Yes, I think so. People grew up to trust institutions, and for decades they had good reason to (at least in the subjects of public health and safety). Who's to blame when after decades -- no, centuries -- we elect a leader who makes false claims that are counter to medical science -- and potentially hazardous, if followed, to the public health? The victim, or the authority?

I know which party I blame.

The man who died drank aquarium cleaner. It is a huge stretch to blame that on Trump.

He didn’t. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22670152

Actually, he did: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/man-dies-wife-in-critical-...

He drank aquarium cleaner because the President of the United States told him it would cure the virus. Not a stretch at all.

Trump told people to take it without a prescription?

President shouldn't talk about things he clearly doesn't understand. Compare this to how Obama used to measure every single word he said.

All presidents talk about stuff they don't understand.

Like this?

“I like this stuff. I really get it. [...] People are really surprised I understand this stuff. Every one of these doctors said, ‘How do you know so much about this?’ Maybe I have a natural ability.”

“Anybody who wants a test will get a test, that’s the bottom line. [...] The tests are all perfect, like the letter was perfect, the transcription was perfect, right? This was not as perfect as that, but pretty good.”

Perhaps so, but some things are more important to delegate to experts than others. There's little harm in misstating the speed of light; another to suggest that a potentially hazardous drug that can be found OTC can be used to cure a virus when it cannot - and especially without dosage information.