Extraordinary news
The Guardian is startled by Trump’s news.
Extraordinary news emerging from the White House – the president has mentioned that he has been taking hydroxychloroquine. This is the dubious treatment for coronavirus that Trump had fiercely touted in the past but which was found to have a very mixed effect on patients.
Mixed, perhaps, but also non-coronavirus-preventing. I think there’s no more reason to think hydroxychloroquine will prevent the virus than there is to think marshmallow fluff will, or varnish, or gypsum, or brine, or the urine of a rabid bat.
The US Food and Drug Administration cautions against use of hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine for Covid-19 outside of a hospital setting or a clinical trial due to risk of heart rhythm problems.
Yes but what have you got to lose? Can’t answer that, can you.
The FDA has warned against using hydroxychloroquine or a related compound, chloroquine, for treating or preventing Covid-19 without medical supervision in a hospital, or as part of a clinical trial.
“While clinical trials are ongoing to determine the safety and effectiveness of these drugs for Covid-19, there are known side effects of these medications that should be considered,” the FDA commissioner, Stephen M Hahn, said in a statement issued in late April. “The FDA will continue to monitor and investigate these potential risks and will communicate publicly when more information is available.”
Blah blah blah, but Trump knows better.
Oh well, it’s not like he’s in a high-risk group. He’s not a senior. He’s 35 years old! (In his head). It’s what he sees in the mirror!
And of course, his heart and kidneys will be in tip-top condition because of his careful adherence to a healthy diet and exercise regimen and absolutely no drugs taken for high cholesterol or in fact any drugs at all. Except for the ones he takes which, obviously, don’t count because he says he doesn’t take any drugs so if he takes a drug then it is immediately transformed into Skittles. Skittles are fruit-flavored so they obviously count as fruit. See how healthy he is!
Claire, french fries are vegetables, the pickle on his hamberder is a fruit, and diet coke comes from a cola nut, which is a fruit. See? Healthy.
So I guess those pickles in my refrigerator won’t protect me after all? Darn.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. But all that stuff applies to others. Not to the man who is the centre of the Universe. Anyhow, we just have to wait a while and it will all go away. We have that on Presidential Authority. Can’t get more authoritative than that. Meanwhile, I’m buying shares in disinfectant and drain cleaner. What could possibly go wrong?
I don’t believe he’s really taking it. I can believe he asked for it, and I can believe that his doctor may have provided him with something to take, but I don’t believe he is actually ingesting that drug.
I doubt he’s taking it. After all, he’s passed his coronavirus test, so as far as he’s concerned, now he’s fully qualified as corona-free. Or something.