The Food and Drug Administration rescinded its “emergency use authorization” for chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19 on Monday. The decision left President Donald Trump —who had touted the malaria drugs as potential coronavirus cures and even said he had taken one—and his administration with 66 million doses of chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine without an evident use. The White House had mobilized the federal government to stockpile the drugs for use against the virus before medical experts were sure of its efficacy. Peter Navarro, the president’s trade adviser, raged against the decision Monday and mustered a familiar conspiracy theory in defense of Trump: “This is a Deep State blindside by bureaucrats who hate the administration they work for more than they’re concerned about saving American lives.”
