Robert Kennedy Jr. Confirmation Hearing Interrupted By Protesters As HHS Nominee Is Challenged On His Attacks On Vaccines
UPDATED, with additional details: One of President Donald Trump’s most controversial cabinet picks, Robert Kennedy Jr., repeatedly insisted that he was not “anti-vaccine” at his confirmation hearing to be the next secretary of health and human services.
But during a morning of testimony today before the Senate Finance Committee, to Democrats presented a bevy of Kennedy’s past comments in which he sowed doubt or disparaged Covid shots and other inoculations. They also pressed him on other health claims and attacked him for what they saw as a shifting position on abortion rights.
More from Deadline
Sitting behind Kennedy at the hearing was his wife, actress Cheryl Hines, and in the next row was podcast host Megyn Kelly, who repeatedly slammed the Biden administration for its Covid policies.
“News reports have claimed that I am anti-vaccine or anti-industry,” Kennedy told the committee in his opening remarks. “I am neither.”
Just then, he was interrupted by a protester who shouted, “You lie.” She was led away by Capitol Police.
Kennedy then continued. “I am pro-safety. I have worked for years to raise awareness about the mercury and toxic chemicals in fish, and no one called me anti-fish.”
Kennedy initially ran as a Democrat in the most recent presidential election, seeking to challenge Joe Biden, but he later switched to an independent presidential bid. He dropped that effort and endorse Trump in the fall campaign.
The top Democrat on the committee, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), opened his questioning of Kennedy by entering a scathing letter that his cousin, Caroline Kennedy, sent to lawmakers urging them to reject the nomination.
Wyden noted that during a podcast interview in July, 2023, Kennedy said, “No vaccine is safe and effective.”
Wyden also cited a comment that Kennedy made on a podcast in 2020, when he said that he would “pay anything” to go back in time and not vaccinate his children.
“Are you lying to Congress today when you say you are pro-vaccine? Or did you lie on all those podcasts?” Wyden asked.
Kennedy, though, said that on the 2023 podcast, he was interrupted by host Lex Fridman and meant to qualify his comment by saying that no vaccine is safe and effective “for every person.”
“I’ve corrected it many times, including on national TV,” Kennedy told Wyden. “You know about this Senator Wyden, so bringing this up right now is dishonest.”
With his confirmation hearing looming, The Washington Post published a piece on Tuesday tracking 36 appearances since 2020 where Kennedy has linked vaccines to autism, despite repeated studies rejecting that claim.
In his opening statement, Kennedy emphasized the the high cost of health care in the U.S., but that more than half the population is chronically ill. He pledged to “make sure our tax dollars support healthy foods,” including scrutiny of additives in the food supply. He said that he wanted to do research to “understand the relationship between these different food additives and chronic disease so that Americans understand it.”
He did assure the lawmakers that “I don’t want to take food away from anybody.”
“If you like a McDonald’s cheeseburger, Diet Coke, which my boss loves, you should be able to get them. …But you should know what the impacts are on your family and your health.”
‘Are You Supportive Of These Onesies?’
But Democrats, perhaps determined to produce social media moments, continuously pressed Kennedy on a number of his past comments and for his role in Children’s Health Defense, the group he once led that warned against vaccines.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) presented photos of $26 infant onesies that the group is selling online with the messages, “Unvaxxed. Unafraid” and “No Vax. No Problem.”
Kennedy said that he resigned from the board of the group and had “no power” over it.
Sanders pressed him. “Are you supportive of these onesies?”
“I am supportive of vaccines,” Kennedy said.
“Are you supportive of this clothing, which is militantly anti-vaccine?”
Kennedy replied, “I am supportive of vaccines. I want good science.”
Democrats also hammered Kennedy for shifting his abortion views, having embraced a woman’s right to choose during his presidential campaign yet at the hearing, he aligned with Trump’s position that the matter should be left up to the states. He also said that Trump had asked him to study the so-called abortion pill mifepristone, saying “whatever he does I will implement those policies.”
Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-NH) asked him, “When was it you decided to sell out the values you had your whole life in order to be given power by President Trump.”
Kennedy responded, “Senator, I agree with President Trump that every abortion is a tragedy, that we can’t be a moral authority in this country…” Pressed further, he repeated his comment.
Best of Deadline
Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.