Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., questioned Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Wednesday in his confirmation hearing for health and human services secretary.
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For years, Kennedy, an environmental lawyer, has spread misinformation and falsehoods about vaccines and their safety, including the heavily debunked claim that they cause autism. Kennedy has also promoted drinking raw milk, which the Food and Drug Administration says can pose a "serious health risk." His views on these issues and others have prompted concern among health experts about his nomination.
Whitehouse pressed Kennedy on a number of his views. On vaccinations, he sought from Kennedy "a promise from you never to say vaccines aren't medically safe, when they in fact are" and asked Kennedy to make "indisputably clear that you support mandatory vaccinations against diseases where that will keep people safe. You're in that hole pretty deep," Whitehouse said.
Whitehouse referenced a recent measles case in Rhode Island, the first in more than a decade, and told Kennedy: "Frankly, you frighten people."
Kennedy, the son of Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy, ran for president as an independent in 2024 before dropping out of the race and endorsing Trump.