Fox anchor Neil Cavuto slams Trump's week-long use of hydroxycholoroquine to prevent Covid-19: 'It'll kill you'
Fox News is generally known to be a channel that sympathizes with President Donald Trump. But its senior anchor Neil Cavuto is one who brings an exception to that rule. The 61-year-old has criticized the president in the past, which made the latter hit back at his 'ally' channel. Cavuto revealed his stance contradictory to that of Trump on Monday, May 18, again after the commander-in-chief said that he has been taking hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) for over a week now. Cavuto warned people against doing the same, saying that it could prove to be fatal for those who have underlying health issues.
During a media interaction at the White House on May 18, Trump said that he is taking the anti-malaria drug as a preventive measure against coronavirus. The president has always been vouching for the drug as a potential treatment for Covid-19 even though experts have not backed his theory. Last month, the Food and Drug Administration said in a statement that it was “aware of reports of serious heart rhythm problems” in Covid-19 patients who have been treated with either HCQ or an older drug, chloroquine. The country’s top immunologist, Anthony Fauci, has also differed with Trump over using HCQ as a cure for coronavirus.
Trump, 73, who was meeting restaurant executives whose businesses have taken a hit in the pandemic, said he asked the White House physician if it was okay to take the drug and according to him, he was given the green signal. "I'm taking hydroxychloroquine. I've been taking it for the last week and a half. A pill every day,” he said. Trump is undergoing coronavirus test regularly after some White House aides recently tested positive. The president, however, has tested negative so far.
'People have one thing to lose: their lives'
Soon after Trump uttered his words, the Fox presenter said, "That was stunning. The fact of the matter is though, when the president said ‘what have you got to lose?’ in a number of studies, those certain vulnerable population has one thing to lose: their lives."
“If you are in a risky population here, and you are taking this as a preventative treatment to ward off the virus, or in a worse-case scenario you are dealing with the virus and you are in this vulnerable population, it will kill you," the presenter, who himself is immuno-compromised and has a number of ailments including multiple sclerosis, said. "I cannot stress enough. This will kill you. So, again, whatever benefits the president says this has, and certainly it has had for those suffering from malaria, dealing with lupus, this is a leap that should not be taken casually by those watching from home or assuming, well the president of the United States says it's OK," he added.
"Even the FDA was very cautious about this unless in a clinical trial safely and deliberately watched. I only make this not to make a political point here, but a life-and-death point. Be very, very careful. A VA study showed that among a population in a hospital receiving this treatment, those with vulnerable conditions — respiratory conditions, heart ailments — they died,” Cavuto said in his impassioned warning.
In March, a man in Arizona died after consuming chloroquine phosphate, thinking it would protect him from coronavirus. The man's wife, who also fell critically ill after ingesting the same, told NBC News that she had seen Trump’s televised briefings in which he spoke about the potential benefits of chloroquine. The toxic stuff they took was not even the medication form of chloroquine, which is used to treat malaria in humans.
Journalists in other news publications like Daily Mail’s Piers Morgan was shocked that even a Fox News anchor was warning the viewers against following Trump’s advice on using HCQ. Aaron Rupar, an editor at Vox, also pointed out Cavuto's reaction to Trump.
Trump also reacted to Cavuto and tweeted on May 18 saying Fox News "is no longer the same".
Cavuto spoke against Trump's 'disinfectant' advice
In April, Cavuto spoke out against Trump’s bizarre advice of using disinfectants to kill the coronavirus by injecting them into the body. The Fox presenter called Trump’s remarks "a dangerous crossing the line kind of signal" and "people could die as a result". Cavuto called Trump’s words "unsettling" and called on the president to "come out unequivocally... some of you took me seriously, even though I sounded serious saying it, please do not. Please do not even consider injecting some of this stuff into your system".
It was in February that Trump had a clash with Fox over a program hosted by Cavuto. A B Stoddard, a guest on Cavuto’s ‘Your World With Neil Cavuto’, called Trump’s 2016 debates "cringeworthy" and it irked the president. Trump took on Cavuto at one of his MAGA rallies later in Colorado but Fox contributor Richard Fowler came to Cavuto's defense and slammed the president.