Watching the confirmation hearings for Trump’s deeply troubling cabinet nominee picks has been gutting. We’re concerned about Lee Zeldin, chosen to head EPA; Russell Vought, Trump’s pick for the powerful White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB); and Chris Wright, the gas company executive choice for Secretary of Energy. These men share reckless and dangerous environmental agendas and have proven track records of putting industry profits over public health.
This week we turn our attention to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump’s pick to be the head of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Kennedy’s unscientific and wild health claims are alarming and widely disavowed by public health professionals. He couldn’t be less qualified for the job.
How can an anti-vaccine activist possibly protect children from vaccine-preventable disease like measles and polio, let alone address the mounting health disasters made worse by global warming?
Our Senators are getting ready to vote on RFK Jr. and other unfit nominees, and they need to hear from you. It’s critical we let them know we’re paying attention.
Tell the Senate: Sound the Alarm on Reckless and Dangerous Cabinet Picks
At HHS, Kennedy would preside over the essential architecture of our public health systems, overseeing everything from food safety to medical research. It is terrifying to consider how he will protect public health, including our children’s health, when he has stated that he wants to cut funding for infectious diseases at a time when a supercharged climate means there are and will continue to be more vector-borne illnesses like Lyme disease.
Kennedy continuously fans the fires on a variety of topics even though his misinformation has been soundly debunked by scientific consensus. He:
- Spreads falsehoods about Covid-19, including that it is “targeted to attack Caucasians and Black people” while others are mostly immune.
- States wi-fi radiation “opens up your blood brain barrier … so all the toxins in your body can now go into your brain.”
- Undermines public trust in fluoride in drinking water.
- Asserts the FDA has been at war with public health—and he will save the day with a magical and contradictory mix, including raw milk and sunshine.
Nominees who deny scientific consensus and downplay evidence-based science to this extreme present a true test of leadership for Senators. We have seen several questionable nominees make their way through this process to date. With RFK Jr.—as with Zeldin, Vought, and Wright—we hope our Senators stand strong. The impact of all these nominations will last generations.
Tell your Senators you want leadership that follows sound science and will do the job of protecting the people. That is a right of everyone in the U.S., no matter their party affiliation.
Learn more about Moms’ work on chemical safety.
Tell the Senate: Sound the Alarm on Reckless and Dangerous Cabinet Picks