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Donald Trump didn’t “recommend” injecting disinfectant, per se, but he didn’t need to go as far as recommending it. All he had to do was wonder out loud about its possible effectiveness against COVID-19 for some of his supporters to jump on board, and the rest to make excuses for him. Are disinfectants destined to be the new hydroxychloroquine in the eyes of Trump’s base? the rest of us wondered.

Trump had just heard a presentation by undersecretary for science and technology William Bryan, of the Department of Homeland Security. Bryan was discussing a study that found that exposure to the sun and the use of disinfectants such as bleach can weaken or kill the virus. Bryan was referring to the use of disinfectants as cleaning agents on surfaces and as aerosol sprays, not as treatments to be ingested or injected into the body.

During his April 23 coronavirus press briefing, Trump mentioned the possibility of “bringing light inside the body” as a possible way to eliminate the virus from patients. He then embarked on a riff about perhaps injecting disinfectant to treat COVID-19.

“And then I see the disinfectant, where it knocks it out in one minute. And is there a way we can do something like that, by injection inside or almost a cleaning, because you see it gets in the lungs and it does a tremendous number on the lungs, so it’d be interesting to check that, so that you’re going to have to use medical doctors with, but it sounds interesting to me.”

Understandably, many Americans were aghast. Certainly, we’ve developed a degree of numbness to Trump’s absurd statements, to his often ignorant pronouncements, and his presumption to know more than the experts on…well, just about any topic. But Trump’s conjecture about the possibility of using cleaning agents internally to fight COVID-19 likely shocked even many six-year-olds who were taught by their parents that you mustn’t ever, ever, ever drink such things.

With each of Donald Trump’s increasingly preposterous and unhinged statements or actions, many Americans have said, time after time, “This one is it. Surely, this time is the last straw. No one can possibly believe/support/excuse this.” This was another one of those times.

And yet, as the story spread through the news outlets, Donald Trump’s supporters rushed to clarify, defend, or deny Trump’s words.

Those of Trump’s base who didn’t interpret Trump’s words as a recommendation rallied around him to defend what he said as “not what he said.”

Many of Trump’s defenders immediately took to social media, spending the weekend posting articles and comments “pointing out” that those who vaccinate “already inject disinfectants,” and touting all manner of related unproven and fringe treatments. As if this somehow meant that it might actually be ok to try injecting a home cleaning agent. As if this somehow made it ok for Trump to plant the idea into the malleable heads of some of his followers.

Trump apologists such as Breitbart and Fox, followed by all who only get their news from those sources, attempted to “clarify” Trump’s remarks, yet did nothing to effectively explain what he might have meant.

Joel B. Pollak of Breitbart wrote, “Trump used the word ‘inject,’ but what he meant was using a process — which he left ‘medical doctors’ to define — in which patients’ lungs might be cleared of the virus, given new knowledge about its response to light and other factors.”

Fox News’ Laura Ingraham blamed the media for misrepresenting what Trump had said. Notably, Ingraham did not replay what Trump actually said so that her audience could hear for themselves. Instead, she played clips of the shocked responses by CNN and MSNBC journalists.

“So was he telling Americans to drink Clorox? Really?” Ingraham sneered.

“Absolutely not,” responded Fox contributor Sara Carter. “These are journalists that don’t let the facts stand in the way of their lies. They hate Donald Trump, the president, so much that they will twist his words whenever they can at the expense of the American people.”

What of the Trump devotees who did listen to Trump, and who interpreted his words as a possible recommendation? And what of the manufacturers of Lysol and other disinfectants who were so alarmed by Trump’s comments that they immediately issued warnings against taking their products internally?

As for Donald Trump, himself, he claimed a day later that clearly he was being sarcastic.

“I was asking a question sarcastically to reporters like you, just to see what would happen,” he said to reporters on Friday.

Breitbart’s Pollak, who had earlier attempted to “clarify” what Trump meant, subsequently changed his position, siding with Trump that Trump was just being sarcastic.

The idea that everyone should have understood Trump’s speculation to be mere sarcasm, if it was, ignores the fact that New York City poison control centers reported an increase in calls in the 18 hours following Trump’s speculation about injecting disinfectants to treat coronavirus.

The most shocking and irresponsible defense of Trump came from infectious disease specialist Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House pandemic response coordinator. When asked by CNN’s Jake Tapper for her opinion about Trump’s remarks, she didn’t give a medical opinion, but instead defended Trump’s words as a harmless “dialogue” with health professionals, saying he was just “wondering out loud” about the possibility of using disinfectants internally.

Americans knew that they could count on Trump’s base and his loyal news outlets to defend, explain, and justify his every word and action. But when one of the medical experts we count on to keep us safe declines to acknowledge the recklessness of Trump’s words, and instead, as Birx did, blames the furor on the media for replaying them, it seems as if we’re running out of options for whom we can look to for our well-being.

If it’s true that Trump was just misunderstood, it’s also true that no leader should ever have casual “dialogue” with medical professionals in front of the public about the possibility of using harmful chemicals internally as a treatment. If the truth is that Trump was just being sarcastic, that, too, was reckless in light of the fact that some might take Trump’s “musing” as a recommendation (and some apparently did). Every possible spin by Trump and his supporters on Trump’s feckless speculation is simply a defense of the indefensible.

“When the person with the most powerful position on the planet is encouraging people to think about disinfectants, whether it was serious or not, people listen,” said Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer.

Americans poison themselves after Trump’s ‘disinfectant injection’ suggestion | City News Toronto [2020-04-26]

Trump: Disinfectant comments were ‘sarcastic’ | Associated Press
[2020-04-24]

As the coronavirus continues to ravage the U.S., Donald Trump and his sycophants admonish, “no finger-pointing.” Pleas from governors for resources, questions from journalists about statistics, dissent from health experts about treatments and precautions against the virus—Trump and his supporters avoid meaningful responses to any of those, and instead label them as “partisan finger-pointing.”

Family therapists know this ploy well. It’s the old scenario where the bad actor tries to deflect from his bad behavior by reframing the other’s response to it as the actual bad behavior.

Donald Trump has not only shown his inability and unwillingness to take responsibility for his mistakes and failures, but also—despite wanting to be seen as leader—for trying to prevent them. He has demonstrated his uncanny knack for gaslighting his way out of any culpability for a crisis so that his base perceive it as the fault of the opponent. Anyone who calls attention to one of Trump’s disasters by simply asking a question or presenting a fact, is pejoratively labeled a “finger pointer.” To his base, this excuses Trump from justifying or explaining himself.

“No finger-pointing” is often little more than an attempt to deflect blame or responsibility by implying that the “finger pointer” is petty, is against finding a solution, and is part of the problem.

The coronavirus itself is not Donald Trump’s fault, but we can certainly do a good deal of justified finger-pointing straight at Donald J. Trump for how it has played out here in the U.S. It is he who has shown himself to be against finding a real solution; it is he who has exacerbated the problem.

We can point the finger at Donald Trump for his downplaying of the virus, and his message to his base that it was a hoax. For 10 weeks, Trump disregarded the seriousness of the situation, calling it a flu that would “miraculously” disappear on its own with the warmer weather.

Consequently, even amid the ubiquitous reports of COVID-19 deaths, the footage of overcrowded hospital emergency rooms, and the daily statistics of new cases, some Trump supporters still refuse to believe that the coronavirus and the decimation it has caused are little more than “fake news.” Insisting on “living their lives” and refusing to take social distancing measures, they have without question been responsible for at least some of the spread. As of April 23, there were 826,936 confirmed cases in the U.S. Just two months ago, on February 22, there were 15 cases.

Had Donald Trump insisted from the beginning that his base take the crisis seriously and observe precautions, there is no doubt they would have unquestioningly obeyed. One can only wonder at the great impact the words of their leader could have had on slowing the overall spread. The finger points directly at Donald Trump.

Trump’s culpability in this crisis began long before we had heard of COVID-19. In 2018, he disbanded The Global Health Security and Biodefense unit (the pandemic response team formed by president Barack Obama) that was responsible for pandemic preparedness. Though some members of the team were reassigned, this dismantling of the team left the U.S. unprepared for a pandemic. Trump also “streamlined” our ability to respond to a health crisis by allowing maintenance contracts to lapse on crucial equipment such as ventilators, and by failing to maintain and store sufficient supplies such as personal protective equipment (PPE).

While he failed to act for that 10 weeks, did that cross his conscience? Was he hoping no one would notice? A leader with integrity might acknowledge that this was a huge mistake, quickly act to correct it, and go forward as best he or she could. At worst, a different leader might try to justify it, yet still do what he/she should to pick up the remaining pieces and act.

But Trump has shown us a new “worst.” Instead of responding to the quickly spreading virus, he pretended that none of it was happening until it was too late. He continues to discredit the warnings and advice of public health experts, and dismisses scientific data. The finger can point nowhere but to Donald Trump.

When it became clear that he could no longer avoid the crisis caused by the spread of the disease, he did little else but cast blame. Despite his administration’s own admonition against finger-pointing, he blamed his predecessor, Obama, for the federal government’s lack of pandemic preparedness, though, even if true, Trump has had three years to correct it. He blamed the states’ governors for needing too much from him. He blamed China because “they started it.” He blamed the Democrats, because, you know…Democrats.

“I don’t take responsibility at all,” said President Donald Trump on March 13, regarding the exponential spread of the coronavirus in the U.S.

And yet, when this is all over, if it is ever really over, Donald Trump will take responsibility for any scrap of perceived success or victory. In fact, he’ll hyperbolize it. We can expect him to again cite his “closing off the U.S. to China” as the one thing that prevented more deaths in the U.S. (He has already said it could have been “billions” of deaths out of our population of 330 million). He continually cites that one move because that is the only move he can claim.

In the absence of Donald Trump’s leadership, governors and other leaders have assumed responsibility for the well-being of their constituents, and have voiced their willingness to shoulder blame should their decisions have backlash. It’s notable, too, that these leaders have been quick to praise and give credit to many others’ responses to the pandemic.

Placing blame will not move us successfully through the COVID-19 pandemic. It does, however, make clear the trajectory our country took toward its current position as global leader in the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases while lagging behind other countries in our pandemic response. The Trump administration’s “no finger-pointing” is a desperate attempt at making us forget that.

Fact-check: A timeline of how President Trump responded to the coronavirus | WGN [2020-04-05]

Donald Trump: criticism of coronavirus response is ‘political’ |
The Telegraph [2020-04-21]

Category: *All

Editorial: Injecting Disinfectant: Trump’s Comments Need a Warning Label

Editorial: Trump’s Coronavirus Smoke Screen: “No Finger-Pointing”