U.S. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) takes an elevator at the U.S. Capitol for a vote on March 18, 2020 in Washington, DC.
Win McNamee | Getty Images
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., has tested positive for coronavirus. He is the first known U.S. senator to test positive.
“Senator Rand Paul has tested positive for COVID-19. He is feeling fine and is in quarantine,” Paul’s office wrote on twitter. “He is asymptomatic and was tested out of an abundance of caution due to his extensive travel and events. He was not aware of any direct contact with any infected person.”
He expects to be back in the Senate after his quarantine period ends. No staff member has been in contact with Paul since his D.C. office began working remotely 10 days ago, according to the tweet.
Paul was the only senator to vote against the first round of emergency coronavirus funding of $8 billion earlier this month. The diagnosis comes as Senate Republicans and Democrats are negotiating over a massive economic stimulus bill.
Two members of the House – Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla., and Ben McAdams, D-Utah – have tested positive, adding urgency to their efforts to hold votes on an economic relief package. Several other House members said they had self-quarantined in recent days because of exposure to infected people.
Paul is one of the most hawkish senators on fiscal policy, often arguing against new spending. He has repeatedly signaled opposition to the massive, multi-trillion dollar spending packages being negotiated by the White House and lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
He has instead proposed smaller measures including a payroll tax holiday and temporary enhancements to state unemployment programs.
— CNBC’s Kevin Breuninger contributed to this report
