PObert Kennedy Junior was extracted by the members of the Senate in his first confirmation session of the Minister of Health and Humanitarian Services (HHS) on Wednesday, where he struggled to convince legislators that he is not “vaccine control” and it appears that he is not familiar to the main aspects of health care and policy insurance programs The other will supervise it.
At noon in front of the Senate Finance Committee, President Donald Trump’s candidate insisted on leading the leading health agency in the country that he was mistakenly described as the fight against al -Qazam, despite his previous observations, as it published the wrong information about the safety and effectiveness of fortification. “I am a supporter of safety,” said Kennedy, a former environmental lawyer who was an independent candidate in the 2024 presidential elections. Trump’s support.
He said: “All my children are vaccinated.” “I have written many books on vaccines. My first book in 2014, the first line of it is,” I am not hostile to the vaccine “and the last line is,” I am not an anti -accuracy. ”
Senator Ron Wadeen of Oregon, the committee’s highest democracy, pointed out that Kennedy appeared on many podcasts, as Kennedy falsely claimed that he was not any safe or effective vaccine and said that we sorry to vaccinate his children. “Mr. Kennedy, all these things cannot be correct. Do you lie to Congress today when you say that you are a supporter of the vaccine, or did you lie on all of these podcasts?” He asked Widan.
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While Kennedy faced a critical interrogation from the Democrats, he and other candidates from the Council of Ministers benefited from strong support among Republicans, who hold a majority of 53-47 in the Senate. Trump’s candidate was confirmed to lead the Ministry of Defense, Beit Higseth, although he is widely considered one of the most controversial choices. Kennedy’s appointment has sparked a large -scale debate, with his opponents, including members of his family, warning that his views may undermine public health efforts. On the eve of his first confirmation session, his cousin accused Caroline Kennedy, of “prey to the despair of sick parents and children,” pointing to his role in fueling suspicion of the vaccine in the United States and abroad. But it is not clear that more than three Republicans will vote against its confirmation, which will be required to dump if all Democrats vote together.
Here are some of the main moments on the first day of the Kennedy confirmation sessions.
Vaccines
Democrats Kennedy’s controversial history with Samoa, accusing him of traveling to the country and spreading anti -vaccine information after the government temporarily stopped distributing vaccines to measles, mumps, and measles when two children died in 2018 after receiving incorrectly prepared footage. Shortly after Kennedy’s visit, the measles erupted in Samoa were killed 83 people, most of whom were children. Kennedy denied these allegations, saying that he “went there, had nothing to do with vaccines” and insisted on that, “You cannot find one Samoa to say:” I did not get a vaccine because of Bobby Kennedy. “
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Kennedy said he had supported measles and drinking vaccines and pledged that he would not do anything that would make it difficult for people to overcome them. But the Democrats continued to decline, with their fears of its previous controversial data about vaccines.
“We have just spent the measles case in Rod Island, the first since 2013, frankly, frightening people,” said Senator Shieldon Whitch, a democratic of Rudd Island.
health insurance
Senator Fairmont Bernie Sanders, an independent that includes conferences with Democrats and considered him a potential vote on Kennedy’s nomination, began his interrogation by saying that he agreed with the slogan “Make America Health again” Kennedy. But when he pressed the candidate at his view of health insurance, he seemed disappointed when Kennedy refused to say that health care was a human right.
In the past, Kennedy said little about health insurance programs that constitute nearly a quarter of the federal budget and the cover More than 150 million Americans. During Wednesday’s session, it seemed to be mixed at sometimes Medicaid and Medicare (Medicaid is a government program that provides coverage for low -income persons, while Medicare is a federal program that offers coverage for older people and disabled).
Republican Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, a doctor who is considered a Kennedy to win for sure, has repeatedly asked Kennedy to share how the Medicaid program will be suitable, a taxpayer funding program that can be subject to budget discounts to finance Trump’s agenda. “I don’t have a wide proposal to dismantle the program,” Kennedy said.
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“Most people in Medicaid are not happy” because installments and discounts are “very high,” Kennedy said. But most people registered in Medicaid do not pay installments or discounts. He also suggested that most Americans prefer private insurance, and raises laughter from Sens Democratic Maggie Hassan from New Hampshire and Sanders.
“I would like to ask any of the Democrats who laugh now: Do you think that all these money, which amounts to $ 900 billion, send it to Medicaid every year, made the Americans in good health? Do we think it is working for anyone? Are the installments low enough? Kennedy said.
miscarriage
Kennedy also faced an interrogation from Senators from both sides about his position on abortion. When Senator James Lancford, a Republican of Oklahoma who called himself “the most life -supporting Senate”, asked Kennedy about abortion, the candidate replied, “He agreed to President Trump that every abortion is a tragedy” and that he agrees with the president should be left Policy of abortion to the United States.
But many Democrats, including Hassan and Sanders, referred to Kennedy’s previous comments that express her support for physical autonomy and people’s right to choose, and hit him for what Sanders called “his main role” on his beliefs.
“It is striking that you have a long record of fighting for the reproductive freedom of women, and it is really great that my Republican colleagues are very open to voting for a supporter of choice HHS. Hassan said:” I am Mr. Kennedy, I am confused. “I clearly mentioned in the past that Physical autonomy is one of your basic values. The question is, do you stand for this value or not? When did you decide to sell the values you got throughout your life in order to give President Trump power? “
Kennedy stumbled when asked about a specific Abortion policies he supervises If sure to lead HHS. When Senator Catherine Cortez Memasto, Democrat from Nevada, asked Kennedy whether he agrees that the medical treatment law in emergency and work, a federal law requires hospitals to stabilize patients with life -threatening situations or not, the right to abortion in emergency situations Kennedy stopped before answering, “I don’t know.”
Senate Kennedy asked about the measures he would take in the field of abortion. The medicine, which was approved by the Food and Drug Administration for abortion purposes more than two decades ago, was recently It was challenged in vain in court By a group of doctors and anti -abortion organizations. The Biden Administration helped facilitate access to MivePristone by allowing it to be described through health care and receiving it by mail. Kennedy had a mysterious answer when he was asked about the drug, saying only that Trump asked him to “study the safety of MivePristone”, but the president “has not taken a position on how he was organized” yet.
Conspiracy theories
This was followed by another controversial moment when Senator Michael Bennett, a democratic of Colorado, Kennedy, challenged in his controversial previous statements, including his assurances that Covid-19 was a genetic genetic engineering registrar targeting black people and leading to the Chinese and Ashkenazi Jew, and that Lyme’s disease. It was an engineering biological weapon. “Maybe I said that,” Kennedy said about Lyme’s disease.
Democrats in the committee seemed frustrated and not convinced because Kennedy insisted that it was not a conspiracy view, and many criticized the candidate for being inaccurate and inappropriate in the management of the Supreme Health Agency.
“What bother me is that from 330 million Americans, we are asked to put someone in this position who spent 50 years of his life does not honor the tradition that he talked about at the beginning of this conversation, but Bennett wanders in half of the facts, and wandering in wrong data.
