President Donald J. Trump’s foes foamed at the mouth, yet again, when he dreamed last month that hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), perhaps coupled with Zithromax (azithromycin), might defeat COVID-19, for which there is no cure or vaccine.
Trump discussed this 65-year-old anti-malaria drug during a daily briefing on this pandemic. "It’s shown very, very encouraging early results” among researchers Trump said. These two drugs "taken together, have a real chance to be one of the biggest game changers in the history of medicine," he declared via Twitter.
"Very encouraging" and "real chance" are words of aspiration — not prescription.
And Trump repeatedly has said that these drugs ultimately might fail, but should be investigated. "What the hell do you have to lose?" he asked.
Never mind! The Trump haters practically sued him for medical malpractice
Even as its hometown devolved into COVID-19’s epicenter, the so-called "paper of record" slammed Trump. Based on "minimal evidence," this "news" outlet sniffed, Trump’s enthusiasm for this possible treatment "defies science."
One of its headlines crowed as conclusively as if it reported that the Sun rose in the east:
"No, These Medicines Cannot Cure Coronavirus."
The Washington Post hurled this rotten tomato at the president, "Trump is giving people false hope of coronavirus cures. It’s all snake oil."
"Trump peddles unsubstantiated hope in dark times," CNN scolded.
Even worse, the lightly viewed channel’s John Berman lied by claiming that an Arizona man died after consuming a chlorine-based aquarium cleaner after Trump endorsed "that drug."
Fake news! Hydroxychloroquine stops malaria. Chloroquine phosphate sterilizes fish tanks.
CNN concealed this life-and-death distinction.
This Arizonan’s demise is no more Trump’s fault than if the president urged someone to "put some sodium chloride in your soup."
If that individual then poured sodium into his chicken broth, rather than table salt, Trump would be blameless for any ensuing fire, explosion, or demise that befell anyone incapable of differentiating these substances.
Trump-hating Democrat governors then joined in. Nevada’s Steve Sisolak banned these drugs as COVID-19 treatments. Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer saw Sisolak’s bet and raised him $1 million: The woman who officially rebutted Trump’s latest State of the Union, threatened inquests and “administrative action” against doctors who prescribed and pharmacists who dispensed these remedies.
Fascinating: The same Democrats who would dive onto swords to defend a woman’s right to choose to abort her child would hurl her doctor and pharmacist onto swords if she chose HCQ and Zithromax to prevent her death from COVID-19.
This is the ultimate in anti-Trump rage: The president thinks something might heal the sick. But "der Orangienführer" is evil.
Anything Trump likes must be crushed. And if that means Americans die — whatever.
These critics now have been exposed as cruel, heartless, and stupid.
The FDA on Sunday approved HCQ for "emergency use" against COVID-19.
The University of Minnesota on March 17 launched a quadruple-blind Phase I and II clinical trial on 1,500 patients. New York State has secured 70,000 doses of HCQ and 10,000 of azithromycin for research, including one experiment now observing 1,100 patients.
HCQ donations are cascading into the national stockpile: 1 million doses from Bayer, 6 million from Teva, 30 million from Sandoz, and 130 million from Novartis.
Meanwhile, Governor Whitmer flip-flopped and now seeks heaps of HCQ for COVID-stricken Michiganders.
In a Sermo survey, doctors in 30 countries rated HCQ "the most effective therap." against this virus.
And the Old Gray Lady’s hands must have quaked when she scribbled this headline Wednesday: "Malaria Drug Helps Coronavirus Patients Improve, in Small Study."
Researchers in Wuhan, China, treated 62 COVID-19 patients. Half got HCQ. Half did not.
The former suffered coughs and fever a day less than the latter. More impressive: Pneumonia decreased among 81 percent of HCQ subjects versus 55% of the others.
Let’s hope scientists also cure the psychopathology enslaving those who believe that between COVID-19 and the president, Donald J. Trump is more lethal.
Bucknell University’s Michael Malarkey contributed research to this opinion piece.
Deroy Murdock is a Manhattan-based Fox News Contributor, a contributing editor with National Review Online, and a senior fellow with the London Center for Policy Research. Read more opinions from Deroy Murdock — Click Here Now.
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