Trump calls Pelosi a 'sick woman' with mental problems a day after she called him 'morbidly obese'
It took just a day for President Donald Trump to hit back at political opponent Nancy Pelosi over her ‘morbidly obese’ dig at him during a TV interview. On Tuesday, May 19, he blasted the Speaker as a ‘sick woman’ with a lot of ‘mental problems’ and also claimed that academic research proved that it was his enemies who are creating the dangers of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ). Hell broke loose in American politics after Trump announced on Monday, May 18, that he has been taking the drug for over a week now as a precaution against Covid-19. His opponents and even a section of the friendly media expressed shock since the anti-malaria drug is not scientifically confirmed to be a cure for the deadly coronavirus.
Pelosi was one of those who cautioned Trump over his drug intake and during a talk with CNN’s Anderson Cooper, she said people of his age and weight should avoid it all the more. She mocked the president as somebody ‘morbidly obese’ although the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said one with a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or above can only be qualified in that category. Trump’s BMI is around 30. “As far as the president is concerned, he’s our president, and I would rather he not be taking something that has not been approved by the scientists, especially in his age group and in his, shall we say, weight group. Morbidly obese, they say,” the 80-year-old Congresswoman from California said.
Trump calls those not backing HCQ as his enemies
“Pelosi is a sick woman she's got a lot of problems, a lot of mental problems,” Trump, 73, said during a visit to the Capitol Hill where he had lunch with Senate Republicans. He said this minutes after saying: "I don't respond to her. I think she's a waste of time."
Trump continued to defend his intake of the HCQ, saying the study on the drug that spoke about its negative effects was a ‘Trump enemy statement’. He was referring to a study that was made on veterans’ hospitals in April showing a higher death rate among those who took the drug. The study covering 368 male patients at Veterans Affairs hospitals across the US found HCQ was linked with high instances of death for those who are diagnosed with the coronavirus. While more than 27 percent of patients who took the drug died, 22 percent of those who were treated with a combination of HCQ and antibiotic azithromycin, called z-pack, also passed away. On the other hand, the death rate for those who did not take the drugs was much less at 11.4 percent.
Pelosi was little moved by Trump's reaction to her 'morbidly obese' words. When she was asked about Trump's counter in an interview with MSNBC's Nicolle Wallace, the veteran said she didn't realize the president would be 'so sensitive' about his appearance. "I didn't know that he would be so sensitive. He's always talking about other people's ... weight, their pounds," she said, adding: "I think he should recognize that his words weigh a ton. Instead of telling people to put Lysol into their lungs or taking a medication that has not been approved except under certain circumstances, he should be saying what your previous guest mentioned, things that would help people." Pelosi's target was Trump's bizarre April advice of injecting people with disinfectants as a precaution against coronavirus.
Trump also claimed that many of the people who are fighting on the front lines against the pandemic are taking HCQ. “A lot of our front line workers take it because it possibly and - I think it does but you know these people are going to have to make up their own mind. Plus, it doesn't hurt people. It's been out of the market for 60 or 65 years for malaria, lupus and other things,” Trump said while making brief remarks after lunch with fellow GOP members.
“I think it gives you an additional level of safety, but you can ask many doctors are in favor of it. Many front line workers won't go there, unless they have the hydroxy. And so again this is an individual decision to make, but it's had a great reputation. And if it was somebody else other than me, people would say gee isn't that smart,” he added. White House physician Sean Conely backed Trump’s taking the controversial drug and said in a memo that he and the president arrived at a conclusion that the drug had more benefits than risks. Conely though found little support from the medical fraternity about Trump’s decision.
Chinese media, meanwhile, mocked Trump saying he was using ‘witchcraft’ to lead the battle against coronavirus which has claimed nearly 92,000 lives in the US so far. More than 1.5 million people have been affected. After the president revealed his HCQ intake, Hu Xijin, editor-in-chief of Global Times, blamed Trump for the high rates of deaths in the US in a now-deleted tweet and said had the same happened in China, the White House would have been burned down by angry people.