If confirmed, HHS Secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy aims to shift the focus of the agencies he would oversee toward promoting a healthy lifestyle and finding the root causes of chronic diseases.
President Trump’s nominee for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Robert F. Kennedy Jr. appeared in Congress on Wednesday for the first of two days of Senate confirmation hearings. If confirmed, he would control 18 federal agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes for Health, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. HHS employs approximately 90,000 people and has an annual budget of roughly $1.7 trillion.
Opposition to Kennedy’s nomination has been fierce. Democrats oppose him mainly because of his past comments on vaccine skepticism, and Republicans have issues with his past comments on abortion rights.
In his opening statement to the Senate Finance Committee, Kennedy addressed reports calling him an anti-vaxer, saying, “I want to make sure the Committee is clear about a few things. News reports have claimed that I am anti-vaccine or anti-industry. Well, I am neither; I am pro-safety.” He added, “All of my kids are vaccinated, and I believe vaccines have a critical role in health care.” He added that he supports polio and measles vaccines and that he will “do nothing as HHS Secretary that makes it difficult or discourages people from taking anything.”
During the hearing, Kennedy remarked on the fiery reaction to his nomination by Democrats, saying, “All these Democrats are opposed to me for partisan issues, they used to be my friends. They agreed with all the issues I’ve been working on my whole career. Now they’re against me because anything President Trump does has to be discredited, derided, and vilified.”
Kenney served as the chair or chief legal counsel for Children’s Health Defense, a nonprofit organization he founded that has sued the federal government numerous times, including a challenge over the authorization of the COVID-19 vaccine for children. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Kennedy was called a conspiracy theorist for publicly arguing that vaccines wouldn’t prevent transmission of COVID-19. He was kicked off of Instagram for posting “debunked theories”, and recently it was proven that the vaccine did not prevent transmission as we were initially told.
Kennedy, who has been outspoken about his views on big pharma and the food industry, stressed that he is not the enemy of food producers. “American farms are the bedrock of our culture and national security…I want to work with our farmers and food producers to remove burdensome regulations and unleash American ingenuity.”
When discussing the rise in chronic diseases in ingredients and food, Kennedy pointed out that his “boss”, President Trump, likes to eat a McDonald’s cheeseburger and drink a Diet Coke. He said, “You should be able to do that. But you should know what the impacts are on your family and your health.” He added, “The United States has worse health than any other developed nation, yet we spend far more on healthcare – at least double; and in some cases, triple.” He went on to say he would aim to overhaul dietary guidelines and take aim at ultra-processed foods, among other initiatives. Kennedy has been a staunch opponent of processed foods.
Kennedy also brought up private insurance compared to government-run insurance and claimed that many Americans would prefer private health insurance to the Affordable Care Act or Medicaid, making some Democrat Senators laugh. He continued, “We need to figure out ways to improve care, particularly for [the] elderly, for veterans, for the poor in this country. And the current model [of Medicaid] is not doing that. Ask any of the Democrats who are chuckling just now, do you think all that money, that $900 billion we’re sending to Medicaid every year is making Americans healthy? Do we think it’s working for anybody? Are the premiums low enough?”
Health insurance premiums for American families have more than doubled since the Affordable Care Act was signed into law, from $244 a month in 2013 to $558 a month in 2019. A Gallup poll from December 2024 found that 49% of Americans prefer a system based on private insurance, 46% prefer a government-run system, and 49% of independents said they prefer private insurance.
Senator Elizabeth Warren, D-MA, asked Kennedy to commit to not working for or suing big pharma after serving as HHS Secretary. Some critics argued that Senators like Elizabeth Warren and Ron Wyden (D-OR) are hypocrites because they’ve received millions in donations from big pharma.
Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., was criticized by conservatives on Wednesday after his performance at the hearing. Daily Signal columnist Tony Kinnett posted on X, “Sen. Whitehouse (D-RI) beginning his confirmation ‘questioning’ of RFK Jr. by saying ‘I’m very experienced, so you’re just going to have to listen,’ then talking for 7 minutes nonstop is such a perfect picture of why Democrats are failing around the nation right now.” Whitehouse attended law school with Kennedy, where they were friends.
Republicans were quick to make the argument that Kennedy could bring a level of bipartisanship to President Trump’s cabinet. During the hearing, Senator Ron Johnson, R-WI stated, “Here’s somebody from the left on many issues – RFK Jr. – coming together with President Trump on a common issue. Something Americans desperately want. Finding out what causes autism, chronic illness?” He then thanked Kennedy for being there and asked his Democrat colleagues, “Aren’t you getting tired of this?”
🚨 Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) just absolutely nailed it at the RFK Jr. hearing. Masterclass.
JOHNSON: Here's somebody from the left on many issues – RFK Jr. – coming together with President Trump on a common issue… something Americans desperately want. Finding out – what… pic.twitter.com/jEVmzcAeZD
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) January 29, 2025
Kennedy, a longtime environmental activist who identified as a Democrat until switching to Independent in 2023, has built relationships with some leaders in recent years due in part to his high-profile vaccine skepticism. His late father, former Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, and his late uncle, former President John F. Kennedy, were both assassinated in the 1960s.
Thursday’s hearing for Kennedy’s confirmation will be in front of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. It is a courtesy hearing, as only the Senate Finance Committee will vote on his confirmation.
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