Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pressed on previous vaccine statements, loyalty to Trump
Kennedy meets with Senate's finance committee and will go before its health panel on Thursday
Past statements attributed to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. regarding vaccine safety were in focus Wednesday during his confirmation hearing to become the top health official in the United States.
In sometimes heated exchanges, Kennedy denied that he is anti-vaccine. But Kennedy, who pointed out that his children are vaccinated, acknowledged he has asked "uncomfortable questions" about vaccinations.
"I believe that vaccines play a critical role in health care," Kennedy told the Senate's finance committee in Washington, D.C.
That drew quick pushback from Sen. Ron Wyden, who pointed out that the health secretary nominee has previously claimed there's "no safe" vaccine. The Oregon Democrat also quoted from Kennedy's books, which say that parents have been "misled" on the measles vaccine, with measles not a particularly deadly disease in the nominee's characterization.
"You have spent years pushing conflicting stories about vaccines," Wyden said.
Kennedy will go before the Senate's health, education, labour and pension committee on Thursday.
If approved as secretary of health and human services, Kennedy will control a $1.7-trillion US agency that oversees food and hospital inspections, hundreds of health clinics, vaccine recommendations and health insurance for roughly half the country.
It's not clear if Kennedy will pass the confirmation process. President Donald Trump was forced to pull the nomination of Matt Gaetz for attorney general due to opposition on Capitol Hill. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth is now on the job, having been approved by the Senate in the smallest margin possible last week.
'We can do better than this'
Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet went over ground similar to that covered by Wyden, pointing out occasions where Kennedy floated theories of vaccines and diseases being engineered.
Kennedy admitted he "probably did say that" when Bennet asked if he once claimed Lyme disease was likely a military-engineered bioweapon.
The position is "too important for the games you're playing," said Bennet. "I hope my [Republican] colleagues will say to the president, 'Out of 330 million Americans, we can do better than this.'"
In the past, Kennedy headed up a nonprofit that has sued the government over its authorizations of vaccines. He's said there is " no vaccine that is safe and effective."
Kennedy is a member of the famously Democratic political family, his father having served in his uncle's presidential administration as attorney general before his own presidential campaign was cut down by an assassin in 1968.
Kennedy, 70, pursued his own presidential bid the past election cycle, as an independent. He suspended his campaign and allied with Trump in August.
Abortion pill views questioned
Kennedy has been pro-choice throughout his life, but said on Wednesday that he agreed with Trump that "every abortion is a tragedy."
Republicans during the first 90 minutes of the hearing did not vigorously challenge Kennedy's past views, focusing on nutrition and various criticisms of the health policies of the Joe Biden administration.
Oklahoma's James Lanfkord and Steve Daines of Montana, with their allotted time, reflected concern among some conservative lawmakers about how Kennedy would handle reproductive rights as health secretary.
The Department of Health and Human Services can influence abortion and reproductive health access in a number of ways, including with millions of dollars in grants it sends to Planned Parenthood and regulations around abortion pills. Under the Biden administration, the agency also said hospitals were required to provide emergency abortions for pregnant women in medical distress.
In the wake of a 2022 Supreme Court ruling that served to restrict abortion access in the U.S., debate has intensified over access to mifepristone, a drug that has more than one use but is used as part of a regimen for medication abortions. Some 63 per cent of all known abortions in the U.S. in 2023 where categorized as medication abortions, according to a report last week from Guttmacher Institute, an abortion rights advocacy group. That represented about 63 per cent of all estimated abortions.
Daines expressed concerns about the safety of the drug for women, although there have competing views on that issue.
"President Trump has asked me to study the safety of mifepristone," said Kennedy. "He has not yet taken a stand on how to regulate it. Whatever he does, I will implement those policies."
Kennedy has been pro-choice throughout his life, but said on Wednesday that he agreed with Trump that "every abortion is a tragedy."
That statement were referenced by Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Mastro of Nevada, who expressed concern he'd just be a "rubber stamp" for Trump's personal views.
Addiction recovery, nutrition stated priorities
The health secretary, and the agency, have also played a role in recent decades in addressing global health issues.
Trump signed an executive order last week to pull the U.S. out of its relationship with the World Health Organization, largely for what he has cited as a mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic. The U.S. is by far the biggest financial backer of the WHO, contributing around 18 per cent of its overall funding.
Kennedy has also taken the contentious position that local governments should abstain from adding fluoride in their drinking water. The CDC has said small amounts of added fluoride in drinking water prevent cavities and tooth decay.
An area where Kennedy could find common ground with Democratic senators is with respect to food regulations and access to healthier foods. Kennedy has said he supports Medicare and Medicaid helping people pay for healthier foods and gym memberships, an idea Democrats have lobbied for as well. He's also called for a ban on some of the ingredients used in foods, like dyes and additives.
Kennedy has been open about "skeletons in his closet" from past years. He apologized, by text, to a former babysitter who accused him of groping her in the 1990s.
Kennedy described himself on Wednesday as a former, 14-year heroin addict who attends recovery meetings regularly. He said improving recovery options for Americans amid the yearslong opioid crisis is a priority.
With files from the Associated Press and Reuters