Donald Trump defends doctor who touts unproven coronavirus drug hydroxychloroquine
Donald Trump has defended his support of a controversial Texas doctor who has touted unproven drugs to treat the coronavirus and pushed other unscientific theories.
The US president on Monday shared a video on Twitter of Dr Stella Immanuel promoting the use of the antimalarial hydroxychloroquine for Covid-19 cases.
In the video, which was taken on the steps of the Supreme Court in Washington at a so-called "White Coat Summit", Dr Immanuel recommended hydroxychloroquine, which studies have shown is not effective for treating the novel coronavirus.
She described studies casting doubt on the drug as “fake science” sponsored by “fake pharma companies."
The president’s son, Donald Trump Jnr, also shared the clip, describing it as a “must-watch”, and was on Tuesday issued with a temporary ban by the website. The video has since been deleted by Facebook, Twitter and YouTube for promoting misinformation.
“She was on air, along with other doctors, and they were big fans of hydroxychloroquine and I thought she was very impressive,” Mr Trump told reporters at the White House. “She says she has had tremendous success with hundreds of different patients.
"I thought her voice was an important voice, but I know nothing about her," he said before abruptly ending the conference.
Further research on Dr Immanuel's webpage, now accessible only via an archived website viewer, as well as her YouTube account, reveal a long list of bizarre and unscientific beliefs.
These include that "tormenting spirits" routinely have "astral sex" with women, which in turn causes "gynecological problems, marital distress, miscarriages" and more.
In a 2015 video, Dr Immanuel, who leads a religious group called Fire Power Ministries, said: "There are people ruling this nation that are not even human," describing them as "reptilian spirits" who are "half human, half ET."
In the same video she rails against the use of "alien DNA" to treat sick people, which she said had resulted in human beings mixing with demons.
