Claiming Covid-19 ‘immunity,’ Trump ready for election fight

US President Donald Trump on Sunday declared himself immune to Covid-19 and ready for a fight as his White House race against surging rival Joe Biden enters its critical final weeks.

Trump’s doctors gave him the all-clear Saturday to return to the campaign trail after he was ruled no longer a coronavirus transmission risk, and on Sunday he said while calling in to a campaign event that he tested “totally negative.”

But he has yet to be declared virus-free, and his immunity claim is unproven.

“It looks like I’m immune for, I don’t know, maybe a long time and maybe a short time, it could be a lifetime, nobody really knows, but I’m immune,” Trump told the Fox News show “Sunday Morning Futures.”

“The word immunity means something, having really a protective glow.

“So now you have a president who doesn’t have to hide in a basement like his opponent,” Trump added — in a jab at Democratic challenger Biden, who has taken a far more cautious approach to campaigning during the pandemic.

But it is not yet clear to what degree contracting Covid-19 confers immunity, with early studies suggesting a few months while newer ones have indicated it could last longer.

Twitter on Sunday hid a tweet from Trump in which he claimed he was immune, saying the post violated its rules about misleading and potentially harmful misinformation.

The tweet was still visible once users clicked through the warning. (AFP | Jerome CARTILLIER)