Bernie Sanders queries RFK Jr.: Is THIS Anti-Vaccination Babytown Outfit Familiar to You?
In a surprise development, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump's nominee for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, pledged to address America's persistent health crisis, aiming to "Make America Healthy Again." However, during his confirmation hearing this week, Kennedy was surprisingly cagey, evading clear responses to several crucial questions.
During the session, Kennedy danced around providing answers on various topics. Would he support banning abortion medications?, Is he convinced that school shootings are a result of antidepressants?, Would he back Medicaid cuts?, And should tax credits for healthcare access be renewed? Kennedy consistently opted for ambiguity rather than definitive answers.
However, Kennedy clearly had a direct response when Bernie Sanders wondered if healthcare was a human right. Kennedy swiftly denied the notion, explaining that unlike free speech, healthcare incurred costs – a view that sparked raised eyebrows in the packed room.
Sanders then grilled Kennedy about a website linked to an organization Kennedy previously ran, the Children's Health Defense. Kennedy acknowledged that he had recently abandoned the organization in preparation for his public role. Sanders then upped the ante, questioning Kennedy's stance on anti-vaxxer baby clothes sold on the site, causing Kennedy to stumble over his words.
Critics view Kennedy as an eccentric ideologue, while supporters see him as a determined rebel battling against the powerful corporations controlling the food and healthcare industries. Nevertheless, I propose that Kennedy fits none of these labels. Instead, he is simply a power-hungry character often seen as a grifter, always ready to bend his beliefs to achieve political office.
There are no indications that Trump plans to manifest his rhetoric of "making America healthy again" or to help fuel Kennedy's health crusades. In fact, Trump's selection of Kailee Tkacz Buller, a lobbyist from the snack food and corn syrup industries, to work at the USDA's top spot mirrors his past choices, albeit somewhat ironically given Kennedy's criticisms of seed oils.
It turns out that Kennedy has spent over a decade advocating for environmental causes, only to side with a politician explicitly aiming to dismantle EPA, politicize disaster relief funds, and open public lands for drilling and development. Additionally, Kennedy has recently moderated his anti-vaccine stance, presumably to progress through his confirmation process.
As the hearing progressed, it became clear that Kennedy would compromise his beliefs in pursuit of power. His fierce advocacy for environmental causes quickly transformed into surrendering his environmental activism for a political career. It also emerged that he was prepared to act as a surrogate for Trump's true policymakers, pursuing a deregulatory and market-driven healthcare agenda that inevitably benefits private corporations over public welfare programs.
Kennedy has even gone as far as promoting Medicare Advantage's partial privatization, which has been criticized for delivering shoddy coverage and complications while being less popular than traditional Medicare.
Project 2025, a group plotting the direction of the HHS under Trump's administration, plans to shift Americans towards Medicare Advantage, fund public welfare programs through work requirements, and aggressively target abortion access, among other objectives. Kennedy openly aligned with these regressive goals, effectively revealing his true colors.
- Kennedy's proposed strategy for addressing America's health crisis largely focuses on advancing technology and innovation in the field of healthcare.
- Critics argue that Kennedy's dietary guidelines, which emphasize organic food and limit processed foods, could inadvertently promote Kennedy's family's organic food company.
- In the past, Kennedy's organization, Children's Health Defense, has advocated for limiting the use of certain tech in vaccinations, a stance that could influence future technology use in healthcare.
- Amidst allegations of Kennedy's ties with the tech industry, the future of tech regulations within the Health Department under his leadership remains unclear.
