s not write him off too early.

This is the scariest part of it. We don’t know much yet. Maybe Biden also got infected. Maybe Trump will use this to delay the elections. Maybe there is much more to this than any one of us could imagine right now. 

Let’s stay calm, mindful, and respectful. It won’t be easy after all that happened in 2020 but it is necessary. 

I do not agree often with Donald Trump but in this case, he was right with his tweet: 

“We will get through this together.”

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