An important backstory to the hydroxychloroquine enthusiasm is the weird paranoid fears of virus vaccine research. Apparently, Bill Gates is researching vaccines in order to insert controlling microchips into our bodies. - more to come - https://twitter.com/davidfrum/status/1248816670795280384

Ha ha, you say, that sounds like utter lunacy. As it is. But it's slowly percolating from the anti-vax fringe into the conservative ecosystem (Newsmax, Washington Times, Fox News) - as @mmfa details here https://www.mediamatters.org/coronavirus-covid-19/bill-gates-coronavirus-conspiracy-theory-spread-social-media-and-then-fox-news

Newsmax especially is promoting deranged fantasies about virus vaccines. Emerald Robinson is the Newsmax White House correspondent, frequently called upon by President Trump

EG just this past April 8. https://twitter.com/EmeraldRobinson/status/1248047541465296896

The fringe promotes hydroxychloroquine not only to cover for President's Trump's early failures - not only because of its susceptibility to promises of miracle cures - but as an alternative to the scientific vaccines it fears and abhors

Isn't that baffling?