“Make America Healthy Again” begins today.
The U.S. Senate confirmed Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Secretary of Health and Human Services Thursday in a nearly party-line 52-48 vote, with Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky the lone Republican opposing the Trump nominee.
“I’m a survivor of childhood polio. In my lifetime, I’ve watched vaccines save millions of lives from devastating diseases across America and around the world,” McConnell said after voting no. “I will not condone the re-litigation of proven cures, and neither will millions of Americans who credit their survival and quality of life to scientific miracles.”
Kennedy, 71, the longtime Democratic Party insider who dropped his independent presidential bid to endorse President Donald Trump last August, survived contentious confirmation hearings critical of his plans to overhaul federal health policy.
“Our country is not going to be destroyed because we get the marginal tax rate wrong. It is going to be destroyed if we get this issue wrong,” Kennedy told senators, pointing to chronic diseases as a primary concern.
Sen. Roger Marshall, R-K.S., celebrated the confirmation by announcing a “package of bills” supporting Kennedy’s “Make America Healthy Again” agenda, focusing on nutrition, soil health, and dietary guidelines reform. The Republican leader also formed a Senate caucus to advance these priorities.
Key Republican senators who initially expressed doubts ultimately backed the nominee.
“After extensive public and private questioning and a thorough examination of his nomination, I will support Robert F. Kennedy Jr.,” said Sen. Susan Collins of Maine.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska voted yes despite “concerns about Mr. Kennedy’s views on vaccines and his selective interpretation of scientific studies,” citing commitments he made to Congress on vaccine safety oversight.
Like every move by the Trump administration, Democrats strongly opposed the nomination. DNC Chair Ken Martin said “RFK Jr. doesn’t care about keeping Americans healthy – in fact, he has a track record of spreading medical misinformation that can cost lives.”
The confirmation came one day after another Trump nominee, Tulsi Gabbard, was confirmed as Director of National Intelligence in a similar 52-48 vote. Kennedy is expected to be sworn in later today.