If President Trump really watches hours of cable news every morning, as The New York Times reported Thursday, he is going to have a bad Friday morning.
John Berman, co-host of CNN's New Day, started off Friday's show by calling Trump's Thursday night comments about possibly injecting disinfectant into the lungs of COVID-19 patients "a heartbreaking work of staggering ignorance." What Trump is suggesting, he added, "will hurt you." New Day showed some of Trump's comments, and Alisyn Camerota read the statement from Lysol warning people against putting disinfectants inside their bodies. Dr. Carlos del Rio at Emory University explained why Trump's ideas, which also included radiating ultraviolet or "powerful" light inside the body, are nonsensical.
Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, appeared to think it was a bad idea in real time, too.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Dr. Hilary Jones at Good Morning Britain explained cogently but bitingly why Trump's idea just wouldn't work.
"You know, I've heard some crazy things in my life, but this is probably one of the craziest," Jones said. "To use a disinfectant and inject it into the human body is not only toxic and highly poisonous but would do no good whatsoever. It would cause inflammation of human tissues, and not touch the virus at all, which actually lives in human cells, not on the surface of them. So he is completely and utterly crazy to suggest this." Sunlight also wouldn't affect the virus inside cells, he added. "It is true that the virus decays outside of the human body in ultraviolet light from the sun, but inside the body, of course, sunlight would do absolutely nothing, and how could you get sunshine into the human body?"
Luckily, Trump doesn't watch British morning shows. And maybe Fox & Friends was polite enough to discuss Joe Biden instead.
-
The Icelandic women’s strike 50 years onIn The Spotlight The nation is ‘still no paradise’ for women, say campaigners
-
Mall World: why are people dreaming about a shopping centre?Under The Radar Thousands of strangers are dreaming about the same thing and no one sure why
-
Why scientists are attempting nuclear fusionThe Explainer Harnessing the reaction that powers the stars could offer a potentially unlimited source of carbon-free energy, and the race is hotting up
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
-
Trump demands millions from his administrationSpeed Read The president has requested $230 million in compensation from the Justice Department for previous federal investigations
-
Trump nominee in limbo after racist texts leakSpeed Read Paul Ingrassia lost Republican support following the exposure of past racist text messages
-
Trump begins East Wing demolition for ballroomspeed read The president’s new construction will cost $250 million
-
Appeals court clears Trump’s Portland troop deploymentSpeed Read A divided federal appeals court ruled that President Trump can send the National Guard to Portland
-
Millions turn out for anti-Trump ‘No Kings’ ralliesSpeed Read An estimated 7 million people participated, 2 million more than at the first ‘No Kings’ protest in June
