Trump's "Inject Disinfectant" Remarks

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Overview

Trump's "Inject Disinfectant" Remarks refer to speculation by President Donald Trump that the coronavirus could be medically combatted by bringing "light inside the body" or getting an "injection" of "disinfectant." The remarks were swiftly denounced by medical professionals and mocked on social media.

Background

On April 23rd, 2020, President Trump held a press briefing on live television about the coronavirus with Bill Bryan, who leads the Department of Homeland Security's science and technology division.^[1] Bryan first presented research in which his team concluded the virus dies quickest in the sunlight and in humid temperatures, leading Trump to speculate:

"So supposing we hit the body with a tremendous -- whether it's ultraviolet or just a very powerful light -- and I think you said that hasn't been checked because of the testing. And then I said, supposing you brought the light inside the body, which you can do either through the skin or some other way, and I think you said you're going to test that, too."

He also added:

"I see the disinfectant that knocks it out in a minute, one minute. And is there a way we can do something like that by injection inside or almost a cleaning? As you see, it gets in the lungs, it does a tremendous number on the lungs, so it would be interesting to check that."

Developments

The comments were swiftly denounced online and by medical professionals. Dr. Vin Gupta, a correspondent with NBC, said, "This notion of injecting or ingesting any type of cleansing product into the body is irresponsible and it’s dangerous. It’s a common method that people utilize when they want to kill themselves." Speaking to the Washington Post,^[2] Dr. Craig Spencer, director of global health in emergency medicine at New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center said, "My concern is that people will die. People will think this is a good idea."

Lysol, a popular disinfectant brand, also condemned the idea, saying to the Washington Post, "We must be clear that under no circumstance should our disinfectant products be administered into the human body (through injection, ingestion or any other route). With all products, our disinfectant and hygiene products should only be used as intended and in line with usage guidelines. Please read the label and safety information."

The statement was also strongly condemned on social media, with hashtags #disinfectant^[3] and #DontDrinkBleach^[4] trending on April 24th. #TidePodPresident^[5] also trended that day, as people compared Trump's remarks to the infamous Tide POD Challenge trend of 2018. Twitter user @AnthonyDNorton^[6] used the hashtag in a tweet gaining over 120 retweets and 480 likes (shown below, left). User @Jennaaaaagg^[7] posted Tide PODs on plates, joking they were dishes from the Trump Hotel (shown below, right).

Twitter user @WesClarkJr^[8] pointed out that on March 23rd, he had tweeted wondering when Trump would tell his followers to drink bleach, gaining over 19,000 retweets and 72,000 likes (shown below, left). Former Deadspin writer @AlbertBurneko^[9] pointed out that in 2017, he had written an article about Trump called "A president you can drink bleach with," gaining over 790 retweets and 5,200 likes (shown below, right).

Joe Biden ^[10] tweeted, "I can't believe I have to say this, but please don't drink bleach" (shown below).

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