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In a copy of a letter…sent to lawmakers ahead of #RFKJr’s confirmation hearings to lead the Dept of #Health & #Human Services, the fmr ambassador to Australia alleges that her cousin, “addicted to #attention & #power,” has given #hypocritical advice by discouraging parents from vaccinating their children while vaccinating his own children. She alleged that his “crusade against #vaccination” has also served to enrich him.

“I have known Bobby my whole life; we grew up together,” wrote #Kennedy. “It’s no surprise that he keeps birds of prey as pets because he himself is a #predator.”

#CarolineKennedy goes on to say in her letter that through “the strength of his personality,” other family members followed #RFKJr “down the path of drug #addiction.”

“His basement, his garage, his dorm room were the centers of the action where drugs were available, & he enjoyed showing off how he put baby chickens & mice in the blender to feed his hawks. It was often a #perverse scene of #despair & #violence.”

She commended #RFKJr for “pulling himself out of illness & disease” but lamented “siblings & cousins who Bobby ENCOURAGED down the path of #SubstanceAbuse suffered #addiction, #illness, & #death…

“while Bobby has gone on to misrepresent, #lie, & #cheat his way through life,” #Kennedy said of #RFKJr.

#CarolineKennedy has been reticent to publicly comment on her cousin’s politics, & told senators Tuesday that she only reluctantly is speaking up now.

“I have never wanted to speak publicly about my family members & their challenges,” she wrote.

…In Tuesday’s letter, she cited a NYT report that #RFKJr would keep his #financial stake in litigation against a manufacturer of a #vaccine that protects against… #HPV. The vaccine, which is administered to adolescents, can prevent cervical #cancer.

“In other words, he is willing to enrich himself by denying access to a vaccine that can prevent almost all forms of cervical cancer & which has been safely administered to millions of boys & girls,” #CarolineKennedy wrote.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/22/us/politics/rfk-hpv-vaccine-merck.html

From the NYT report:

#RFKJr, #Trump’s pick to be #health secretary, is keeping his financial stake in major litigation against Merck over a widely used #vaccine given to young people, according to an #ethics agreement made public on Wednesday & court docs. That #ConflictOfInterest could raise questions for lawmakers as RFK Jr aims to run agencies that regulate the drugmaker.

The #ethics doc said #RFKJr would continue to collect fees for cases in which he referred clients to Wisner Baum, a law firm suing Merck over Gardasil, a #vaccine that protects against the human papillomavirus, or #HPV. The vaccine is administered to adolescents to prevent cervical & other #cancers later in life.

The arrangement w/Wisner Baum, which also includes other matters, has earned #RFKJr, one of the nation’s fiercest #vaccine critics, >$2.5M in the past 2 years, acc/to records filed w/federal election ofcls for his presidential run & the agreement, approved by the Office of Govt #Ethics as part of the confirmation process. That sum is far higher than about $200,000, the latest salary figure for the #Health & Human Services secretary….

…Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, said #RFKJr’s finances showed “outrageous conflicts of interest that endanger #PublicHealth.”

“This disclosure shows that RFK Jr. made millions off of peddling dangerous #AntiVaccine #conspiracies,” she said in a statement. “Even worse, if he is confirmed, his finances will still be tied to the outcomes of anti-#vaccine lawsuits — even as he’d be tasked with regulating them as #health secretary.”

Two #ethics experts who reviewed the agreement said his stake in the lawsuits appeared to be highly problematic, as the #FDA, which approves #drugs & #vaccines, would fall within #RFKJr’s purview as #health secretary. The experts said any action Kennedy took related to Merck, one of the world’s largest drugmakers, could appear to be motivated by his financial interest in a handsome settlement.

A group of protesters opposed to #RFKJr's nomination gathered near Union Station in Washington as he appeared before the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday.

They have T-shirts with the slogan “Make Polio Great Again Robert F. Kennedy Jr for HHS Secretary”

Senator #RonWyden, Democrat of Oregon & the top Democrat on the panel, goes directly at #RFKJr in his opening remarks. The question, he said, is “whether Robert F. Kennedy should be trusted with the health & well-being of the American people.” He said Kennedy has embraced “#ConspiracyTheories, #quacks, #charlatans,” saying that is especially true concerning the safety & efficacy of #vaccines.

Senator #RonWyden brings up #RFKJr’s 2023 remark about pausing #infectious #disease #research for EIGHT YEARS, calling it”gobsmacking.” He also raises the specter of a #NationalAbortionBan should Kennedy decide to limit or bar access to the #abortion pill, #mifepristone.

Senator Wyden underscored Kennedy’s shifting positions, saying “When he’s taken every side of every issue, how can the American people believe that he has anything to say?”

One Democrat to watch: Sen. #SheldonWhitehouse (D-Rhode Island), an old friend & roommate of #RFKJr [makes you wonder if he saw the blender]. There’s been some speculation that Whitehouse will support Kennedy, particularly because he hasn’t denounced him. Whitehouse told reporters this week that “people just need to kind of chill” about his potential vote, saying that he has never telegraphed a vote before a hearing.

Sen #RonWyden accused #RFKJr of being hypocritical, saying he is fond of saying he’s not making “recommendations” about whether parents should #vaccinate their #children, but “just asking questions” & giving people choices.

“It’s a slippery tactic to dodge any real responsibility for his words & actions, & it’s absurd coming from somebody who’s trying to win confirmation for a job that is entirely about making recommendations,” Wyden said in his opening statement.

#RFKJr says in his opening statement, “news reports complain that I am anti-vaccine or anti-industry I am neither.” The hearing is briefly disrupted as a woman shouts, “He lies!” before she was forcibly removed from the room by a police officer.

Kennedy began his remarks by saying Americans’ overall #health is in “grievous condition” & worse than that of any other developed nation. He is emphasizing #ChronicIllness.

#RFKJr sought to pre-empt criticism of his #vaccine views, insisting he is not #AntiVaccine. An extensive review of Kennedy’s public comments by The Washington Post found he repeatedly disparaged #vaccines & falsely linked them to autism. He founded Children’s Health Defense, an anti-vaccine group.

#law #USpol #PublicHealth

#GiftArticle:
https://wapo.st/42zOOkt

Another protester — masked & holding a sign saying “#Vaccines save lives” — interrupted #RFKJr. “Senator, listen to me!” she yelled before being removed. Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) warned that if there are further disruptions, the hearing will be paused until Capitol Police can restore order. The woman could still be heard shouting in the hallways.

If a Democrat president had nominated a recovering heroin addict no matter how long they’d been in recovery, no freaking way would they have even gotten this far. Just crazy.

[had to take a break to walk the dog]

#Republicans are full on lying in their question setups. They laid the victims of Trump’s #FamilySeparation policy at Biden’s feet ffs. Outrageous.

I do agree with #RFKJr’s characterization of #Medicaid. It SUCKS. The premiums are high, most doctors do not accept it. Most drugs aren’t covered by it. The problem is there isn’t another option for the poor of the United States. Until they present a practical alternative, they cannot cut it. Period.

Good to hear Sen #SheldonWhitehouse expressing no confidence in #RFKJr’s suitability for this position.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) to his old roommate: “Frankly, you frighten people.”

Sen #SheldonWhitehouse, whose state recently had a #measles outbreak, asked #RFKJr to “never say #vaccines aren’t medically safe when they in fact are,” & to make it “indisputably clear” that he supports childhood #vaccine mandates. RFKJr now says he is for vaccines but against mandates, but #PublicHealth experts say mandatory #vaccination is crucial to prevent outbreaks.

In a tense exchange w/Sen #BillCassidy, a #Republican from Louisiana, #RFKJr displayed a surprising lack of familiarity w/ #Medicare & #Medicaid, the govt programs responsible for covering >150 million Americans.

At times, Kennedy seemed to confuse the 2 programs. Medicare is a federal program that provides coverage to older & disabled Americans, while Medicaid is a state-federal program that covers low-income people.

When #RFKJr first described #Medicare, he seemed to ignore the half of the program that relies on #PrivateInsurance plans to provide care. Later, he acknowledged that he was enrolled in a private #MedicareAdvantage plan.

Kennedy described #Medicaid as ”fully paid for by the federal government.” In fact, Medicaid, which provides #HealthInsurance coverage to nearly 80 million low-income Americans, is financed through a combination of state & federal funds.

Senator Cassidy asked #RFKJr to describe how he would reform the #Medicaid program. While other #Trump nominees have offered concrete policy proposals, Kennedy described vaguer changes.

He said he supported changes to “increase transparency” &” “increase accountability.”

When Cassidy pressed him to be more specific, Kennedy responded, “I don’t have a broad proposal for dismantling the program.”

Sen #SteveDaines, Republican of Montana, brought up the #abortion pill #mifepristone. He echoes claims by #abortion opponents who are suing the #FDA to roll back #regulations that greatly expanded access to the drug. He asks #RFKJr what he will do about mifepristone. Kennedy hedges, saying “President Trump has asked me to study the safety of mifepristone. He has not yet taken a stand on how to regulate it. Whatever he does, I will implement those policies.”

Sen #MaggieHassan, Democrat of NH, returned to the topic of #vaccines, invoking her grandfather, a pediatrician, before drilling down on #RFKJr’s changing position on #abortion. “You have clearly stated in the past that #BodilyAutonomy is one of your core values. The question is, do you stand for that value or not? 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?”

#RFKJr is clearly flustered by this exchange. His go-to response when challenged about his about-face seems to be simply that he agrees w/ #Trump that “every abortion is a tragedy”

Sen Catherine Cortez-Masto, (D), trips RFKJr up on a question about #EMTALA, the federal #law that requires hospitals that receive #Medicare funding to provide emergency care to anyone in a life-threatening crisis—including #abortions for pregnant women. RFKJr confesses he does not know what authority he would have.

#HHS can influence whether #hospitals provide #abortion in emergency situations. The Biden admin issued guidance saying that #EMTALA’s requirements that hospitals provide emergency medical care also mean hospitals should provide abortion in cases where a woman’s health or life were at risk. Sen Cortez Masto asked #RFKJr if he believes that EMTALA protects a woman’s right to have an emergency abortion if her #health is threatened, in the case of an incomplete miscarriage, for example.
#law #USpol

#RFKJr didn’t answer the question, saying he thinks he only has authority over the budgetary provisions of #EMTALA.

“I don’t know. I mean the answer that is, I don’t know,” Kennedy finally responded.

This has been a major debate in #health #policy, reaching #SCOTUS last year. (The court mostly punted on the case.) The Biden admin argued that federal #law preempts state law for emergency #abortions.

Sen #RonJohnson, (R-WI) is arguably #RFKJr’s biggest fan in the #Senate. Johnson frequently held hearings during the pandemic that featured the so-called “Covid contrarians” — doctors who disagreed w/the #PublicHealth establishment, including on #vaccines. He says Kennedy is the “answer to my prayers.”

Sen #RonJohnson said he has issued a subpoena for responses to about 70 oversight letters that he has sent to #health agencies, & weirdly complained about redactions of documents involving Dr Anthony Fauci, who was a target of #COVID-deniers & #antivaxxers during the #pandemic. He asked #RFKJr if he would help get answers. Kennedy said: “My approach, as I said before Senator, is radical transparency.”

Sen #ElizabethWarren, Democrat of Massachusetts gets #RFKJr to say he will not take money from the drug industry. He pledges not to. Then she turned to his affiliation with a law firm that is suing Merck over its human papillomavirus #HPV #vaccine. Kennedy has said he is entitled to a 10% fee from that ongoing lawsuit; on his financial disclosure forms he said he would continue to receive those fees as secretary. [see #GiftArticle earlier in ]

Sen #ElizabethWarren wanted to know if #RFKJr will commit to foregoing the fees while he is secy & for 4 yrs afterward. “You’re making me sound like a shill,” he complained. Kennedy evaded the question, saying he will comply with ethical guidelines & pushed back: “You’re asking me not to sue vaccine companies.” That was NOT what she asked at all. She asked him specifically about the arrangement w/the law firm Wisner Baum where over the last 2 yrs he has collected ~$2.5M in fees for referrals.

After the exchange between Sen #ElizabethWarren & #RFKJr, Sen #MikeCrapo, the Republican chair of the cmte, noted that Kennedy has gone through the same #ethics review as every other nominee. Warren retorts, “Have we had a single nominee come through who’s made two and a half million dollars off suing one of the entities that it would be regulating & plans to keep getting a take of every lawsuit in the future?”

@JudyOlo @Nonilex ‘Just a concept of a proposal to gut it.’

@legallaurak

Yeah but we’re talking about people who endorsed, campaigned for & elected Trump.

@rejinl

I briefly went on it in Michigan. None of my doctors accepted it. And it didn’t cover any of my meds.

@RegGuy It’s hard to pick just one, but yeah. @Nonilex