The media loves it when a politician tests for positive for the coronavirus. If he’s a Republican, the story will be followed or preceded by, “He was skeptical about wearing masks, and now he tested positive.” If he’s a Democrat, like Governor Ralph ‘Sheets’ Northam, it’s a story about how anyone and everyone can get it.

Except that testing positive is meaningless.

Remember when Governor DeWine in Ohio tested positive and then he took a more accurate test and didn’t?

But Sheets’ official statement blames what sounds like a maid on his plantation.

On Wednesday evening, Governor Ralph Northam and First Lady Pamela Northam were notified that a member of the Governor’s official residence staff, who works closely within the couple’s living quarters, had developed symptoms and subsequently tested positive for COVID-19. Both the Governor and First Lady received PCR nasal swab tests yesterday afternoon, and both tested positive. 

If only they’d made their own damn beds.

But DeWine’s test also used a nasal swab and turned out to be wrong. So this entire circus may be meaningless.

Tests for the virus can have as high as a 90% error rate. So before Sheets starts whipping the maid, he might want to take a better test.