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President-elect Trump has nominated anti-vaccine activist and environmental lawyer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to be Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS).
HHS has a budget of nearly $2 trillion and administers federal health care programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act. HHS and its subsidiary agencies are responsible for responding to diseases and public health threats such as COVID-19 and avian influenza, as well as approving new drugs, including vaccines.
HHS oversees 13 separate agencies, and President Kennedy has long argued that all of these agencies are in dire need of reform.
“I am thrilled to announce that I am nominating Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to serve as Secretary of Health and Human Services,” President Trump posted on social media Thursday afternoon. “For too long, Americans have been overwhelmed by the food complex and drug companies that have perpetrated deceit, misinformation, and disinformation about public health.”
“Mr. Kennedy will restore these institutions to a tradition of gold-standard scientific research and a beacon of transparency, end the epidemic of chronic disease, and make America great and healthy again!” the president-elect added.
Politico was first to report the news.
The position requires Senate confirmation. While it may be difficult, the nomination shows that President Trump feels comfortable and empowered by the Senate’s Republican majority.
President Trump has also raised the possibility of bypassing the confirmation process by making recess appointments.
Kennedy has expressed deep skepticism of drug companies and the federal agencies that oversee them. But now, he could soon head up that same agency as he pursues his goal of “making America healthy again.”
“RFK Jr. has championed issues such as healthy food and the need for greater transparency in public health infrastructure,” Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana) said in a statement. “I look forward to learning more about his other policy positions and how they support conservative and pro-American policies.”
Cassidy will next lead the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. The HELP Committee has jurisdiction over most Health Department nominees, but the Senate Finance Committee approves the HHS Secretary.
The move infuriated Democrats and public health leaders, saying President Kennedy was interfering with key government agencies, exacerbating vaccine hesitancy, and directing funds to government agencies to support Kennedy’s preferred views. I am concerned that it may be provided.
“Mr. Kennedy’s outlandish views on basic scientific facts are alarming and should concern all parents who expect schools and other public places to be safe for their children.” Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (R-Ore.) said in a statement. “When Mr. Kennedy appears on the Treasury Committee, it will become very clear what the American people stand to lose under President Trump and Republicans in Congress.”
Appropriations Committee Chair Patty Murray said RFK Jr.’s confirmation would be “nothing short of a disaster for the health of millions of families. I urge my Senate Republican colleagues to forcefully condemn this disastrous nomination and oppose it.” I urge you to join me in doing so.”
Murray called Kennedy’s choice “dangerous.”
“There’s no telling how far fringe conspiracy theorists like RFK Jr. can set America back on public health, reproductive rights, research and innovation, and so many other fronts,” Murray said.
Kennedy founded one of the most prominent anti-vaccine groups in the country and promoted the debunked claim that childhood vaccines cause autism. Kennedy said in a recent interview that he would not take away the approved vaccines, but argued that health agencies have not done enough research on them.
The nomination is a reward for Mr. Kennedy. After running first as a Democrat in the presidential election, Kennedy became an independent, then withdrew from the party and ceded his support to Trump. It’s also a recognition that Kennedy’s big bet against Trump has materially paid off.
Kennedy, first as an independent presidential candidate and then as a surrogate candidate for President Trump, said federal health regulators were “sock puppets” in thrall to industry special interests. Kennedy vowed to purge the entire FDA department to root out corruption.
In an October post on X, President Kennedy said the Food and Drug Administration’s “war on public health is nearing an end.”
“If you work at the FDA and are part of this corrupt system, I have two messages for you: 1. Save your records and 2. Pack your bags,” he added. .
President Kennedy just recently argued that he wants to eliminate fluoride from the nation’s drinking water supply, with health officials believing that the addition of mineral chemicals is a major advance in tooth preservation.
In the final stages of the campaign, Mr. Trump said he would allow Mr. Kennedy to “run amok” over the government’s health care system.
“He’s going to help make America healthy again. … He wants to do some things and we’re going to let him do them,” Trump said after the election. He said this in his victory speech at A Lago.
Days before the election, Trump transition team co-chair Howard Lutnick told CNN that President Kennedy could remove liability protections from manufacturers of vaccines already on the market and reduce the number of vaccines on the recommended schedule. He said there is.
Lutnick implied that data on vaccine safety was being suppressed and that if President Kennedy had access to that information, he would prove the vaccines were dangerous and force companies to recall them.
“He’s not getting the HHS job,” Lutnick told CNN.
Updated: 5:48 p.m.
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