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President Trump’s hospitaliza-tion with the coronavirus has cat-apulted this week’s vice-presiden-tial debate into the spotlight to anextraordinary degree, puttingpressure on Vice President MikePence and Senator Kamala Harristo use this forum to reassure ananxious public they are preparedand qualified to step in as presi-dent.

Mr. Trump’s diagnosis with apotentially lethal virus — and thefact that he is 74 and his Demo-cratic rival, Joseph R. Biden Jr., is77 — was a stark reminder that ei-ther Mr. Pence or Ms. Harris couldend up being president them-selves, as opposed to just leadingcontenders for the nomination in2024 and beyond.

For Mr. Pence, the debate on

Wednesday will most likely com-pel him to account for the adminis-tration’s record on a virus that hasnow infected 7.4 million Ameri-cans — including the most pro-tected man in the country, Mr.Trump — and answer for his ownstewardship as chairman of thefederal coronavirus task force.For Ms. Harris, a former prosecu-tor, the debate is a chance to showthat she is capable of being presi-dent in a national emergency, aswell as to demonstrate that shecan challenge the Trump recordon Covid-19 without seemingoverly aggressive against an ail-ing president.

Depending on how quickly Mr.Trump recovers, his condition

Prepared to Grab the Reins?A Debate Gains in Importance

By ADAM NAGOURNEY and SHANE GOLDMACHER

Senator Kamala Harris and Vice President Mike Pence are set tosquare off in a debate on Wednesday at the University of Utah.

LEFT, PETE KIEHART FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES; MARK MAKELA FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

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WASHINGTON — PresidentTrump sought to dispel any per-ception of weakness on Sundaywith a surprise and seeminglyrisky outing from his hospital bedto greet supporters even as hisdoctors once again rewrote the of-ficial narrative of his illness by ac-knowledging two alarmingepisodes they had previously notdisclosed.

The doctors said that Mr.Trump’s blood oxygen leveldropped twice in the two days af-ter he was diagnosed with the co-ronavirus, requiring medical in-tervention, and that he had beenput on steroids, suggesting hiscondition might be more seriousthan initially described. But theyinsisted that his situation had im-proved enough since then that hecould be released from the hospi-tal as early as Monday.

The acknowledgment of theepisodes raised new questionsabout the credibility of the infor-mation provided about the com-mander in chief of a superpoweras he is hospitalized with a diseasethat has killed more than 209,000people in the United States. Withthe president determined not toconcede weakness and facing anelection in just 30 days, officialsacknowledged providing rosy as-sessments to satisfy their pricklypatient.

Determined to reassert himselfon the political stage on his thirdday in the hospital, Mr. Trumpmade an unannounced exit fromWalter Reed National MilitaryMedical Center in the earlyevening, climbing into his ar-mored Chevrolet Suburban to ride

TROUBLING FACTSFROM PHYSICIANSUNDERCUT TRUMP

Taking Risky Ride toProject Optimism

By PETER BAKERand MAGGIE HABERMAN

President Trump left the hospital for a brief outing that some medical experts said was reckless and endangered Secret Service agents.ALEX EDELMAN/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE — GETTY IMAGES

Continued on Page A5

President Trump’s doctors of-fered rosy assessments of his con-dition on Sunday, but the few med-ical details they disclosed — in-cluding his fluctuating oxygenlevels and a decision to begintreatment with a steroid drug —suggested to many infectious dis-ease experts that he is suffering amore severe case of Covid-19 thanthe physicians acknowledged.

In photos and videos releasedby the White House, there ishardly any sign that Mr. Trump issick. But at a news conference atthe Walter Reed National MilitaryMedical Center in Bethesda, Md.,Mr. Trump’s doctors said his oxy-gen levels had dropped to a levelthat can indicate that a patient'slungs are compromised. Thesymptom is seen in many patientswith severe Covid-19.

The president’s medical teamalso said that he had been pre-scribed dexamethasone on Satur-day. The drug is a steroid used tohead off an immune system over-reaction that kills many Covid-19patients.

The drug is reserved for thosewith severe illness because it hasnot been shown to benefit thosewith milder forms of the diseaseand may even be risky.

Because of the incomplete pic-ture offered by the president’sdoctors, it was not clear whetherthey had given him dexametha-sone too quickly, or whether thepresident was far sicker than hasbeen publicly acknowledged, ex-perts in infectious disease andemergency medicine said on Sun-day.

“The dexamethasone is the

Steroid May Signala Severe Case

By KATIE THOMASand RONI CARYN RABIN

Continued on Page A6

DOHA, Qatar — They are hereto end their fathers’ war.

On both sides of the negotia-tions between the Afghan govern-ment and the Taliban are nearly adozen children of men who playedkey roles in the Soviet conflict inthe 1980s that set off four decadesof violence and loss.

Some of their fathers have sincedied of old age, insurgents to theend. Some faced more violent

deaths, blown up in suicide bomb-ings that have become a trade-mark of the war’s brutality. Manyof the ones who have survived,their chests decked out in themedals and insignia of a conflictthat has inflicted misery on mil-lions, grew rich — enjoying pal-

aces, political fortune, massivewealth. But they still play hide andseek with death.

Those fathers fought alongsideeach other to drive out the Soviets,then turned their guns on eachother in the power vacuum thatfollowed, waging an atrocity-filledcivil war.

Now, their children know all toowell what is at stake as the UnitedStates military continues its with-drawal with the peace talks in Qa-tar still up in the air: If the Afghan

It Was Their Fathers’ War. They Aim to End It.By MUJIB MASHAL Facing Legacies of Strife

at Afghan Peace Talks

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WASHINGTON — For months,Joseph R. Biden Jr. has gone togreat lengths to model responsi-ble health behavior in the corona-virus era. He wears masks in pub-lic. He does not hold crowded ral-lies. When he gives speeches, re-porters sit at a distance from oneanother, with white circles on theground to mark their turf.

These actions have so farhelped keep Mr. Biden healthyand able to continue campaigningwhile President Trump, whomocked masks and held largeevents, is now hospitalized withCovid-19.

But beyond the public examplesof safety precautions, Mr. Biden’shealth protocols have remainedlargely under wraps, with hiscampaign saying little about whatsteps it is taking to protect the 77-year-old Democratic nominee.

His aides will not answer ques-tions about whether Mr. Biden istested daily; they say simply thathe is tested “regularly.” Until thisweekend, they had promised to in-form the public only if he had aconfirmed positive case. Then, onSaturday night, after two days ofrefusing to provide details aboutMr. Biden’s testing procedures,the campaign committed to re-leasing the results of all of histests. He tested negative on Sun-day, his campaign said.

Transparency has taken on newsignificance in the presidentialrace given the conflicting infor-

Biden Is FacingOwn Questions

About TestingThis article is by Thomas Kaplan,

Apoorva Mandavilli and KatieGlueck.

Continued on Page A8

For many weeks, public healthofficials had expressed concernthat a second wave of the corona-virus would hit New York City,which until recently had achievedstriking success in beating backthe outbreak after a devastatingspring that left more than 20,000residents dead.

On Sunday, with those fearsgrowing, Mayor Bill de Blasio an-nounced an emergency crack-down, saying that he intended toimpose new restrictions in 20 hot

spots in Brooklyn and Queens thathave been experiencing risingpositivity rates.

The plan is a major setback forNew York City, amounting to thefirst significant reversal in the re-opening and offering further evi-dence of the challenges in curbingthe pandemic. The city over thelast month had taken severalstrides forward, allowing indoordining for the first time and be-coming the first major school dis-trict in the country to bring chil-dren back into its public schools.

But under the new restrictions,Mr. de Blasio would close allschools — public and private — innine of the city’s 146 ZIP codes, as

well as all nonessential busi-nesses. Indoor and outdoor diningin restaurants in those areas willnot be allowed.

“Today, unfortunately, is not aday for celebration,” Mr. de Blasiosaid. “Today is a more difficultday.”

The nine areas have large popu-lations of Orthodox Jews — com-

munities where the virus has beenspreading rapidly and where pub-lic health officials have struggledto persuade many residents to ad-here to guidelines on mask wear-ing and social distancing.

Those areas all have had posi-tivity rates in recent days of morethan 3 percent — and some as highas 8 percent — in contrast to thecity’s overall rate of about 1.5 per-cent. Public health officials havebeen worried that the uptick incases would jump from Orthodoxneighborhoods to others, leadingto a resurgence of the virus acrossthe city.

In another 11 ZIP codes, the city

New York City Adopts Targeted Shutdowns as Hot Spots EmergeThis article is by Dana Rubin-

stein, Daniel E. Slotnik, Eliza Sha-piro and Liam Stack.

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Rolling Back Reopeningin 20 NeighborhoodsIs a Major Setback

“We are moving backward fast” a yearafter an authoritarian ruler was ousted,a former protest leader said. PAGE A10

INTERNATIONAL A10-13

Change Is Fleeting in AlgeriaIn a documentary, the naturalist DavidAttenborough maps how steeply theplanet’s biodiversity has diminishedover his lifetime. A review. PAGE C6

ARTS C1-6

‘A Life on Our Planet’

Londoners’ lax regard for coronavirusrules is a contrast to the revered conceptof the city’s grit in World War II. PAGE A12

The Limits of a City’s Legacy

You can still safely celebrate the ghoul-ish season, but trick-or-treating andother fun may have to be modified toprotect against Covid-19. PAGE A4

TRACKING AN OUTBREAK A4-9

Halloween Boos and Don’tsEmbracing rooftop panels to savemoney, homeowners have turned thecoal-loving country into a powerhouseof renewable energy. PAGE B1

BUSINESS B1-7

Australia Goes SolarTennis players at the French Open facelimits on their movements in Paris. Butat a hotel near the Eiffel Tower wherethey are staying, members of the publiccan get rooms. PAGE D1

SPORTSMONDAY D1-7

A Bubble That Really Isn’t

HUMILITY’S BENEFITS Positive tests among the presidents’ allies showwhy politicians are advised to be humble. Washington Memo. PAGE A7

CREDIBILITY LOST The president’s physician confessed that he hadmisled the public, losing the trust of some of his peers. PAGE A6

Cases on health care and religiousobjections could offer early clues abouthow much the court shifts. PAGE A16

NATIONAL A14-17

Supreme Court’s Next Move

This weekend, teams of activists can-vassed Florida to register ex-felonsbefore a deadline on Monday. PAGE A17

Restoring Voting Rights

MICHAEL REYNOLDS/EPA, VIA SHUTTERSTOCK

Organizers in Washington set up 20,000 chairs on Sunday to honor 200,000 victims of Covid-19.Seating Those Who Are No Longer Here

Pay-advance apps have been down-loaded millions of times, but the servicecomes with question marks. PAGE B1

The Cost of an Early Payday

A renowned educator who battled rac-ism, Lucy Diggs Slowe empoweredwomen at Howard University. PAGE B8

OBITUARIES A20, B8

Overlooked No More

W.N.B.A. players realized the power ofnot saying the name of a team owner, aUnited States senator who criticizedtheir activism, Kurt Streeter writes.Sports of The Times. PAGE D1

Who’s Left Unsaid Matters

Aaron E. Carroll PAGE A18

EDITORIAL, OP-ED A18-19

Late Edition

VOL. CLXX . . . . No. 58,837 © 2020 The New York Times Company NEW YORK, MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2020

Today, passing morning showers, af-ternoon sunshine, seasonable, high68. Tonight, mainly clear, low 56. To-morrow, mostly sunny, high 70.Weather map appears on Page D8.

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