After Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said at a Friday briefing that there’s no evidence a decades-old anti-malarial drug would be effective against the novel coronavirus, Donald Trump again insisted he has a good feeling about it.

“I feel good about it. Just a feeling. I am a smart guy, we’ll see soon enough and we have certainly big samples of people,” he claimed.

Moments earlier, Fauci was adamant that there’s no evidence chloroquine—which has yet to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration—will work against the deadly virus. “The evidence you are talking about is anecdotal evidence,” he told reporters. “The information you are referring to is anecdotal, so you can’t make a definitive statement about it.”

That didn’t stop Trump from insisting that he’s a “fan” of the drug. “We’ll see what happens. I have seen things that are impressive,” he said. “We’ll see. We’ll know soon.”

Peter Alexander:
"Dr Fauci said that there is no magic cure.."

Trump:
"I disagree …"

PA:
Is it possible that your impulse to put a positive spin on things may be giving Americans a false sense of hope about our level of preparedness right now?

Trump:
"such a lovely question. pic.twitter.com/MwFFzumn0X

— Bill Maxwell 🌊REMOVE TRUMP 2020🌊 (@Bill_Maxwell_) March 20, 2020

Trump then took this serious occasion, and cracked a joke about the “Deep State Department” and Dr. Fauci couldn’t hide his feelings:

Note Fauci’s reaction when Trump makes a deep state joke at the podium pic.twitter.com/cbNBxgqhRO

— Brandon Wall (@Walldo) March 20, 2020

Let’s be serious, Dr. Fauci is all of us:

Dr. Fauci’s reaction to Trump.

Tells you all you need to know. pic.twitter.com/CWwlCz29Iy

— The Resistance 🇺🇸 (@NightlyPolitics) March 20, 2020