Inside Trump's Controversial Return To The White House

After a brief stay at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he was being treated for COVID-19, President Donald Trump returned to the White House on Monday night. The move was a controversial one, as many believe that Trump, who is still infectious, should have stayed hospitalized.

Upon returning home, Trump removed his face mask and gave a small speech. "One thing that's for certain – don't let it dominate you," said Trump in a video released on Twitter. "Don't be afraid of it. You're going to beat it. We have the best medical equipment. We have the best medicines. All developed recently. And you're going to beat it. I went, I didn't feel so good... I could have left two days ago. Two days ago I felt great, like better than I have in a long time. I said just recently, better than 20 years ago."

Trump continued, "We're going back. We're going back to work. We're gonna be out front. As your leader I had to do that. I knew there's danger to it but I had to do it. I stood out front. I led. Nobody that's a leader would not do what I did. I know there's a risk, there's a danger, but that's okay... maybe I'm immune."

Trump's decision to remove his face mask was met with criticism. "It is inexplainable that the President of the United States, who is actively shedding virus in millions of particles, would walk into that building with an enormous number of staff, unmasked," Dr. Jonathan Reiner, a professor at George Washington University School of Medicine, told CNN. "It is really hard to understand how no one told him not to do that. There doesn't seem to be anyone in charge of his care other than the President of the United States, other than the patient."

In spite of Trump's optimism, medical professionals say he's not recovered yet. "We're in a bit of uncharted territory when it comes to a patient who received the therapies he has so early in the course," said the president's physician, Dr. Sean Conley, after Trump announced he would be leaving the hospital (via the Independent). "So we're looking to this weekend, if we can get through to Monday with him remaining the same or improving, better yet, then we will all take that final deep sigh of relief."

Medical professionals warn that, in spite of Trump's comments, COVID-19 is still a very real threat and that everyone should continue to take precautions. "We have to be realistic in this: COVID is a complete threat to the American population," the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center's Dr. David Nace told the Associated Press. Nace added that "most of the people aren't so lucky as the president," who has access to an in-house medical team as well as experimental treatments.