Make it look like he's the one who got it done

Yesterday:

Today:

President Trump announced on Sunday that the Food and Drug Administration has issued emergency use authorization to treat hospitalized COVID-19 patients with convalescent plasma from people who have recovered from the virus.

Joined by Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar and FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn for what he called a "truly historic" announcement, Trump described the treatment as safe and effective.

  NPR

It's authorized for emergency use, which tells me they're not 100% certain about it yet.

But His Royal Heinie will be crowing about HIS success during the GOP convention, which begins tomorrow. Such fortuitous timing.

Reports last week suggested that some health officials had said that data from the Mayo Clinic's program was not strong enough to warrant the approval for emergency use authorization.

And he was having none of that.

While researchers will continue with randomized clinical trials and data collection, Hahn said independent experts and FDA scientists have concluded the treatment is safe and shows "promising efficacy," warranting approval for the authorization.

[...]

The Mayo Clinic has run an "expanded access program" for convalescent plasma since March, and more than 70,000 people have received the treatment.

[...]

Convalescent plasma, Hahn explained, is the liquid portion of the blood that contains the antibodies an individual develops in response to an infection and can be given to patients currently fighting that virus. He said this treatment has long been a part of the infectious disease arsenal.

[...]

Hahn said there is a 35% improvement in survival for COVID-19 patients given the plasma. Azar noted that the patients who benefited most from the treatment are those under 80 and not on artificial respiration.

[...]

This move will further expand access to the treatment, but is not the same as traditional FDA approval.

[...]

The emergency use authorization means that the convalescent plasma "may be effective in treating COVID-19 and that the known and potential benefits of the product outweigh the known and potential risks," according to the FDA.

And what might THOSE be?

Answering reporters' questions after Sunday's announcement, Trump said it was his "strong opinion" that there had been a political hold-up, but that "we broke the log-jam over the past week."

Yeah, "the deep state, or whoever."

Hahn did not respond to shouted questions about whether he had been pressured to give the approval.

What a surprise.

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.

UPDATE:

Navarro strikes again.

Senior health officials in the Trump administration were taken aback last Monday when the president's trade adviser, Peter Navarro, accused them of being part of the "Deep State" during a meeting that was supposed to be about COVID-19 and the Strategic National Stockpile.

[...]

According to two sources in the Monday meeting, Navarro had aggressively confronted FDA officials, saying, "You are all Deep State and you need to get on Trump Time."

  Axios

What in Christ's name do Trump and Navarro think the "deep state" is? Anyone who doesn't jump when Trump speaks?

Sources familiar with the situation said Navarro has been venting at the FDA for weeks at what he perceives as its slowness to approve therapeutics to fight COVID-19 and help the U.S. "bring our medical supply chain home."

[...]

A third senior administration official said Navarro — a fervent proponent of hydroxychloroquine — remained angry at the FDA for saying the drug didn't work against COVID-19.

Senior health officials counter that the FDA needs to follow a rigorous process to ensure that the public can trust that they are operating by the book — and by the science, free from political pressure — and that whatever therapeutics and vaccines the FDA authorizes are safe for use.

Well, they blew that today.

UPDATE: