Alex Wong / Getty Images WASHINGTON — Hope Hicks, one of people closest to President Donald Trump, has reportedly tested positive for the coronavirus. Multiple news outlets reported Thursday that Hicks tested positive after traveling to Ohio on Air Force One with the president for Tuesday’s first presidential debate. She was with Trump as recently as Wednesday, when Hicks traveled with the president for a Minnesota campaign rally. Monica Alba @albamonica Close Trump aide Hope Hicks traveled aboard Air Force One Tuesday. Here she is deplaning in Cleveland, without a mask. 12:15 AM - 02 Oct 2020 Reply Retweet Favorite Hicks is the latest member of the administration to test positive for the virus. More than 7 million Americans have tested positive for COVID-19 since the pandemic began in March. And last week, the country surpassed 200,000 coronavirus-related deaths. “The President takes the health and safety of himself and everyone who works in support of him and the American people very seriously,” White House spokesperson Judd Deere said in a statement. “White House Operations collaborates with the Physician to the President and the White House Military Office to ensure all plans and procedures incorporate current CDC guidance and best practices for limiting COVID-19 exposure to the greatest extent possible both on complex and when the President is traveling.” Deere declined to confirm if it was Hicks who tested positive, or say if the president was in close contact with someone who tested positive. Hicks served as the White House communications director for less than a year in 2017. She was named counselor in the administration in February 2020. During her break with the administration, she was a witness during the Mueller hearing in Congress where she stonewalled members, refusing to answer questions related to her time on the campaign.