Connect with us

Politics

NEW: RFK Jr. Appears To Have Won Key Senator Over

Published

on

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), appears to have won over a critical Republican senator following his confirmation hearing. Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine), often regarded as a moderate swing vote in the Senate, expressed some satisfaction with Kennedy’s responses during the proceedings on Thursday.

“He answered my questions well,” Collins said, according to Florida’s Voice’s Eric Daugherty, a signal that she may be willing to back his nomination. With Collins potentially on board, Kennedy’s path to leading HHS gains momentum, though challenges remain. Democrats are expected to mount strong opposition.

Kennedy’s first hearing took place on Wednesday, before the Senate Finance Committee, followed by a session with the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee on Thursday. At the start of the hearing, he sought to position himself as “pro-vaccine,” telling members of the committee that he doesn’t plan to “take anyone’s vaccines away” if confirmed.

Many of his past statements, he went on, related to his tendency to ask “tough questions” of the medical community, including whether pharmaceutical companies have done enough to disclose adverse events among small populations seeking treatment.

“In my advocacy, I have disturbed the status quo by asking uncomfortable questions. Well, I won’t apologize for that. We have massive health problems in this country that we must face honestly,” he added.

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) was emotionally animated while grilling RFK on whether he was “lying to Congress” during his opening statement declaring himself “pro-vaccine” or if he was untruthful while appearing on numerous podcasts and raising questions about the efficacy and side effects of many vaccines in widespread use, including for Covid-19 variants and measles.

“We have all of this on tape, by the way,” warned the 75-year-old Democratic senator.

While others may have cowered under the white hot light and booming voice of Wyden, RFK pushed back with vigor.

“Senator, as you know that has been repeatedly debunked, that statement I made on the Lex Fridman podcast was a fragment of the statement,” RFK replied.

He continued: “Anybody who actually goes and looks at that podcast will see this: He asks me, ‘Are there vaccines that are safe and effective?’ And I said to him, ‘Some of the live virus vaccines are.’ And I said there are no vaccines that are safe and effective – and I was going to continue ‘for every person.’ Every medicine has people who are sensitive to them, including vaccines.”

WATCH:

0:00 / 0:00

15 seconds

15 seconds

In July of 2023, Kennedy joined Fridman, a computer scientist and podcaster, for an extended discussion about his beliefs on the efficacy of modern vaccines. While he was answering a question at the time, Kennedy explained on Wednesday, the host cut him off before he could finish his thought.

“I’ve corrected it many times, including on national TV. You know about this, Senator Wyden,” he accused. “Bringing this up right now is dishonest.”

Jumping into the fray was Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO), who accused RFK of once claiming that COVID-19 was a “genetically engineered bioweapon” to target specific ethnic populations. Once again, the Democratic nominee was ready with a retort.

“I just quoted an NIH-funded and NIH-published study,” Kennedy said in defense of his past statement.

WATCH:

0:00 / 0:00

15 seconds

15 seconds

The final confirmation vote could come down to a handful of moderates, making Collins’ approval a significant development in the high-stakes nomination battle.