Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Tuesday defended her comment claiming that President Trump could be at greater risk of complications from taking an unproven coronavirus treatment because he is “morbidly obese,” adding that she didn’t anticipate he 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,” Pelosi said during an interview Tuesday with MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace.
“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,” she said, referring to Trump’s musings about disinfectants last month.
Trump initially dismissed Pelosi’s characterization of his weight earlier in the day, saying, “I don’t respond to her. I think she’s a waste of time.”
But roughly five minutes later, Trump said at a press conference on Capitol Hill in response to an unrelated question, “Pelosi is a sick woman. She’s got a lot of problems, a lot of mental problems.”
Trump said on Monday that he has been taking hydroxychloroquine for about a week and a half after one of his personal valets tested positive for the coronavirus.
Trump has repeatedly touted the drug, which is used as a treatment for malaria, as a potential coronavirus cure or preventative measure over the past two months, despite the lack of evidence that it’s effective against the disease. The Food and Drug Administration last month warned that people shouldn’t take it outside of clinical trials because of potential heart complications.
“This is an individual decision to make,” Trump said at Tuesday’s press conference. “But it’s had a great reputation, and if it was somebody else other than me, people would say, ‘Gee, isn’t that smart?'”
Pelosi first panned Trump’s decision to take the drug during an interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper on Monday.
“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,” Pelosi said. “So, I think that it’s not a good idea.”
According to the results of his medical exam released last year, Trump, 73, had a listed height of 6 feet, 3 inches and a weight of 243 pounds. That would put his body mass index at 30.4, which narrowly qualifies him in the “obese” category of 30 or greater.