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Australian official who met with Ivanka Trump, AG Barr last week tests positive for coronavirus

The positive test for Australian Minister of Home Affairs Peter Dutton comes nine days after he said he met with the two and other officials during a trip to the U.S.
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WASHINGTON — An Australian government official who met last week with President Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump and Attorney General William Barr and other Trump aides has tested positive for the coronavirus.

“This morning I woke up with a temperature and sore throat," Minister for Home Affairs Peter Dutton said in a statement on Twitter on Friday morning. "I immediately contacted the Queensland Department of Health and was subsequently tested for COVID-19. I was advised by Queensland Health this afternoon that the test had returned positive.”

Dutton added that it’s the policy of the health department that anyone who tests positive must be admitted into the hospital, which he said he complied with.

“I feel fine and will provide an update in due course,” he said.

Dutton’s positive test comes nine days after he said he met with Ivanka, Barr and other officials during a trip to the United States. A day after the meeting, Dutton posted a photo on Twitter showing him standing with them and with Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway.

This comes after the White House said Thursday that it was aware of public reports that a member of the Brazilian delegation that visited the Mar-a-Lago resort last weekend tested positive for COVID-19.

“Both the president and vice president had almost no interactions with the individual who tested positive and do not require being tested at this time,” White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said of the Brazilian official.

The White House medical unit and the Secret Service have been “working closely with various agencies to ensure every precaution is taken to keep the First & Second Families, and all White House staff healthy," Grisham said.

DOJ spokesperson Kerri Kupec told NBC News that Barr “is feeling great and not showing any symptoms.” Barr is staying home today and has consulted with the CDC, who is not recommending testing at this point, she said.

On Friday morning, Sen. Lindsey Graham's, R-S.C., office said the senator had also met with Dutton on March 5.

"Senator Graham continues to work from home while under self-quarantine awaiting the results of a coronavirus test," his office said.