APPLENEWS - STORY ADD
Top Republican 'struggling' with RFK Jr.'s nomination over Kennedy's vaccine views
Kennedy refused to say vaccines don't cause autism during his hearings.
President Donald Trump has promised he'd let Robert F. Kennedy Jr. "go wild" on health, food and medicine as head of the Department of Health and Human Services.
Kennedy, a Democrat who ran as an independent but ended up supporting Trump in the 2024 presidential campaign, was grilled by senators over his views on vaccines, abortion, Medicaid and more during two days of confirmation hearings.
Sen. Bill Cassidy, the top Republican on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, concluded Thursday's hearing by saying he was "struggling" with the nomination due to Kennedy's vaccine positions. Kennedy notably refused to say vaccines don't cause autism as he faced pointed question from lawmakers.
Key Headlines
Medicaid, Medicare and more sweeping programs will be under RFK Jr.'s purview if confirmed
HHS oversees major health agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, among others.
Millions of Americans, especially low-income Americans, rely on Medicaid and Medicare for health coverage.
Kennedy has said he wants to reform parts of those programs, arguing most people on them are not satisfied with their plans.
Polls show Americans are generally unhappy with the state of health care and insurance, though a 2023 survey from KFF -- a health policy research organization -- showed those on Medicaid and Medicare reported more positive ratings of their insurance compared to people on other kinds of coverage.
RFK opponents, supporters lined up to view hearing
RFK Jr.'s tense confirmation hearing has drawn dozens of onlookers. The hearing room is packed with supporters, others opposing Kennedy, and some protesters.
People started lining up early this morning and there was a long line to enter the packed overflow room simply to watch the hearing on a monitor.
A group of women, dressed in scrubs and doctors' coats and identifying themselves as doctors and nurses from several states, walked into the hearing room wearing "Reject RFK" buttons.
Kennedy's supporters, some wearing Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) t-shirts and others wearing swag from Kennedy's failed presidential campaign, gave the controversial nominee a standing ovation as he entered the hearing room.
-ABC News' Jay O'Brien
Kennedy's prolific past comments plague his nomination
Kennedy's many interviews, podcasts, books and more have provided Democrats with plenty of ammunition to criticize his nomination to lead HHS.
That was evident in a tense exchange between Colorado Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet and Kennedy, where Bennet read aloud past comments -- including on transgender children and the AIDS crisis.
Some comments Kennedy denied making despite them being in the public record.
"I have the record that I'll give to the chairman, and he can make his judgment about what you said," Bennet said.
RFK addresses missing unaccompanied migrant children issue
GOP Sen. John Cornyn brought up a Department of Homeland Security watchdog report released in August that more than 32,000 unaccompanied migrant children failed to appear for their immigration court hearings, and ICE was "not able to account" for all of their locations.
According to the interim report, from 2019 to 2023 -- a period spanning both the Trump and Biden administrations -- immigration officials transferred more than 448,000 unaccompanied migrant children from ICE custody to HHS.
Kennedy said that Trump was dedicated to finding those minors, claiming some may have been sold into slavery and sex trafficking.
"It is a blight on America's moral authority. And we need to find those kids," he said.