Live updates: RFK Jr. faces opposition from senators in fiery confirmation hearing
WASHINGTON - Robert F. Kennedy Jr. faced tough questions Wednesday about his opposition to vaccines, position on abortion and junk food as senators weigh his nomination to lead the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The former Democratic candidate for president and longtime environmental lawyer faces widespread opposition from Democrats and potential objections from some Republicans, making him one of Trump's weakest Cabinet nominees. And Wednesday's hearing gave little insight into the future outcome of his confirmation, as swing vote senators − namely Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La. − declined to show their hand throughout questioning.
Since dropping his independent presidential bid in late August and backing Trump, Kennedy has focused on a "Make America Healthy Again" slogan, emphasizing the need for the government to address chronic health issues that has resonated with some Americans but alarmed health officials who have called his ideas overly simplistic and dangerous.
The Senate Finance Committee pressed Kennedy for three and a half hours Wednesday. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee is scheduled to question him at 10 a.m. Thursday. Both committees have to consider his nomination before it can be voted on by the full Senate.
Here's what you missed from Wednesday's hearing:
Follow along for live updates:
Not done yet: Kennedy faces questions from more senators tomorrow
Kennedy, Trump’s pick for Secretary of Health and Human Services, faced tough questions from the Senate finance committee, particularly its Democratic members. He addressed opposition to his prior anti-vaccination rhetoric, clarified his stance on abortion (strictly against), and talked Medicaid reforms.
This was just round one for the week.
Kennedy also faces a similar probing from the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on Thursday.
Confirmation for his potential position is overseen by both committees given that each has a stake in the subject matter under the purview of a Secretary of Health and Human Services. The finance committee, which held today’s hearing, is ultimately responsible for moving Kennedy's nomination along and giving all 100 senators a chance to vote yay or nay.
Expect equal or possibly bigger fireworks to spark at Thursday’s hearing, with GOP swing votes Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana there and posing questions. Murkowski and Collins were two of three senators last week to vote against Trump’s Defense Secretary, Pete Hegseth.
-- Savannah Kuchar
Dems look to RFK Jr. for commitment on drug prices
Democrat senators sought a commitment from Kennedy that he would work to lower prescription drug prices.
Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, a Nevada Democrat, noted Republicans in Congress have worked to repeal the Inflation Reduction Act, the 2022 federal law that empowered Medicare to negotiate drug prices and capped seniors out-of-pocket drug costs at $2,000 this year.
“Are you there to be a rubber stamp to this administration?” Cortez Masto asked.
Kennedy said the Trump administration will issue an executive order today supporting drug price negotiations under the law, but no such order has been issued yet. A Trump representative did not immediately address a question from Paste BN about Kennedy’s statement.
Kennedy added the president told him the nation needs to lower drug prices for seniors.
--Ken Alltucker
These 'crunchy moms' are ready for Kennedy to fight food dyes
Kennedy addressed a key issue for a large portion of voters: food safety. He wants to reduce the use of artificial food dyes and promote the consumption of whole foods, while still letting Americans make their own decisions.
His ‘Make America Healthy Again’ messaging resonated with voters and a longstanding movement of mothers who are worried about what's going into their food and feel hindered by the FDA when it comes to making healthy eating decisions for their kids.
Following the election, these moms took to TikTok to share their excitement. One posted to the song "Walking On Sunshine" with the caption: "Crunchy moms knowing the era of constantly checking food labels for dyes, seed oils, and chemicals is coming to an end because RFK Jr. is ready to advocate for the health of our children."
Courtney Luna, social media influencer and stay-at-home-mom, says she’s tired of seeing “processed junk and dyes and chemicals” that she “wouldn’t even say are food” in the grocery store and in school lunches.
“I just want what's best for them so they can feel their best,” she says. “The fact that he (Kennedy) actually seems to care and want to make these changes is great.”
Red No. 3, a color additive made from petroleum that gives foods and drinks a bright, cherry-red color, was recently banned in response to a color additive petition filed in 2022 by advocates who claim the additive is linked to cancer and behavioral problems in children.
The eight remaining approved dyes all used to give food, drinks and ingested drugs bright colors.
- Alyssa Goldberg
Democratic senator pushes Kennedy on abortion stance reversal
Moments after Kennedy said he believes “every abortion is a tragedy,” – one of his firmest anti-abortion stances to date – Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire pushed back, citing his conflicting past comments.
“Mr. Kennedy, in 2023, you came to New Hampshire and said, ‘I’m pro-choice ... I don’t think the government has any business telling people what they can or cannot do with their body.’ So, you said that, right?” Hassan asked.
“Yes,” Kennedy confirmed.
Hassan commended his prior statements in favor of abortion access – and her Republican colleagues’ current support for Kennedy, despite this potential sticking point.
“So, Mr. Kennedy, I’m confused. You have clearly stated in the past that bodily autonomy is one of your core values," Hassan said.
“When was it that you decided to sell out the values you’ve had your whole life in order to be given power by President Trump?”
Kennedy continued to reiterate that he agrees with Trump in opposition to “every abortion.”
-- Savannah Kuchar
Kennedy: ‘Every abortion is a tragedy’
Kennedy took one of his strongest anti-abortion stances to date sitting before a panel of senators.
“I agree with President Trump that every abortion is a tragedy,” Kennedy said Wednesday, adding, “I agree with him that the states should control abortion.”
Kennedy has wavered on his views about abortion, often taking a much more lenient approach than some Republicans would prefer.
At one point, Kennedy said terminations of a pregnancy should be the decision of the woman, not politicians or judges. Later, he clarified he believed abortion should be legal up to the point of viability, or when a fetus can survive outside the womb.
But if confirmed to oversee Health and Human Services, Kennedy said he would serve “at the pleasure of the president” and implement the agenda of Trump – who has also equivocated on abortion.
The president has said repeatedly he would not sign a national abortion ban and favors letting states set their own limits. He has simultaneously touted his role appointing conservative Supreme Court justices who served to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Kennedy went on Wednesday to signal his willingness to hear both sides of the intense debate around abortion.
“I came from a family that was split on life and choice,” he said. “But the good thing in my family that I really loved is that we were able to have those conversations and respect each other. And I wish that we could do that nationally.”
-- Savannah Kuchar
Whitehouse on whether he will confirm old friend Kennedy: ‘People just need to kind of chill’
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., hasn’t revealed whether he will vote to confirm Kennedy for the role of health and human services secretary.
"I have not been inclined to telegraph my vote before someone has even had their hearing, so people just need to kind of chill on that a bit,” he said earlier this week.
Whitehouse and Kennedy attended law school together at the University of Virginia, where the two outdoorsmen and environmentalists hiked, hunted and whitewater rafted the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Kennedy, a fisherman, hunter and falconer, endorsed Whitehouse for Rhode Island attorney general in the 1998 Democratic primary Whitehouse won over Eva Mancuso and William Guglietta. He also endorsed Whitehouse in his ultimately successful 2006 Democratic Senate primary over then-secretary of state Matt Brown.
Whitehouse said he has not spoken with Kennedy since Trump nominated him and, regarding their broader friendship, they have "not been in touch for some time.” During the hearing on Wednesday, Whitehouse gave scathing remarks to Kennedy, saying that he needs to promise "never to say vaccines aren’t medically safe, when they in fact are."
“You're in that hole pretty deep,” Whitehouse said.
“We've just had a measles case in Rhode Island - the first since 2013 and frankly, you frighten people,” he added.
-- Sudiksha Kochi and Patrick Anderson
'I don't want to take food away from anybody,' Kennedy says
Robert F. Kennedy Jr, said Wednesday that if confirmed to lead the Health and Human Services Department he wants to inform Americans about the pros and cons of the foods they are eating without forcing Americans to give up junk food. Kennedy’s positions on junk food (he has said he avoids processed foods) was expected to be a key part of Wednesday’s confirmation hearing.
"If you like a McDonald's cheeseburger and a Diet Coke, which my boss loves, you should be able to get them! If you want to eat hostess Twinkie's, you should be able to do that! But you should know what the impacts are on your family and on your health," Kennedy said which drew laughter.
During an interview on “The Joe Polish Show,” a marketing industry podcast that aired on Tuesday, Nov. 12, RFK Jr. criticized some of President Donald Trump’s food preferences. “The stuff that he eats is really, like, bad,” he stated, describing certain items on the former president’s menu as “poison” in some cases.
Kennedy was photographed shortly afterward eating McDonald’s with Trump and his children on Trump’s campaign plane.
-Sarah D. Wire
What are Pharmacy benefit managers?
Last year, legislation to reform pharmacy benefit managers was stripped out of a package that passed Congress to avert a government shutdown.
Pharmacy benefit managers serve as drug pricing middlemen who negotiate lower drug prices and rebates from drug companies. These savings are supposed to be passed along to employers who purchase health insurers and consumers.
But the pharmaceutical industry contends that PBM’s drive drug prices higher because they demand rebates in exchange for favorable placement on lists of drugs health insurance companies will cover. And consumer groups who are demanding lower drug prices are pushing for PBM reforms.
Backers of PBM reform will again push this year to advance legislation to reform pharmacy benefit managers.
Sen Chuck Grassley, an Iowa Republican who has long sought PBM reforms, told Kennedy he expects him to support lawmakers effort to keep PBMs accountable. "I have been working to hold pharmacy benefit managers accountable in order to lower prescription drug prices," Grassley said. "I expect you to work with us to hold PBM's accountable."
-Ken Alltucker
Pro-vaccine protestors interrupt hearing
Kennedy’s confirmation hearing – a routine process that rarely elicits much public outcry – has seen repeated interruptions by protestors.
One of these moments came during ranking member Ron Wyden’s, R-Ore., heated questioning of Kennedy. A masked protestor was escorted out of the hearing room by Capitol police, with her hands pinned behind her back while she shouted, “Vaccines save lives.”
Inside the room, cries of, “We love you, Bobby,” from Kennedy supporters drowned out her voice.
Chairman of the committee Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, condemned the disrupters, calling any interruptions “inappropriate and out of order.”
-- Savannah Kuchar and Sudiksha Kochi
RFK Jr.’s voice is caused by rare condition spasmodic dysphonia
If you’re listening to today’s hearing, you’ll likely notice Kennedy’s voice quiver.
Kennedy has been open about the cause of his gravelly voice: a chronic neurological condition called spasmodic dysphonia, which he’s lived with for decades.
Spasmodic dysphonia is a vocal disorder that causes involuntary spasms in the muscles of the voice box, and can make a person’s speech sound tight, strained or breathy, according to John Hopkins Medicine.
In an April 8 article in the Los Angeles Times, Kennedy shared that he “can’t stand” the sound of his voice, and that if he “could sound better,” he would. “My voice doesn’t really get tired, but the injury is neurological, so actually, the more I use the voice, the stronger it tends to get,” he said.
Kennedy added that he first noticed the change in his voice in 1996, when he was 42, and speculates that the flu vaccine was “at least a potential culprit,” even though the cause of the disorder is widely unknown, according to John Hopkins Medicine.
The condition affects 50,000 people in the United States. It can be treated with speech and voice therapy, Botox injections and surgery, but there is no known cure.
- Alyssa Goldberg
Top Democrat opens Kennedy hearing with blistering criticism
Chairman Mike Crapo kicked off Wednesday’s hearing with praise for Kennedy, and the Idaho Republican appears ready to support his confirmation.
Ranking member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., decidedly does not.
“Mr. Kennedy has embraced conspiracy theories, quacks, charlatans – especially when it comes to the safety and efficacy of vaccines,” Wyden said in his scathing opening remarks.
“He has made it his life’s work to sow doubt and discourage parents from getting their kids life saving vaccines. It has been lucrative for him and put him on the verge of immense power,” Wyden continued, echoing words by Kennedy’s cousin, Caroline Kennedy, calling him a predator and hypocrite.
Along with Kennedy’s anti-vaccine stance, Wyden took aim at the nominee’s wavering abortion position as well as his relative lack of experience.
“After a careful review of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s statements, actions and views ...” Wyden said, “I’ve reached the conclusion that he should not be entrusted with the health and wellbeing of the American people.”
-- Savannah Kuchar
Senate Democrats enter hearing room with concerns, smiles
Several Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee, which is questioning Kennedy this morning, entered the hearing room with tense expressions.Except for one. Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., gave a flashy smile to reporters before entering the room. He declined to take questions.Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., told reporters ahead of Kennedy’s hearing that he’s got “enormous concerns” about the nominee.“I’ve known Caroline Kennedy, for example, for a long time, and I thought her message was very powerful,” he said.Caroline Kennedy, the cousin of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., called him a predator in a social media video posted on Tuesday.— Sudiksha Kochi
'Definitely scary’: Kennedy protestor reflects on nominee
A group of Kennedy protestors, standing near the Capitol South metro station in Washington, D.C., were handing out blue and white stickers to passersby that read “Make Polio Great Again.”Kennedy had faced backlash after reports that one of his allies, Aaron Siri, had petitioned the Food and Drug Administration to revoke its approval of a polio vaccine for kids. Ella Duncan-High, one of the protestors in the group, said it was “definitely scary for young people to see someone like him coming into such a high position in our US government.”“And I definitely don't want to grow up in a world where making polio great again is someone's platform,” said Duncan-High, a 20 year old college student living in Fairfax, Virginia.Kennedy told senators that he’s “all for” the polio vaccine in December after the reports of the petition came out.
Kennedy: Democratic candidate turned independent turned Trump ally
Hailing from one of the country’s most famous Democratic families, Kennedy has publicly stuck out from his kin. But before he was a Trump cabinet nominee, Kennedy was a fellow 2024 presidential candidate sharing the same party identity as his father and uncle.
Kennedy announced his campaign in April 2023, challenging then-President Joe Biden who was running for reelection. Six months later, he dropped that bid and reentered the race as an independent candidate, saying at the time that the American two-party system is “rigged” for voters.
After running his campaign with meager national support and funds, Kennedy dropped out of the race and quickly threw his support behind Trump. His loyalty seemingly paid off, as the now president announced his intent to make his new ally, Kennedy, Secretary of Health and Human Services the week after Election Day.
-- Savannah Kuchar
Is RFK Jr. married to actress Cheryl Hines?
RFK Jr. has been married to actress Cheryl Hines since 2014. She is the Emmy-nominated star of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” who played Larry David’s wife, Cheryl, on the show.
She also runs the beauty brand Hines+Young. The mother-daughter self-care line is co-founded by Hines and her daughter Catherine Young, with Hines writing on her website that the duo "launched Hines+Young to explore new ways to feel good without contributing to the problem of plastics."
Kennedy and Hines have been at the center of split rumors since September when Status journalist and former CNN reporter Oliver Darcy broke the news that RFK Jr. and ex-New York Magazine correspondent Olivia Nuzzi had an alleged sexting affair.
But in an Us Weekly story published Oct. 20, Hines opened up about the pair's decadelong marriage: "There’s, like, a connection that you look at your husband or your partner and all the crazy going on around you, or you look and you check in and it’s like, 'OK. It’s going to be OK. We’re going to move through this moment'," Hines said.
- Jay Stahl
What did Caroline Kennedy say about RFK Jr?
Caroline Kennedy, the only living child of former President John F. Kennedy, called her cousin Robert F. Kennedy Jr. a predator in a social media video posted on Tuesday.
“I have known Bobby my whole life," Caroline Kennedy says in the video, in which she's reading aloud a letter she wrote to senators. "We grew up together. It’s no surprise that he keeps birds of prey as pets because he himself is a predator."
In the letter, she praised her cousin for recovering from substance abuse but said before getting sober, he encouraged siblings and cousins to use drugs and they wound up addicted, ill or dead.
She characterized running the Department of Health and Human Services – which includes overseeing the Food and Drug Administration and the National Institutes of Health – as "an enormous responsibility, and one that Bobby is unqualified to fill."
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has acknowledged skeletons in his closet and admitted he is "not a church boy." His children's former babysitter, who is about 20 years his junior, accused him publicly of sexual assault. He apologized to her but said he had no memory of the alleged encounter. The case never went to court.
-- Erin Mansfield, Jonathan Limehouse, and Sudiksha Kochi
What are Kennedy’s views on the polio vaccine?
Kennedy told senators that he’s “all for” the polio vaccine in December. His remarks came after reports that a laywer affiliated with Kennedy petitioned the Food and Drug Administration to revoke its approval of a polio vaccine for kids.
The petition was filed by Aaron Siri, who had been advising Kennedy on health official selections for the Trump administration.The report immediately drew backlash from both sides of the aisle.Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., wrote in a statement after the report came out that “anyone seeking the Senate’s consent to serve in the incoming Administration would do well to steer clear of even the appearance of association with such efforts.” Kennedy, a former Democrat, is known for his anti-vaccine beliefs and has repeatedly spread false or misleading claims regarding vaccines, fluoride and other topics. He gained national prominence in part because of his opposition to the childhood vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella. Kennedy has pushed debunked claims that the vaccine was linked to autism.After the reports about Siri came out, Trump also said he’s a “big believer” of the polio vaccine in a December news conference.
-- Sudiksha Kochi and Michael Collins
What have senators said about Kennedy?
When President Trump tapped Kennedy back in November to lead Health and Human Services, Republican senators appeared poised to see his confirmation through.
“RFK Jr. has championed issues like healthy foods and the need for greater transparency in our public health infrastructure,” Sen. Bill Cassidy, a physician and chair of one committee vetting Kennedy, said in a statement at the time.
However, in the two months since, some issues have put Kennedy’s confirmation in question.
His long-espoused anti-vaccine stance was scrutinized further after one of Kennedy’s top advisers called into question the widely accepted polio vaccination. Farm state senators, including Republicans, raised concerns about Kennedy’s objections to seed oils, pesticides and some other agricultural practices.
And his equivocating stance on abortion may likely come up, as Kennedy’s more lenient approach runs counter to that of anti-abortion lawmakers.
“I’m going to ask him about the life issues,” Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., said in December. “Obviously, the first version of the Trump administration was very clear on what they thought about life, and they implemented that with HHS.”
Democrats will of course have a chance to ask questions this week too. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., ranking member of the committee holding Wednesday’s hearing, said they plan to hold his feet to the fire.
“He’s made some outlandish statements,” Wyden told Paste BN Tuesday. “We’re going to get to the bottom of it.”
-- Savannah Kuchar and Riley Beggin