Joe Biden coughed into his hand while delivering his opening statement at the CNN-hosted Democratic presidential debate in Washington, D.C. on Sunday.
The former vice president and Bernie Sanders squared off in the first one-on-one debate of the Democratic presidential campaign during a widening crisis over the coronavirus that has dramatically upended the daily life of Americans.
The two candidates greeted each other by touching elbows, an unusual start to a Democratic presidential debate.
“First of all my heart goes out to those who have already lost someone,” Biden said in response to moderator Jake Tapper’s question about the new reality for Americans amid a coronavirus pandemic.
Biden coughed midway through his opening line and continued to do so at later points during the debate.
According to the Center for Disease Control, cough is a symptom of COVID-19, the disease that causes the novel coronavirus.
Wild strategy by Joe Biden to cough in his opening statement. #DemDebate pic.twitter.com/U74fwekDJJ
— David Blattman (@davidblattman) March 16, 2020
David Adams
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