Nomination of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

Floor Speech

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Ms. BALDWIN. Mr. President, I rise today in opposition to Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s nomination to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.

Healthcare is not just a policy to me; it is deeply personal. I got into public service because of my own healthcare journey. When I was 9, I was hospitalized with a serious childhood illness. It was similar to spinal meningitis--that wasn't the exact diagnosis but similar. While I fought to survive and then ultimately to get better and fully recover, my grandparents, who raised me, struggled to figure out how to pay for the lifesaving care that I needed and received. In total, I spent 3 months in the hospital in Madison, WI.

When I talk about healthcare, I don't just speak as a U.S. Senator or as a Wisconsinite; I am speaking as a person who knows what it was like to spend months in a hospital bed. I am speaking as someone who knows the emotional toll and the financial stress that it put on my loved ones. I am speaking as someone who knows firsthand how important it is to protect our children from serious illness and the dire consequences when our children do get sick. That is why I was so disturbed by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s nomination to lead our Nation's largest public health Agency.

As a member of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, I was able to question Mr. Kennedy at one of his nomination hearings. I watched as he over and over again parroted the same answer when pressed about his anti-vaccine views. ``Show me the data,'' he would say. When asked if he still believes that vaccines cause autism, he would not commit. He again said, ``Show me the data.''

Well, Mr. Kennedy has had every opportunity to review the overwhelming consensus of doctors, researchers, and experts that vaccines are safe and effective. He certainly had the opportunity to do so not just before his confirmation hearing but before spending a decade peddling misinformation and conspiracy theories about vaccines.

Apparently, he didn't look at the research before traveling to Samoa to rail against the measles vaccine. Perhaps if he had, the 83 people-- primarily infants and children--who died from a subsequent outbreak of measles would still be with us.

I think it is clear that he also didn't bother to review the research before spreading misinformation online, with one study finding that among verified Twitter accounts, Mr. Kennedy was by far the top purveyor of vaccine misinformation, garnering more than three times as much engagement as the second most retweeted account.

Now, we are supposed to believe that if we simply show Mr. Kennedy the research, he will change his tune. Well, I believe someone applying to be the top health official in this country shouldn't have to be convinced to follow the science. We shouldn't have to hold their feet to the fire on whether they would be willing to protect our children from polio or measles. They should already be an expert in the field, not an expert at evading responsibility and spreading conspiracy theories.

Americans deserve a leading health official who believes in science, not in conspiracies. If Mr. Kennedy is not willing to believe or even review the overwhelming data on vaccines before spreading dangerous lies about their safety, then I highly doubt he will change his tune when leading the Department of Health and Human Services. And it is not just his statements like ``No vaccine is safe and effective.''

By the way, he really did make that statement. I have seen it on a podcast. But he has repeatedly made claims with no evidence. He said Wi-Fi causes cancer. He said antidepressants caused school shootings. He questioned whether HIV does, in fact, cause AIDS. And time and again, he is showing us who he is. By his own admission, he is not interested in the research. He has no time for the data. And these claims may seem outlandish. They may seem harmless, but they all point to a fundamental truth about Mr. Kennedy. He not only does not believe the science, but he is willing to actively undermine it. He spreads dangerous conspiracy theories, and he puts families' health and safety at risk.

RFK, Jr., will put Americans in harm's way. Kids will be at risk of getting preventable diseases like measles and mumps. Women will have essential healthcare ripped away. Families will be further away, not closer, to having cures to diseases like cancer. And, sadly, the list goes on and on.

So I urge my colleagues, especially those who understand how dangerous vaccine skepticism is, to ask themselves this simple question: Will this nominee keep your constituents safe? Or will he harm them?

For Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., the answer is clear. I oppose this nomination on behalf of Wisconsin families and encourage my colleagues to vote no.

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