President 'bored' at hospital, not 'out of the woods'

Chief of staff Mark Meadows says he was "very concerned" on Friday.

ByWilliam Mansell, Libby Cathey, and Emily Shapiro
Last Updated: October 4, 2020, 2:56 PM EDT

The mystery surrounding the President Donald Trump's COVID-19 diagnosis and condition deepened Saturday after several rounds of confusing and contradictory information from the White House and the president's medical staff.

Amid the swirl of developments, sources told ABC News that Trump, who remains hospitalized, had been given supplemental oxygen and experienced shortness of breath, a potentially worrisome picture that appeared to contradict both the rosier statements from Trump's doctor and assessments that he was doing well both on Twitter and elsewhere.

Speaking outside Walter Reed Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, on Saturday, Trump's physician would not offer a clear, declarative statement about whether the president had received oxygen treatment since testing positive.

The press pool was told soon after by a "source familiar with the president's health" that Trump's "vitals over last 24 hours were very concerning and the next 48 hours will be critical in terms of his care."

The lack of transparency and clarity from the White House contributed to a troubling pattern surrounding the events of the last week, including learning of Hope Hicks' diagnosis by a media leak, as the U.S. faces a potential crisis of governance just a month before the election.

Numerous questions remained including how many people at the highest levels of government had been exposed after a week of events involving the president where social distancing and mask-wearing were lax and the integrity of the testing efforts at the White House and elsewhere.

Since Trump announced he had coronavirus, Sen. Mike Lee, Sen. Thom Tillis, Sen. Ron Johnson, Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel, Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former White House adviser Kellyanne Conway have announced they tested positive for COVID-19.

Saturday's headlines:

Here is how the news is developed on Saturday. All times Eastern.
Oct 03, 2020, 8:16 AM EDT

3rd member of the Senate Judiciary Committee to quarantine

Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse announced Saturday that although he has tested negative for COVID-19, he's going to quarantine in his home state due to his "close interaction" with other senators who have tested positive for the coronavirus.

Sasse is now at least the third member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, who was at the Sept. 26 Rose Garden ceremony for Amy Coney Barrett who is now quarantining or isolating. President Donald Trump nominated Coney Barrett to replace the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court.

The Nebraska senator said he'll undergo "further testing" back home.

"After consulting with the Senate attending physician and Nebraska doctors, he will work remotely from his home in Nebraska, undergoing further testing," a spokesperson for Sasse told ABC News. "He will return to Washington for in-person work beginning October 12. Ben, Melissa, and their kids are praying for the President, the First Lady, and a nation continuing to battle this nasty virus.”

Guests applaud President Donald Trump as he introduces 7th U.S. Circuit Court Judge Amy Coney Barrett, 48, as his nominee to the Supreme Court in the Rose Garden at the White House Sept. 26, 2020 in Washington, D.C.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Sasse and other Republicans have made confirming Coney Barrett a priority despite multiple positive COVID-19 tests from those who were at the ceremony.

While Republicans, who hold a two-seat majority on the committee, are determined to plow forward with confirmation hearings - with virtual attendance by infected members permitted - the panel rules stipulate that a majority of members must be "actually present" in order to vote on a nomination. 

"No bill, matter, or nomination shall be ordered reported from the Committee, however, unless a majority of the Committee is actually present at the time such action is taken and a majority of those present support the action taken," according to the committee rules. 

If Sens. Mike Lee and Thom Tillis, who both tested positive for the virus, were unable to appear in person, Republicans on the 22-member committee would be deprived of an in-person majority, given that all Democrats on the panel would be expected to oppose the nomination.

However, that scenario is unlikely.

Lee said he'll be done with his 10-day quarantine before the hearing. "I have spoken with Leader McConnell and Chairman Graham, and assured them I will be back to work in time to join my Judiciary Committee colleagues in advancing the Supreme Court nomination," he said in a statement Friday.

ABC News' Trish Turner contributed to this report.

Oct 03, 2020, 6:31 AM EDT

Trump campaign manager tests positive

Trump's campaign manager, Bill Stepien, tested positive for coronavirus Friday, sources familiar with the situation tell ABC News. Stepien had been at the presidential debate on Tuesday in Cleveland.

"I feel fine and will be back in the office as soon as I am given the green light," Stepien wrote in an email to staff.

In the meantime, deputy campaign manager Justin Clark will take over campaign operations. Stepien didn’t immediately respond to ABC News' request for comment on the news.

PHOTO: (FILES) In this file photo taken on August 28, 2020 Campaign manager Bill Stepien stands alongside US President Donald Trump as he speaks with reporters aboard Air Force One.
(FILES) In this file photo taken on August 28, 2020 Campaign manager Bill Stepien stands alongside US President Donald Trump as he speaks with reporters aboard Air Force One as he flies from Manchester, New Hampshire to Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, following a campaign rally. - US President Donald Trump's campaign manager Bill Stepien has tested positive for coronavirus, US media reported on October 2, 2020.
Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

Before his diagnosis late Friday, Stepien had said in a statement that campaign events were being postponed or moved to virtual events. In an email to campaign staff, he said that anyone who had exposure to someone who tested positive should immediately self-quarantine.

"While we do not believe anyone else without symptoms needs to self-quarantine at this time, it is on all of us to continue to exercise the smart judgment and practices the campaign has long encouraged: wear a mask, wash your hands, socially distance, check in via the live safe app on a daily basis and work from home if you're not feeling well," Stepien said in the email.

Stepien joins a growing list of those close to the president who have been diagnosed with COVID-19. Since Trump announced he and the first lady had coronavirus, Sen. Mike Lee, Sen. Thom Tillis, Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel and former counselor to the president Kellyanne Conway have all confirmed they have tested positive.