CNN's Chris Cuomo claims Trump's drug announcement meant to cover up news, escape accountability

CNN host Chris Cuomo suggested Monday that President Donald Trump announced he is taking hydroxychloroquine to distract Americans from important news stories.

"It's all a beautiful distraction," Cuomo said during his opening monologue.

Trump claimed at a news conference on Monday that he has been taking the anti-malarial drug, which has reportedly been successful in helping treat coronavirus in some cases, for several weeks as a precautionary step to ward off the deadly virus. Trump's announcement came on the same day the FBI announced a direct connection between al-Qaeda and the gunman who opened fire on Naval Air Station Pensacola last year.

According to Cuomo, Trump conveniently made his announcement to cover up the al-Qaeda news and to escape accountability.

"Our president wants to talk about how strong he is to take hydroxychloroquine because he just does everything he can to make himself strong and make this country strong," Cuomo said. "I know this much, I don't know that it will help with his health, but it certainly helps to cover up his weaknesses."

"Another day that most of the media wouldn't be pressing him about never dealing in any real way with how we reopen. And he bought a pass today on a bad piece of news that I bet you probably haven't even heard about," Cuomo continued. "Did you know that the first foreign-directed terror attack since 9/11, foreign-directed, happened on Trump's watch? We now know the FBI has found an al-Qaeda link to that Pensacola attack last year at the military base."

At the beginning of the show, Cuomo expressed doubt that Trump is even actually taking the drug, despite a note from the White House physician.

The reason Trump claimed he is taking hydroxycholoroquine is because "it's a winning argument for him," Cuomo claimed.

"He wins this argument. Why? Because he believes. Because he's taken a chance. Because he's strong. He's not the 'Party of No.' He's not the Democrats," Cuomo said. "That's where he's put the Democrats."