RFK Jr. After Key Senate Meetings: ‘Got My Fingers Crossed’
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sounded cautiously optimistic on Capitol Hill Wednesday that he’ll win Senate confirmation to be the nation’s top health official.
“I’ve got my fingers crossed,” Kennedy said in response to a question from the Daily Beast as he emerged from a private meeting with one of many senators who will decide his fate.
Kennedy had just met with Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-NH), who told a local station in her state two months ago, “Some of these nominees on their very face, when you look at their background, their statements, their records, their lack of qualifications, are deeply concerning.”
After meeting with the senator, Kennedy defended his controversial record, saying, “I think that statements... that have been made about my stance on vaccines have been erroneous.” He strolled down the hall without elaborating.
Kennedy, an espoused conspiracy theorist who is President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to become secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, was scheduled to meet with several senators on Wednesday and Thursday.
One of them was Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), a physician, who had requested a private meeting with Kennedy ahead of public hearings to question him about his more outlandish public positions against life-saving vaccines.
“Vaccinations, he’s wrong on, and so I just look forward to having a good dialogue with him on that,” Cassidy said during an interview on Fox News Sunday.
On Wednesday, following their private meeting, Cassidy said he and RFK Jr. “spoke about vaccines at length” but he provided no details.
Had a frank conversation with HHS nominee @RobertKennedyJr. We spoke about vaccines at length. Looking forward to the hearings in HELP and Finance. pic.twitter.com/FIcNYLNlr0
— U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (@SenBillCassidy) January 8, 2025
Between sex scandals, conspiracies and fierce opposition from health and consumer advocacy groups who say his anti-vax and other positions are dangerous, Kennedy faces an uphill battle to take the helm of the leading federal agency tasked with protecting the health of Americans.
And now he reportedly faces fresh allegations of voter fraud.
Unless forced to withdraw his nomination if confirmation seems insurmountable—like Trump’s initial pick for attorney general, Matt Gaetz—Kennedy will get public hearings in both the Senate Finance Committee and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. Those hearings have not yet been scheduled.
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