Trump picks RFK Jr. for Secretary of Health and Human Services

CV NEWS FEED // President-elect Donald Trump announced on Thursday that he is nominating attorney, former independent presidential candidate, and children’s healthcare advocate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., a Catholic, to serve as the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS).

The pick signals that the attorney’s healthcare policy platform, dubbed “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA), will be incorporated into the greater policy agenda of Trump’s second administration.

A registered independent and former lifelong Democrat, Kennedy is well known for spreading awareness about the country’s ongoing chronic disease epidemic, and serves as the chairman of the nonprofit group Children’s Health Defense (CHD). 

In recent years, he became a household name for his vocal opposition to COVID restrictions, as well as his criticism of public health bureaucrats such as Dr. Anthony Fauci and a handful of large pharmaceutical corporations (colloquially known as “Big Pharma”).

Trump wrote on X (formerly Twitter) Thursday afternoon that he is “thrilled to announce” the nomination of Kennedy to lead his incoming administration’s HHS Department. 

“For too long, Americans have been crushed by the industrial food complex and drug companies who have engaged in deception, misinformation, and disinformation when it comes to Public Health,” Trump stated: 

The Safety and Health of all Americans is the most important role of any Administration, and HHS will play a big role in helping ensure that everybody will be protected from harmful chemicals, pollutants, pesticides, pharmaceutical products, and food additives that have contributed to the overwhelming Health Crisis in this Country. 

“Mr. Kennedy will restore these Agencies to the traditions of Gold Standard Scientific Research, and beacons of Transparency, to end the Chronic Disease epidemic, and to Make America Great and Healthy Again!” the president-elect emphasized.

Kennedy took to X to thank Trump for nominating him and for the president-elect’s “leadership and courage.”

“I’m committed to advancing your vision to Make America Healthy Again,” Kennedy wrote. “We have a generational opportunity to bring together the greatest minds in science, medicine, industry, and government to put an end to the chronic disease epidemic.”

He stated that he looks “forward to working with the more than 80,000 employees at HHS to free the agencies from the smothering cloud of corporate capture so they can pursue their mission to make Americans once again the healthiest people on Earth.”

“Together we will clean up corruption, stop the revolving door between industry and government, and return our health agencies to their rich tradition of gold-standard, evidence-based science,” Kennedy continued:

I will provide Americans with transparency and access to all the data so they can make informed choices for themselves and their families.  

My commitment to the American people is to be an honest public servant. Let’s go!

Like Trump’s picks for other cabinet secretaries, Kennedy’s nomination is pending confirmation by the U.S. Senate – which Republicans will control with a 53-seat majority starting in January.

Kennedy is the son of the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and the nephew of the nation’s 35th President, John F. Kennedy,  both pivotal figures in the civil rights movement of the 1960s.

The HHS nominee was a registered Democrat – like the rest of his family – and in April 2023 entered the 2024 presidential race challenging President Joe Biden in the Democratic primary.

In October of that year, Kennedy announced he was leaving the party of which he was a member for his entire adult life and switching to an independent run for the White House.  

On August 23 of this year, Kennedy, along with his running mate Nicole Shanahan, announced that he was suspending his campaign and endorsing Trump. 

>> RFK JR. STARS IN CATHOLICVOTE AD FOR TRUMP <<

In the same speech, Kennedy rebuked his former party, stating that the Democrats “had become the party of war, censorship, corruption, Big Pharma, Big Tech, Big Ag[riculture], and big money.”

Less than two weeks before Election Day, Kennedy starred in a CatholicVote ad urging Catholic voters to back Trump over Democratic nominee Kamala Harris.

“Catholics may disagree on many issues, but we must find a way to love our children more than we hate each other,” Kennedy said in the ad. “I hope you’ll join me in supporting Donald Trump.”