I find that I cannot predict the various side-stories and absolutely random conspiracies Donald Trump will create out of thin air and then promote endlessly. Considering we are still very much in the midst of a global pandemic which has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives, I would never have predicted that Donald Trump’s peabrain would have latched onto an antimalarial drug as some kind of coronavirus cure-all. I probably could have predicted that Trump would continue to bring up hydroxychloroquine in briefings even after weeks of every medical professional coming out and saying “do not take hydroxychloroquine for the virus.” But here’s an expected turn: it seems like Donald Bigly has been taking hydroxychloroquine for days/weeks? What the f–k.

President Donald Trump on Monday told reporters he’s been taking hydroxychloroquine, the anti-malaria drug he’s touted as a possible “game changer” treatment for COVID-19. He said he asked the White House doctor if he could take the unproven treatment despite having no symptoms, adding he’s been taking a pill a day for about a week-and-a-half.

“I’m still fine,” he said, referring to possible dangerous side effects. The FDA last month specifically warned against taking hydroxychloroquine “outside of a hospital setting or a clinical trial due to risk of heart rhythm problems.”

“I asked him, ‘What do you think?’ He said,’Well if you’d like it.’” I said, ‘Yeah I’d like it. I’d like to take it. A lot of people to take it a lot of frontline workers are taking hydroxychloroquine.” Trump claimed. “So, I’m taking the zinc and the hydroxy. And all I can tell you is, so far I seem to be okay.”

The president said he’s received “a lot of positive letters” offering good feedback of hydroxychloroquine and insisted even if it’s not effective, he claimed, “You’re not going to get sick or die. And it seems to have an impact — and maybe it does, maybe it doesn’t — but if it doesn’t, you’re not going to get sick or die. This is a, a pill that’s been used for a long time for 30, 40 years on the malaria and or lupus to, and even on arthritis I guess from what I understand, so it’s been heavily tested in terms of,” the president said. “What do you have to lose,” he added.

When surprised reporters asked if he were taking it because he’s exhibited symptoms, the president replied, “Zero symptoms.” Trump told them that he was “just waiting to see your eyes light up when I said this,” adding, “and I’m still here. I’m still here to explain to you. I take a pill every day. At some point, I’ll stop. What I’d like to do is I’d like to have the cure and/or the vaccine. And that will happen, I think, very soon,” he added.

[From ABC News]

“You’re not going to get sick or die” except for all of the people – mostly Trump’s ignorant followers – who did decide to take hydroxychloroquine and they got really sick and some of them died. That’s why there were so many doctors and specialists coming out LAST MONTH to tell people not to take hydroxychloroquine. And Trump is somehow taking it? Probably not. He’s probably just lying his fat ass off and trying to get more people to take it because of some tenuous business relationship he or Jared Kushner has with the company. “What do you have to lose,” is what he said to the African-American community about voting for him. That’s where we are. Also: if Trump is such a big fan of taking unproven medicines for coronavirus prevention, surely he should take his own advice and drink some bleach too?

Oh, hours later, Nancy Pelosi appeared on Anderson Cooper’s CNN show and she was asked about Trump taking this drug. She said she would prefer if Trump did not take the drug because of his “age group and his, shall we say, weight group, he’s morbidly obese.” YAS KWEEN NANCY.

Nancy Pelosi calls Trump “morbidly obese” pic.twitter.com/NEBc0kqMwC

— Andrew Lawrence (@ndrew_lawrence) May 19, 2020

Photos courtesy of Backgrid and Avalon Red.