Trump's health sec pick RFK Jr faces critical Senate hearing

by Issam AHMED

Robert F. Kennedy Jr faces a pivotal Senate hearing Wednesday where he will be grilled on his history of promoting vaccine misinformation and plans to upend US science agencies as he bids to become President Donald Trump's health secretary.

If confirmed, the 71-year-old Kennedy family scion and former environmental lawyer would take the helm of a department overseeing more than 80,000 employees and a $1.7 trillion budget at a time when scientists are sounding the alarm over the potential for bird flu to trigger a human pandemic.

Critics have labeled him dangerously unqualified, citing his promotion of debunked claims linking measles vaccines to autism, his suggestion that HIV does not cause AIDS, his financial interests in law firms suing pharmaceutical companies, and more.

At the same time, the former Democrat has garnered praise for his "Make America Healthy Again" (MAHA) agenda, which riffs on Trump's "Make America Great Again" slogan and emphasizes combatting the nation's chronic disease epidemic through healthier eating and prioritizing wellness.

Complicating his path to confirmation, a conservative group founded by former vice president Mike Pence has raised concerns about Kennedy's past donations to organizations supporting abortion access -- an issue that could alienate Republicans and jeopardize his chances of securing the necessary 50 votes.

"His stance on multiple health issues goes against established scientific knowledge -- and these are huge red flags," Syra Madad, an epidemiologist and fellow at Harvard Belfer Center told AFP.

- Vaccine opposition -

Though he has tried to soften his vaccine skepticism in recent months, Kennedy, or "RFK Jr" as he is widely known, spent two decades promoting vaccine conspiracy theories, especially around Covid-19 shots -- which he called the "deadliest ever made."

He has also stated that he exclusively drinks raw milk, claiming it "advances human health" -- a stance he maintains even as bird flu spreads among US cattle and has been shown to contaminate unpasteurized milk.

Another frequent target of his ire is the presence of fluoride in the nation's public water supplies, introduced in the mid-20th century to reduce dental cavities.

While his criticism of this practice has generated controversy, he also has the support of some in the scientific community who question whether the benefits of water fluoridation outweigh potential neurotoxic risks, particularly as fluoride is now readily available through toothpaste.

- Bizarre behavior -

Kennedy initially ran as an independent candidate in the 2024 presidential election, setting the campaign ablaze with a string of bizarre and headline-grabbing revelations.

His claim of recovering from a parasitic brain worm, made during a divorce deposition, resurfaced in a New York Times report.

He also released a video admitting that, a decade earlier, he had placed a dead six-month-old bear cub in Central Park after initially planning to skin it for meat.

Meanwhile, a government agency reportedly launched an investigation into a claim made by his daughter that Kennedy had once used a chainsaw to decapitate a dead whale.

His decision to back Trump after withdrawing from the race led to condemnation from his siblings -- and on Tuesday, his cousin Caroline Kennedy published a scathing letter to senators, urging them to reject him and calling him a "predator" who led younger relatives down the path of drug addiction.

"His basement, his garage, and his dorm room were the centers of the action where drugs were available, and he enjoyed showing off how he put baby chickens and mice in the blender to feed his hawks," wrote Kennedy, a former ambassador and daughter of slain former president John F. Kennedy.

© Agence France-Presse