After Donald Trump nominated Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, public health experts expressed widespread concern about putting a leading anti-vaxxer in charge of the nation’s public health system. But there was one group overwhelmingly supportive of the nomination: Republicans in Congress.
“I’m thrilled about it,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene told NOTUS on Friday. “The status of our health is really pathetic. He’s going to do a great job.”
Rep. Aaron Bean told NOTUS he likes Kennedy’s vision to reexamine food industry regulations, something Kennedy has championed as part of his vision to “Make America Healthy Again.”
“It’s going to be exciting to have a discussion over what’s in the American food supply,” Bean said. “Why is it that America is fatter than the rest of the countries in the world? What’s that about?”
Republicans cast Kennedy as the savior of a health care system broken by “large corporate interests” and scientists with financial motives.
“Science has been corrupted,” Sen. Ron Johnson said Tuesday when Kennedy’s nomination was still only a rumor. “I don’t have a problem with big business until they use their power to corrupt science and corrupt the process. And that’s what we need to address here.”
Johnson said Kennedy actually called him to discuss his chances of confirmation, and Johnson reported that he was overwhelmingly positive.
“First words out of my mouth was, ‘Bobby, this is the answer to my prayers,’” Johnson said. “I think Bobby Kennedy can do more working with President Trump to advance America’s health than anybody.”
Kennedy became a prominent Trump surrogate after suspending his presidential campaign in August, vowing to “clean out” the public health agencies and fight chronic diseases in his own way. That includes more regulation of the pharmaceutical industry in line with his opposition to vaccine mandates.
Like many of Trump’s other cabinet picks, Kennedy arrives with plenty of baggage. Over the years, Kennedy has made a number of false and offensive health-related claims, claiming COVID-19 was “ethnically targeted” to spare “Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese,” that Bill Gates is “putting in 5G to harvest our data and control our behavior” and suggesting that chemicals in water are “inducing” sexual dysphoria in children.
But for Republicans, Kennedy’s controversial platform comes as a feature, not a bug.
Sen. Rand Paul told reporters Tuesday that he hopes Kennedy has plenty of leeway to change how vaccines are approved.
“We start to wonder, are we doing this because they get royalties from Pfizer and Moderna and Big Pharma?” Paul said, referring to scientists who recommend immunizations. “No voice has been probably more clear and strong on this than Robert Kennedy. So I’m glad he has influence, and I hope he will have a lot of influence.”
On the other side of the Capitol, Rep. Chip Roy had a similar message.
“He represents the kind of disruption that’s necessary to take on,” Roy said, mentioning “the corporate crony influences of pharma, insurance and big hospital.”
And other Republicans were just as supportive.
“I think it’s great,” Rep. Matt Rosendale told NOTUS. “I think that the medical-industrial complex is shaking in their boots right now, and that we’re going to have a safer food and medical community moving forward.”
There is, however, one position of Kennedy’s that differs starkly from the GOP line: abortion rights.
“Let’s be clear: Robert F. Kennedy is wrong on the abortion issue,” said Rep. Dusty Johnson of South Dakota. “That being said, his boss, if he’s confirmed, would be President Donald Trump. I have no doubt that Donald Trump is going to make sure that Secretary Kennedy makes good decisions related to life.”
Kennedy’s specific views on abortion have been difficult to nail down. During his presidential campaign, Kennedy initially said he supported unrestricted abortion access before fetal viability, before coming out in support of limits at “between 15 and 18 weeks.”
Former Vice President Mike Pence on Friday called for Senate Republicans to reject Kennedy’s nomination over the issue. But if the congressional GOP’s reaction was any indication, it won’t be that much of a problem.
Roy and other Republicans that NOTUS spoke to Friday said they were willing to overlook their abortion difference, arguing that President-elect Trump — or if need be, Congress — would keep Kennedy in line.
“A lot of us will be working to hold the president and him to account on that stuff,” Roy said.
Rep. Tim Burchett also expressed some reservations about Kennedy’s abortion positions — “he’s Catholic and pro-choice; that bothers me” — but he also showed deference to Trump on the pick.
“He’s gonna mix things up,” Burchett said of Kennedy. “And that’s what Trump wants to do.”
In general, House Republicans didn’t seem concerned that a health secretary who supports abortion access would affect the status quo. Rep. Greg Steube said he trusted that states, not Kennedy, would maintain the party platform on abortion.
“He’s not going to be able to override states’ decisions on that,” Steube said. “After Roe v. Wade got pushed, the states get to make those determinations — like Florida rejected this year.”
A few Republican lawmakers said they don’t know very much about Kennedy, but they were willing to leave it to their Senate colleagues to find out more during the confirmation process.
“I know that we’re all supposed to know everything about the Kennedys, but honestly, I barely understood anything about him until he ran for president,” Dusty Johnson said. “So I mean, I’d want to understand more of what his scientific background is.”
Rep. August Pfluger also tossed the question of Kennedy’s abortion record to the Senate confirmation process: “I’m sure there’ll be questions from the senators on that,” he said.
And Rep. Glenn Thompson acknowledged that Kennedy would be an outsider. But as for what he thinks of the nomination? “We’ll see how he does,” Thompson said.
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Mark Alfred and Helen Huiskes are NOTUS reporters and Allbritton Journalism Institute fellows.
Violet Jira and Claire Heddles, who are NOTUS reporters and Allbritton Journalism Institute fellows, contributed to this report.
Riley Rogerson, who is a reporter at NOTUS, also contributed to this report.