Thursday, September 4, 2025

RFK Jr. clashes with the Senate on vaccines and CDC chaos

Thursday's hearing of HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at the Senate Finance Committee was marked by repeated fiery exchanges.

But while the clashes between Kennedy and Democrats on the panel were expected, the hearing was remarkable in that the secretary faced searing criticism from several Republican members, including a member of Senate leadership: GOP whip John Barrasso.

As a result, Thursday could arguably mark the first major clash between the Executive and Legislative branches under Donald Trump's second presidency.

Sen. Bill Cassidy led the charge for the GOP. The Louisiana senator and physician accused Kennedy of undermining public confidence and even Trump's own Operation Warp Speed effort to deliver a Covid vaccine.

Cassidy pointed to unclear guidance around the vaccine from HHS, and warned that it was causing confusion among doctors when it came to recommending vaccinations: “I would say, effectively, we're denying people vaccines."

Another Republican member, Sen. Thom Tillis, warned that Kennedy was “diminishing the credibility of the U.S. government in terms of keeping kids safe.”

Even if the secretary didn't show it, there was reason to come out of Thursday's hearing wondering if the first Cabinet secretary to see their own credibility collapse in Trump's second term could end up being the Kennedy family scion.

Read more here.

By John Bowden

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West Coast states join together to lead vaccine defense as Florida ends school mandate

Three blue states in the western U.S. are uniting to form a "health alliance' in response to RFK Jr.'s mass firings at the CDC and other agencies, while red states are taking the opposite approach and embracing a free-for-all. Katie Hawkinson has more.

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