US health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who was recently approved, said that the country’s medical facilities were “stealing the health of our children” and that they need to suffer the same fate as USAID, which has been under criticism under President Donald Trump’s administration, reports RTE.
RFK Jr. defended his vaccination scepticism during his White House swearing-in ceremony, claiming that his opinions had been misrepresented and that he was only supporting “common sense” measures.
“Vaccines should be tested, they should be safe, everyone should have informed consent,” he stated, reports RTE.
Despite opposition from the medical community, Mr. Kennedy, a vaccine opponent who backed President Trump after dropping out of his own presidential campaign, was approved by the US Senate as Secretary of Health and Human Services.
The 71-year-old nephew of the late President John F. Kennedy, popularly known as “RFK Jr,” won the nomination by a vote of 52-48 and was appointed as the most recent controversial member of President Donald Trump’s cabinet, reports RTE.
The only Republican to vote against it was Mitch McConnell, the former majority leader of the Senate.
At a time when experts are warning that avian flu might spark a human pandemic and paediatric illnesses that were once eradicated are resurfacing due to dwindling vaccination rates, Mr. Kennedy now heads a department that employs over 80,000 people and has a €1.7 trillion budget.
In his former career as an environmental attorney, he accused climate change naysayers of betraying their country and sued Monsanto, a massive chemical company, reports RTE.
Widely referred to as “RFK Jr,” the 71-year-old nephew of the late President John F. Kennedy was elected by a vote of 52-48 and is now the newest controversial member of President Donald Trump’s cabinet.
Mitch McConnell, a former Senate majority leader, was the only Republican to vote against the bill.
As dropping vaccination rates mean once-evolved childhood illnesses are resurfacing, and experts warn of the rising possibility of avian flu causing a human pandemic, Mr. Kennedy now heads a department with over 80,000 workers and a €1.7 trillion budget, reports RTE.
As a former environmental lawyer, he accused climate change naysayers of betraying their country and sued Monsanto, a behemoth in the chemical industry.
Promoting his “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) agenda—a play on President Trump’s catchphrase—and highlighting the necessity of holding the food sector more responsible in order to address the country’s chronic illness epidemic gave Mr. Kennedy greater stability, reports RTE.
Though analysts doubt how he would put them into practice given his problematic connection with data based on science, such concepts have appeal across political parties.
When Mr. Kennedy first entered the 2024 presidential race as an independent, he made headlines with a series of strange disclosures.
These included his assertion that he had recovered from a parasitic brain worm and his daughter’s account of him beheading a dead whale with a chainsaw, reports RTE.
In an open letter to the Senate last year, 77 Nobel laureates opposed his nomination, stating that public health might be “in jeopardy” if he is confirmed.
His own family also strongly opposed him; his cousin Caroline Kennedy, a former ambassador, recently accused him of being a “predator” who encouraged younger family members to become addicted to drugs, reports RTE.
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