RFK Jr clashes with Democrats in tense Senate affirmation listening to – reside | Trump administration
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Key occasions
Senator Michael Bennet, a Democrat of Colorado, continued his rapid-fire questioning of Robert F Kennedy with extra quotes from Kennedy’s previous writings and interviews.
Bennet requested, “Did you say that Lyme illness is extremely possible a materially engineered bioweapon?”
Kennedy replied, “I in all probability did say that.”
Bennet requested, “Did you say that publicity to pesticides causes kids to change into transgender?”
Kennedy replied, “No, I by no means stated that.”
Bennet challenged that declare, saying he would submit the report to the committee chair. He then requested, “Did you write in your ebook, and I quote, ‘it’s simple that African AIDS is a wholly totally different illness from Western AIDS’?”
Kennedy replied, “I’m undecided.”
Bennet concluded his questioning by reminding Kennedy of the significance of the job he’s searching for, noting that Individuals depend on the division of well being and human companies to offer correct medical data.
“This issues. It doesn’t matter what you come right here and say that isn’t true, that’s not reflective of what you actually imagine,” Bennet stated. “In contrast to different jobs that we’re confirming round this place, it is a job the place it’s life and demise.”
Democrat’s rapid-fire questioning places RFK Jr on protection
Senator Michael Bennet, a Democrat of Colorado, stated that he agreed with Robert F Kennedy Jr on a few of his criticism of the US healthcare system, however he painted Kennedy as woefully unqualified to guide the division of well being and human companies.
“What’s so disturbing to me is that out of 330 million Individuals, we’re being requested to place anyone on this job who has spent 50 years of his life not honoring the custom that he talked about originally of this dialog, however peddling in half-truths, peddling in false statements, peddling in theories that create doubt about whether or not or not issues we all know are secure are unsafe,” Bennet stated.
Bennet then launched right into a collection of damning, rapid-fire questions on Kennedy’s previous feedback on a spread of healthcare subjects, together with the coronavirus pandemic and AIDS.
“Did you say that Covid-19 was a genetically engineered bioweapon that targets Black and white folks, however spared Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese language folks?” Bennet stated.
Kennedy replied, “I didn’t say it was intentionally focused. I simply quoted an NIH-funded and NIH-published examine.”
As Democrat Ron Wyden’s questioning time ran out, Robert F Kennedy Jr tried to scrub up his report on vaccines, saying, “Senator, I assist the measles vaccine. I assist the polio vaccine. I’ll do nothing as HHS secretary that makes it tough or discourages folks from taking both of these vaccines.”
Wyden shot again, “Anyone who believes that ought to take a look at the measles ebook you wrote saying dad and mom have been misled into believing that measles is a lethal vaccine. That’s not true.”
Ron Wyden, the highest Democrat on the Senate finance committee, additionally pressed Robert F Kennedy Jr on his function in a lethal measles outbreak that struck Samoa in 2019.
The measles outbreak in Samoa – which claimed the lives of 83 folks, most of them younger kids – got here simply months after Kennedy visited the island nation.
Quoting Kennedy’s ebook that raised doubts concerning the potential lethality of measles, Wyden stated, “The truth is measles are actually lethal and extremely contagious – one thing that it is best to’ve discovered after your lies contributed to the deaths of 83 folks, most of them kids, in a measles outbreak in Samoa. So my query right here is: Mr Kennedy, is measles lethal, sure or no?”
Kennedy replied that the demise charge from measles has traditionally been fairly low, and he once more denied any function within the Samoa outbreak.
“I went there nothing to do with vaccines. I went there to introduce a medical and thematic system that may digitalize information in Samoa,” Kennedy stated. “I by no means taught or gave any public assertion about vaccines. You can not discover a single Samoan who will say, ‘I didn’t get a vaccine due to Bobby Kennedy.’”
He concluded, “I went in June of 2019. The measles outbreak began in August. So, clearly I had nothing to do with the measles.”
That remaining remark appeared curious on condition that experiences have pointed to the timeline of Kennedy’s go to as doubtlessly incriminating, contemplating the outbreak adopted simply a few months later.
Kennedy clashes with Democrat over previous vaccine feedback
Ron Wyden, the highest Democrat on the Senate finance committee, criticized Robert F Kennedy Jr for having “spent years pushing conflicting tales about vaccines”.
As he started his questioning, Wyden quoted a few of Kennedy’s podcast interviews through which he claimed that “no vaccine is secure and efficient” and that he regretted vaccinating his personal kids. However in his opening assertion, Kennedy denied being anti-vaccine.
“Mr Kennedy, all of these items can’t be true,” Wyden stated. “So, are you mendacity to Congress in the present day whenever you say you might be pro-vaccine, or did you lie on all of these podcasts? We’ve all of this on tape.”
Kennedy replied that his earlier remark about vaccines’ security had been truncated and had since been corrected, telling Wyden, “You understand about this, Senator Wyden, so bringing this up proper now’s dishonest.”
Wyden retorted that Kennedy has “a historical past of attempting to take vaccines away from folks,” citing his signature on a 2021 petition calling for the Meals and Drug Administration to dam entry to coronavirus vaccines. Kennedy recommended that the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention had mishandled the advice course of for these vaccines.
One other protester then interrupted the listening to.
In response to questioning from Republican chair Mike Crapo, Robert F Kennedy Jr stated he was not trying to place restrictions on meals choices, although he has persistently expresssed alarm over Individuals’ diets.
“I don’t wish to take meals away from anyone,” Kennedy stated. “In case you like a McDonald’s cheeseburger and a Weight loss plan Coke, which my boss loves, it is best to have the ability to get them.”
The remark, an acknowledgment of Donald Trump’s long-documented embrace of quick meals, was met with chuckles within the listening to room.
Kennedy continued, “If you wish to eat Hostess Twinkies, it is best to have the ability to do this, however it is best to know what the impacts are on your loved ones and in your well being.”
Protester disrupts Kennedy’s opening feedback on vaccines
Robert F Kennedy Jr devoted most of his opening assertion to detailing his imaginative and prescient for addressing “persistent illness” if confirmed because the secretary of well being and human companies, however he took a second to deal with his previous feedback attacking vaccines.
“Information experiences have claimed that I’m anti-vaccine or anti-industry. I’m neither,” Kennedy stated.
He was disrupted by a protester who appeared to yell in response, “You lie!”
The protester was escorted out of the listening to room, after which Kennedy was then in a position to proceed his opening assertion, saying, “I’m pro-safety.”
Earlier than Robert F Kennedy Jr delivered his opening assertion, the Republican chair and Democratic rating member of the Senate finance committee shared a tense alternate on the Medicaid portal outage that occurred yesterday.
Medicaid fee portals have been down throughout the nation yesterday following Donald Trump’s announcement of a federal funding freeze, however a number of states reported that the portals have been again on-line final night time.
In his opening assertion, Democrat Ron Wyden of Oregon pointed to the outage as an indication of what could also be to return if Kennedy is confirmed to guide the division of well being and human companies.
The chair of the committee, Republican Mike Crapo of Idaho, criticized Wyden’s feedback as a “false assault,” noting that the portals are actually operational, however Wyden retorted that the outage had created “bedlam throughout the nation”.
Democrat excoriates Kennedy for having ’embraced conspiracy theories’
The highest Democrat on the Senate finance committee, Ron Wyden of Oregon, delivered a scathing rebuke of Robert F Kennedy Jr in his opening assertion on the cupboard nominee’s affirmation listening to.
“The receipts present that Mr. Kennedy has embraced conspiracy theories, quacks, and charlatans, particularly with regards to the protection and efficacy of vaccines,” Wyden stated.
“He’s made it his life’s work to sow doubt and discourage dad and mom from getting their youngsters life-saving vaccines. It’s been profitable for him and put him on the verge of actual energy. That is the profile of anyone who chases cash and affect wherever they lead, even when meaning the deaths of kids and different weak folks.”
Wyden famous that, if confirmed as the following secretary of well being and human companies, Kennedy would play a key function in issuing medical suggestions for the nation, and the Democrat expressed concern that Kennedy would possibly use his authority to limit entry to the abortion medicine Mifepristone.
“Girls should know if Mr Kennedy will abuse his energy as our nation’s chief well being officer to basically implement a nationwide abortion ban by proscribing entry to this secure and authorized medicine,” Wyden stated.
He concluded, “After a cautious evaluation of Robert F Kennedy Jr’s statements, actions, associations and views, I’ve reached the conclusion that he shouldn’t be entrusted with the well being and well-being of the American folks. When he’s taken each aspect of each challenge, how can this committee and the American public imagine something he has to say?”
The Republican chair of the Senate finance committee, Mike Crapo of Idaho, praised Robert F Kennedy Jr as “a voice for an inspiring coalition of Individuals who’re deeply dedicated to bettering the well being and wellbeing of our nation”.
In his opening assertion, Crapo lamented that the US healthcare system has change into a “dyfunctional maze” for a lot of Individuals, and he framed Kennedy’s potential affirmation as an “alternative to ship daring, transformative options”.
“No matter political social gathering, everybody on this room shares a typical recognition that our present system has fallen brief, in addition to a typical want to make our nation more healthy,” Crapo stated. “I stay up for in the present day’s dialog in addition to your testimony, Mr Kennedy.”
RFK Jr affirmation listening to begins
The chair of the Senate finance committee, Republican Mike Crapo of Idaho, has kicked off the affirmation listening to for Robert F Kennedy Jr, Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of well being and human companies.
After Kennedy entered the listening to room, he walked up towards the dais to shake the palms of committee members whereas photographers swirled round him to seize the scene.
The listening to will start with opening statements earlier than senators have the chance to query Kennedy, who has confronted intense criticism over allegations of sexual harassment and his shifting stance on vaccines.
Keep tuned.
Jessica Glenza
Anti-vaccine rhetoric and lawsuits have been a profitable enterprise for Robert F Kennedy Jr, main as much as his nomination to be secretary of well being – one he’s searching for to distance himself from as he enters affirmation hearings this week.
Final week, he promised to resign from his consultancies and chairmanship of Kids’s Well being Protection, a number one anti-vaccine nonprofit, if he’s confirmed. That’s chilly consolation to public well being consultants anxiously eyeing his affirmation.
“The plain reality is that vaccines have saved lots of of hundreds of thousands of lives,” stated Dr Tom Frieden, former director of the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention (CDC) underneath Barack Obama, and now CEO of Resolve to Save Lives, a public health-focused non-profit.
“When Mr Kennedy says issues like autism does come from vaccines” – a false declare – “that’s very problematic”.
Frieden continued: “That was a fraudulent declare from somebody who was aiming to revenue from it, and false claims like that not solely undermine our confidence in secure and efficient vaccines in addition they divert consideration from discovering the actual reason behind issues like autism that have an effect on so many individuals.”
Learn Jessica’s full report:
Robert F Kennedy’s affirmation listening to comes someday after his cousin, Caroline Kennedy, shared a video on social media describing him as a “predator” who “preys on the desperation of fogeys of sick kids” by peddling misinformation on vaccines.
“I’ve recognized Bobby my entire life; we grew up collectively. It’s no shock that he retains birds of prey as pets as a result of he himself is a predator,” Caroline Kennedy stated within the video.
Her remarks have been additionally shared in a letter to senators, as she implored them to not affirm RFK Jr as the following secretary of well being and human companies.
She went on to say that her father, President John F Kennedy, and her uncle, former US legal professional common Robert F Kennedy, can be “disgusted” by the actions of her cousin.
Extra on Caroline Kennedy’s feedback right here:
RFK Jr affirmation listening to getting underway quickly
The Senate affirmation listening to for Robert F Kennedy, Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of well being and human companies, will get underway in about half-hour, and Democrats are anticipated to grill Kennedy on allegations of sexual harassment and his shifting stance on vaccines.
The Guardian’s Joseph Gedeon experiences: “Robert F Kennedy Jr, the environmental lawyer turned anti-vaccine activist, faces a watershed second this week because the Senate affirmation hearings start on his nomination because the US’s prime well being official, organising what may very well be probably the most contentious cupboard battle of Donald Trump’s second administration.
“The 71-year-old Kennedy, whose nomination has sparked fierce resistance from the scientific institution, would take management of a sprawling $1.8tn healthcare equipment at a time when public belief in medical establishments stays deeply fractured alongside partisan traces.
“As well being and human companies secretary, Kennedy would oversee all the pieces from vaccine coverage to meals security, wielding huge affect over public well being choices affecting hundreds of thousands of Individuals. His controversial views – together with debunked claims about vaccines and autism, fluoride security and uncooked milk rules – have put him at odds with mainstream medical consensus.
“Kennedy instructed NPR in December that as a member of the administration, he’s ‘not going to take vaccines away from anyone’, however he additionally added he needed folks to make ‘knowledgeable decisions’.”
Learn Joseph’s full report:
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