Fact Check: "Donald Trump Recommends Bleach for COVID-19"
What We Know
During a media briefing on April 23, 2020, former President Donald Trump made comments regarding the use of disinfectants in the context of treating COVID-19. He suggested that researchers look into whether disinfectants could be injected into the body to combat the virus. Specifically, Trump stated, “Is there a way we can do something like that, by injection inside or almost a cleaning” (Snopes). However, when pressed by a journalist about whether cleaning products like bleach could be injected, Trump clarified that such products would be used for sterilizing areas, not for injections (PolitiFact).
Despite the confusion surrounding his comments, at no point did Trump explicitly instruct people to inject bleach or any disinfectant into their bodies. Following the backlash from his statements, he later claimed that his remarks were made sarcastically (PolitiFact).
Analysis
The claim that Trump recommended injecting bleach stems from a misinterpretation of his comments during the briefing. While he did raise the question of whether disinfectants could be injected, he did not provide a direct recommendation to do so. This nuance is critical; his remarks were speculative and not prescriptive.
Several credible sources have analyzed this incident. For instance, a CNN fact-check highlighted that Trump's comments were dangerous and drew widespread criticism from health experts, but they did not constitute a clear directive to the public to ingest bleach. The manufacturer of Lysol, Reckitt Benckiser, also issued a statement emphasizing that their products should never be administered to humans (BBC).
The reliability of the sources reporting on this incident varies. Major news outlets like CNN and BBC are generally considered credible and provide thorough analyses. However, the way the information is presented can lead to differing interpretations. For example, while Biden's claim during the 2024 debate suggested Trump told people to "inject a little bleach," this was a misrepresentation of the actual comments made by Trump (PolitiFact).
Conclusion
The claim that Donald Trump recommended injecting bleach for COVID-19 is False. While he did make controversial remarks about disinfectants during a media briefing, he did not explicitly instruct anyone to inject bleach. His comments were speculative and later clarified to indicate that he was not advocating for such actions. Misinterpretations of his statements have led to the perpetuation of this claim, but the evidence does not support the assertion that he recommended bleach injections.
