Donald Trump’s nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services comes after Kennedy, an anti-vaccine activist and supporter of numerous other debunked health-related conspiracy theories. This sparked widespread criticism of Mr.
In a post on Truth Social on Thursday, President Trump claimed that Americans have been “crushed by the food industrial complex and drug companies,” and that Kennedy “referred to these institutions as having a tradition of gold-standard scientific research.” We will return to the beacon of transparency and end the war.” Chronic Disease Epidemic and Making America Great and Healthy Again! ”
In response to Kennedy’s nomination, Public Citizen, a progressive nonprofit focused on consumer advocacy, said: He should not be allowed in the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) building, much less be appointed to lead the nation’s public health agency.
“Donald Trump’s public health policy failures during the coronavirus pandemic have cost hundreds of thousands of lives. By appointing Mr. Kennedy as Secretary of Health, Mr. We are embarking on a new sanitary catastrophe,” the organization added.
Apurva Akkad, an infectious disease doctor at the University of Southern California, called the announcement “a scary day for public health.”
“As we have said many times, it is of utmost importance that public health decisions and changes are only made based on solid evidence. I hope we have learned at least this much from the coronavirus. ” Akkad added about X.
Conservative commentator and lawyer George Conway also commented on Kennedy’s nomination, along with Tulsi Gabbard and Matt Gaetz.
“I’m hardly surprised by Trump’s recent actions. Look at any one of President Trump’s last three cabinet-level appointees (Gabbard for DNI, Gaetz for AG, RFK Jr. for HHS) in isolation. “The fact that Trump made all three decisions within about 24 hours is astonishing,” Conway wrote.
Democratic Congressman Robert Garcia of California called the nomination “fucking crazy” and wrote of X: “He is a vaccine denier and a tinfoil hat conspiracy theorist. He will destroy our public health infrastructure and vaccine distribution system. This will cost lives.”
Alastair McAlpine, a pediatrician at the Children’s Hospital of British Columbia, wrote: RFK Jr. has no medical training. He is a hardcore anti-vaccine and misinformation peddler. The last time he intervened in state medical affairs (Samoa), 83 children died of measles. ”
In 2018, two infants died in Samoa after a nurse mistakenly prepared an MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine by using an expired muscle relaxant instead of water, according to FactCheck.org. Died. Following the infant’s death, the Samoan government suspended its vaccination program.
The suspension reportedly prompted President Kennedy and his anti-vaccine nonprofit Children’s Health Defense to spread various falsehoods about vaccinations across the island, resulting in a significant drop in vaccination rates. are.
A year later, a measles outbreak on the island caused by sick travelers ultimately infected more than 57,000 people and killed 83, including children.
In an interview for the documentary Shot in the Arm, Kennedy said he was not responsible for the outcome.
On another health issue, Kennedy said Trump would push to remove fluoride, a mineral that strengthens teeth and reduces cavities, from drinking water, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Throughout his independent campaign, Mr Kennedy has also touted the effectiveness of raw milk and the anti-parasitic drug ivermectin, which has been dismissed as a treatment for coronavirus. In addition to health-related conspiracies, President Kennedy also claimed that ten years ago he decapitated and collected the heads of beached whales, and that he did not have time to skin them and eat them later, leaving the dead calves alone. Admitted to dumping the bear in New York City’s Central Park. .
President Kennedy also said he had a brain worm and “ate some of it and died,” and said during a staged debate earlier this year, “Even if I ate five more brain worms, Trump and Joe Biden wouldn’t.” I vowed to win.
