'Vaccine Conspiracy Theory' Kennedy "Likely to Appoint Personnel to US Health Agencies Including FDA"

Last Month, Joined Trump Presidential Transition Team

Robert Kennedy Jr., who joined former President Donald Trump's presidential transition team as the Republican presidential candidate, is expected to gain the authority to appoint heads of major health agencies in the United States.

According to the U.S. political media outlet The Hill on the 18th (local time), Kennedy Jr. stated in an interview with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson the day before, "Former President Trump specifically asked me to do two things, one of which is to liberate agencies that have been infiltrated by corrupt powers. The other is to end the epidemic of pediatric and chronic diseases and make Americans healthy again."

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

When asked what specific efforts he would make to achieve these goals, he replied, "I will be deeply involved in appointing new people to run the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) with a focus on restoring public health." Carlson then chimed in, referring to the current heads of these agencies, saying, "(They) must be dying." This implies that the resignations of those who fell out of favor with former President Trump over vaccine use and lockdown policies during the pandemic are imminent.

Earlier, Kennedy Jr. joined former Democratic Representative Tulsi Gabbard, who also left the Democratic Party, in joining former President Trump's transition team last month. It is customary in U.S. politics to form the leadership of the transition team before the presidential election. The transition team is responsible for federal political appointments and policy formulation for the new administration. At that time, the Democratic Party repeatedly warned that former President Trump intended to appoint Kennedy Jr., a vaccine conspiracy theorist, as Secretary of Health. Previously, Kennedy Jr. sparked controversy by promoting conspiracy theories that the coronavirus targeted specific races and by opposing vaccination campaigns.

As news spread that Kennedy Jr. might replace heads of public health agencies, the Democratic Party expressed concerns. Mary Beth Cahill, senior advisor to the Democratic National Committee (DNC), criticized in a statement, "The fact that Robert Kennedy Jr. could hold the appointment power for the heads of the FDA, NIH, and CDC is terrifying to anyone who cares about public health," adding, "His dangerous rhetoric is irresponsible and disastrous, having fueled measles outbreaks that led to the deaths of dozens of children."

Meanwhile, according to a report released on the same day by the nonprofit health research organization The Commonwealth Fund, the U.S. healthcare system ranked last among 10 advanced countries, including Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. It ranked at the bottom in both healthcare access and outcomes. High healthcare costs compared to other advanced countries, along with the highest number of pandemic-related excess deaths among the population under 75 years old among the surveyed countries, negatively affected the evaluation.