Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Vaccination opponent confirmed as US Secretary of Health and Human Services
Donald Trump's cabinet has gained a controversial figure. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was confirmed as Secretary of Health and Human Services by a narrow majority in the US Senate on Thursday - putting an outspoken anti-vaccination activist at the levers of power.
In recent years, the nephew of former US President John F. Kennedy had frequently cast doubt on vaccinations, spread conspiracy theories and made a name for himself with strident statements. There was therefore much criticism of his choice for the health portfolio.
The confirmation in the Senate was preceded by a heated hearing in the relevant committee of the House of Representatives, in which the 71-year-old defended himself against accusations of being an anti-vaccinationist, among other things.
A Democratic senator called on him to clearly state that vaccinations are safe. Kennedy affirmed that his own children had been vaccinated and that he was merely advocating stricter scrutiny of medical safety. An organization that Kennedy co-founded, for example, sells rompers for babies with an anti-vaccination label.
Kennedy unsettled with false information
For years, however, critics have accused him of deliberately spreading doubts about vaccines and undermining the measles vaccination campaign in particular. In the past, for example, Kennedy advocated the scientifically refuted theory that vaccinations could cause autism.
Shortly before his hearing, a warning from Kennedy's cousin Caroline had attracted attention. In a letter to several senators, she wrote that her cousin was building up his following by exploiting the despair of parents of sick children. She urged the senators "to reject his nomination".
There were warnings about Trump's preferred candidate not only from the family, but also from science and research. Dozens of Nobel laureates publicly expressed their doubts about Kennedy's suitability for the office and criticized his lack of qualifications or experience in fields such as medicine, science and administration. They accused him of holding anti-scientific positions.
A political change and shrill anecdotes
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had been a Democrat for decades, but increasingly distanced himself from the party. He was also criticized for spreading conspiracy theories, for example about the coronavirus pandemic, and for his contacts with far-right politicians. In the presidential election, the man from the prominent Kennedy family initially ran as an independent candidate, but then withdrew his unpromising candidacy and switched to the Trump camp.
Kennedy also drew attention to himself outside of politics with outrageous anecdotes. He once admitted to having dumped a dead bear in New York's Central Park. His daughter reported how he sawed off the head of a dead whale while on vacation and then drove it home for hours on the roof of his car. Kennedy also claimed to have had a worm in his brain that temporarily caused an abnormality in his head.
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