“Many doctors think it’s extremely successful”
Donald Trump has praised a doctor whose Covid-19 conspiracies have been banned from Twitter and Instagram, and who in the past has claimed that alien DNA is frequently used by medical professionals in the United States.
Trump was referring to a video where Dr Stella Immanuel claims that the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine can be used to treat Covid-19 patients.
The video was fact-checked by a number of social media sites and now won’t be played without a series of warnings first, detailing that the information spread in the video is factually incorrect.
Trump spoke about the drug on Tuesday, saying: “Many doctors think it’s extremely successful.”
Other claims by Immanuel include that sex with demons in your dreams can make you sick.
Earlier this year, the US president revealed he had been taking it regularly to prevent coronavirus infection, despite warnings over its use by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Hydroxychloroquine is an anti-malarial drug. It's not proven to reduce the risk of catching coronavirus.
Donald Trump has admitted to taking it. Now the UK government has bought 16 million tablets for testing. pic.twitter.com/Z2H6cTbBdB
— PoliticsJOE (@PoliticsJOE_UK) May 21, 2020
Trump’s son, Donald Trump Jr, was suspended by Twitter earlier in the week for also sharing the hydroxychloroquine video.
Twitter said the post had violated its Covid-19 misinformation rules.
The US President was discussing Dr Anthony Fauci’s approval ratings, and pointed out that his own administration should also be praised, as Fauci himself is a Trump administration employee.
Speaking of Fauci and other doctors working for the US government, Trump said: “And yet they’re highly thought of, but yet, nobody likes me. It can only be my personality, that’s all.”
Coronavirus deaths in the US reached 149,250 on Tuesday, according to Johns Hopkins University which has been tracking the virus since the beginning of the year.
