First Daughter Ivanka Trump returned to work at the White House on Friday after receiving "clear results" on her coronavirus test, an unnamed senior administration official shared with CNN.
“Over the last week, adviser to the President Ivanka Trump has followed social distancing best practices at her home", the official said, before continuing:
“At the advisement of her doctors, due to lack of symptoms and consistently healthy physician checks, Adviser Trump will be working from the White House today".
Ivanka Trump tests negative for coronavirus and goes back to work at the White House two weeks after contact with Australian official who had it as she departs her Washington D.C. home on Friday morning to return to work at White House pic.twitter.com/0TJxCqWQ6j
— Lilian Chan (@bestgug) March 20, 2020
Despite showing no symptoms, she took the diagnosis test late last week and has hitherto worked from home, reportedly making urgent calls to administration and business executives, including from Goldman Sachs and Mastercard, to discuss the coronavirus response. On Friday, she attended Donald Trump’s meeting with small business representatives and a daily briefing on the coronavirus outbreak, the source specified.
On 5 March, Ivanka was present at a meeting with an Australian official, Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton, who later tested positive for the disease. Also, she is known to have been at a Mar-a-Lago event last weekend, attended among others by a Brazilian delegation member, who later went down with COVID-19.
The presidential adviser’s part in coronavirus response meetings quickly landed in netizens’ crosshairs, with many opting for quite a bit of sarcasm:
#ThankYouPresidentTrump
— Paul Lander (@paul_lander) March 21, 2020
For putting Ivanka in charge of CoronaVirus cure. pic.twitter.com/rGRsWYisIX
That freaking picture is just, so... I can't believe it exists. pic.twitter.com/1BClMplRbC
— not my real name (@sal56695432) March 21, 2020
— SouthernGirl #Remove45 (@beherguest) March 21, 2020
"I pour the clear water into the blue water and then I pour the light blue water into the red water. Science is fun!”, another pictured Ivanka exclaiming.
“Why was she even tested? Did she have symptoms? Why was a test so readily available to her when she didn't have symptoms? Wait, she didn't have symptoms, she had $$$", another fumed. Many echoed the stance:
Meanwhile, thousands of others can’t get tested.....😡
— Yvette Johnson (@YvetteMJ) March 20, 2020
She must think she’s so special. Probably bypassed the laundry list of criteria us peasants have to have in order to even be tested in the first place. 🙄😳
— Becky (@Beckyboop24) March 21, 2020
"Aliens are immune", a third joked in reference to the testing, and another opted for a similar remark:
“So, smiling sociopaths are immune, huh? Good to know".
Many, meanwhile, referenced the federal aid programme that promises funds to the nation to ease the coronavirus-related economic repercussions:
Return a pair of your shoes you bought w/ DIRTY money, corruption to the nth! That should support YOUR local small biz @IvankaTrump
— brenda vaknin (@brendavaknin) March 21, 2020
@IvankaTrump i just want to know if i am going to be part of this stimulus. I dont have a 2018 tax return. I worked for cash. I now am panicking because both my jobs are clised here in michigan. I dont want to be homeless again. Im truly scared
— Shannon Bowring (@bowring_shannon) March 21, 2020
One illustrated how citizens are facing shortages in supermarket stock supplies, challenging Ivanka: “What will you do?”
“Send thoughts and prayers…of course", some netizen responded in the thread.
Another posed a more straightforward question:
“Why don’t you start donating those amounts you have profited ever since Donald Trump took over as the president and return it to Americans?” the netizen tweeted noting that on the one hand, “you have been importing from China", and on the other, recalling Trump’s words about the “Chinese virus".
Ivanka’s return comes as more people in the president's inner circle have set up home offices due to coronavirus concerns, including acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney and White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham.
According to worldometers.info statistics, the US has so far seen 19,773 coronavirus cases, with the death toll currently at 275. Measures are being taken across the board to curb the spread of the infection, with countries like Italy and France, which have become epicentres of the outbreak, closing their borders and locking down a number of cities.