Stephen Miller, a senior policy aide to President Donald Trump tested positive for coronavirus, he said in a statement on Tuesday.
"Today, I tested positive for COVID-19 and am in quarantine," said Miller, who has been one of the chief architects of Trump's immigration policies. He added he has been working remotely for the last five days and has been self-isolating.
Miller, who has been regularly traveling with the president and one of his closest aides, is the latest aide in the Trump orbit to test positive for Covid-19. Numerous people tied to the White House or campaign have tested positive, including Trump and the first lady.
The president is still battling his Covid-19 infection after first showing symptoms on Thursday, according to the White House. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines say people should isolate for 10 days from the point of showing systems, and in severe cases, 20 days.
His wife, Katie, who is the communications director for Vice President Mike Pence, had tested positive in May.
Stephen Miller, who is also the president’s speechwriter, is one of the architects of the administration’s anti-immigration measures and the president’s “America First” agenda.
His positive test may add fuel to a bitter back-and-forth between the Trump and Biden campaigns over the use of plexiglass barriers before Wednesday’s debate between Vice President Mike Pence and Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif.
Pence, who has tested negative as of Tuesday, does not want a plexiglass divider on his side of the stage for the Salt Lake City, Utah, debate, according to the White House.
Harris, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, had requested the plastic barrier as a safety measure because of Pence’s potential exposure to Trump, who tested positive for Covid-19 overnight on Thursday.
Several people tied to Trump have since tested positive for the virus, though Pence has reported multiple negative test results.
After Harris made the original request, Katie Miller said in a statement: "If Sen. Harris wants to use a fortress around herself, have at it."
Pence is the head of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, which has been heavily scrutinized in recent months over its response to the pandemic.
In light of the news of Stephen Miller’s positive test, Katie Miller, who tested negative Monday afternoon, left Utah “out of an abundance of caution,” a White House official told NBC News.
