Biden: Trump diagnosis is 'bracing reminder' of virus stakes

Democrat Joe Biden offered sympathy to President Donald Trump over his coronavirus diagnosis while casting the moment as a reminder of the worldwide health crisis that has hit the United States particularly hard.

Shortly after the White House announced Trump would spend “a few days” at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, the Biden campaign said it would take down its negative advertising. Biden said Friday from the battleground state of Michigan that it cannot be a “partisan moment” and that Americans must “come together as a nation.”

Speaking from the parking lot of a union hall while wearing a mask, Biden said Trump’s diagnosis is a “bracing reminder to all of us that we have to take this virus seriously.”

“It’s not going away automatically,” Biden added.

One month before Election Day, Biden faces a unique moment in what has already been a chaotic presidential campaign. He must balance his opponent’s illness and its destabilising effect on Washington while making a closing argument that the virus is serious and requires stronger leadership in the White House.

Biden has long offered a contrast to Trump in substance and style when it comes to the coronavirus.