CNN anchor Chris Cuomo began his Tuesday night prime time show with an emotional pep talk following the revelation that he had tested positive for COVID-19.
Said Cuomo: “Tonight's show is going be a little different. But the priority remains, reality set in all the way to the president. Brace yourself, not for a hoax, but for the next few weeks of scary and painful realities. The government is saying we need to keep doing what we are doing. The data shows our mitigation efforts are working. The reality, we are our best and, perhaps, only defense. If you need a death toll, you will get it every day, and it will frighten you. 4,000 already. Maybe 100,000. 250,000. ‘Trumped-up' today by this president, potentially saying it could have been millions.”
“My suggestion, don't get caught in the numbers,” Cuomo added. “Why? They're just scary and out of context. We do not have the testing data to make real sense of our reality beyond what we know is the face of it for an overwhelming number who get sick. And that face is mine. I tested positive. Scary. Yes. As you might imagine, but better me than you.”
“My concern is what I may have put on my family,” he continued, his voice slightly quaking. “Just like you would. That is hurting me way more than anything the virus can do. So, let's focus, let's use this example of me having it as proof that you can get it, too.”
Added Cuomo: “God forbid, we have to do everything we can to avoid being sick. We have to do it for ourselves, our families, and for those on the front lines, who are saving the lives of people like me and many of you. Together as ever as one. That is our remedy. What do you say? Let's get after it.”
“I'll tell you what's scary about this, that I didn't realize until basically today,” said Cuomo. “I have never had anything where you cannot control the suck. Even when I've had the flu. … It is scary to have people say to you two things. One, ‘the real answer is, suck it up. Stay home, stay away from your family, hydrate, take Tylenol if you need it, that's all we got until you're an extremist.' That's scary. And then the second scary thing is, then everybody gives you a million things to take – anti-malarials, Z pack, hydrochloroquine that the president made very popular with people.”
Cuomo then asked Dr. Sanjay Gupta if he would recommend any of the latter drugs for people.
Watch his full opening segment, below:
