Robert F. Kennedy Jr. faced more than three hours of questions from senators on the Senate Finance Committee during his first confirmation hearing Wednesday, Jan. 29. The former 2024 presidential candidate is President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.
Kennedy has drawn controversy since his nomination. Democrats have criticized his false claims about vaccines, ties to anti-vaccine groups, and accusations of sexual misconduct, while Republicans have expressed concerns about his support for abortion rights up to birth.
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He also faced particular scrutiny from Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo. Bennet pressed Kennedy on his prior statements about pesticides and diseases, including COVID-19 and Lyme disease.
Kennedy said he was quoting a study funded by the National Institutes of Health when Bennet asked if he had said that COVID-19 targeted Black and white people but spared Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese people.
When Bennet asked if Kennedy had described it as “highly likely” that Lyme disease was an engineered bioweapon, Kennedy said that he “probably did say that.”
And Kennedy denied ever saying that pesticide exposure caused children to become transgender when Bennet asked him if he made those comments.
“I never said that,” Kennedy said.
Kennedy faced some difficulties with various factual questions. He appeared to confuse Medicare and Medicaid when Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., asked how he would handle eligible Americans for both programs.
Most Republicans on the committee have said they would support Kennedy or asked questions suggesting they may do so, despite Republican senators previously expressing skepticism about Kennedy’s stances on vaccines.
Cassidy appears to be the only Republican on the committee who is still unsure. The doctor, who chairs the Senate Health Committee, said he will withhold judgment about the nomination until after Kennedy testifies during his second confirmation hearing on Thursday, Jan. 30.
