Why aren’t more Democrats speaking out against RFK Jr.’s HHS nomination?

17 December 2024

As Robert F. Kennedy Jr. makes the rounds on Capitol Hill, talking this week with Republican senators about his contentious nomination to be Secretary of Health and Human Services, and as the media continues to unearth even more highly controversial statements the anti-vaccine advocate has made, almost 20 GOP lawmakers have begun to voice their support for the Trump nominee, while Democrats, widely expected to vote against confirmation, by comparison have been less vocal and less definitive.

The Washington Post is tracking the positions of all senators on RFK Jr.’s confirmation.

Currently, there are 19 Republicans indicating a “yes” vote or leaning to “yes,” and 18 Democrats indicating a “no” vote or leaning to “no.” Of the 19 Republicans, nine have already stated they will vote “yes.” Of the 18 Democrats, only four have said they will vote “no.”

U.S. Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) is among the nine GOP lawmakers who are backing the Kennedy scion’s bid to lead HHS.

On Tuesday, Scott issued a strong statement of support.

“Very impressive,” Scott, a former top healthcare executive, told Fox Business (video below). “I mean, here’s a guy that wants to focus on health. It’s called Health and Human Services. Health. Not sickness. So he wants to make us healthy. That’s exactly what we ought to do. I ran the biggest hospital company. I know we got to figure out how to get people healthy, that’s what he’s going to do. I think he’s going to do a great job.”

“With regard to vaccines, if you listen to what he says, he is pro-vaccine,” Scott continued, despite RFK Jr. stating just last year, “there is no vaccine that is, you know, safe and effective.”

“What he wants is, give you information so you can decide what you put into your body, or your child’s body. It makes all the sense in the world to me.”

As head of the nation’s largest for-profit health care facility operator, Rick Scott’s company several decades ago defrauded federal government programs including Medicare and Medicaid. Scott, under pressure, resigned during the investigation. The company was convicted of 14 felonies and ultimately was forced to pay $1.7 billion, the largest health care fraud settlement in the nation’s history at the time.

In 1997, The New York Times called Scott the “executive who became the most visible symbol of profit-driven medical care,” and reported that he had “stepped down … as the top officer of the Columbia/HCA Healthcare Corporation, amid a criminal investigation of whether the company’s pursuit of profits has stretched beyond the legal limits.”

The four Democratic Senators who have voiced a hard “no,” according to The Post, are: Patty Murray of Washington, Alex Padilla of California, Dick Durbin of Illinois, and Ed Markey of Massachusetts.

“We can’t let the conspiracy theorists drive this debate and undermine public health,” Senator Murray remarked, according to The Post.

“His nomination to lead HHS is a threat to children and families everywhere,” Senator Padilla observed.

“He is totally unqualified for this job,” Senator Durbin declared.

“What we cannot do is sign off on nominees who would be a danger to the public health,” Senator Markey said.

Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) vowed to “vet him very, very closely,” but has not indicated which way she is voting or leaning.

Senator John Fetterman (D-PA), leaning no, said: “I’m not going to really take any kind of advice [from] a dude that chainsaws whale heads and delivers dead bears into a park.”

Senator Martin Heinrich (D-NM), also leaning no, remarked, “Just what we need. A guy with brain worms running the Department of Health and Human Services.”

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), who is listed as “leaning no,” by The Post, has recorded two videos against RFK Jr.’s confirmation, including one early Tuesday evening.

But even some Republican Senators have voiced apprehension:

“I’m very concerned, being the incoming chairman of agriculture,” Senator John Boozman (R-AR) said.

“I have never flinched from confronting specious disinformation that threatens the advance of lifesaving medical progress,” Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who fought polio as a child, remarked.

“Our Iditarod race was all about getting the diphtheria vaccine to save a whole community,” Senator Lisa Murkowski declared.

“If he has a different point of view [on vaccines], then he’ll have to explain,” said Senator Mike Rounds.

In addition to his statements against vaccines, including comparing vaccine mandates to the Holocaust, Kennedy’s confirmation process is also expected to be challenging given his lack of relevant experience, his promotion of conspiracy theories, and public scrutiny over his personal life.

“In addition to his lack of credentials or relevant experience in medicine, science, public health, or administration,” 77 Nobel laureates wrote in a letter earlier this month, “Mr. Kennedy has been an opponent of many health-protecting and life-saving vaccines, such as those that prevent measles and polio; a critic of the well-established positive effects of fluoridation of drinking water; a promoter of conspiracy theories about remarkably successful treatments for AIDS and other diseases; and a belligerent critic of respected agencies (especially the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control, and the National Institutes of Health).”

Watch the videos above or at this link.

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