Donald Trump's nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr.) to lead the Department of Human and Health Services (HHS) has sent shockwaves across the political and sanitary spectrums.
Many experts have come out to criticize the decision, recalling how RFK Jr. has repeatedly showed skepticism of vaccines, saying last year in an interview with FOX News that "here's no vaccine that is safe and effective."
Among them are the co-presidents of Public Citizen, a D.C-based nonprofit and consumer rights advocacy group, who blasted the nomination: "Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is a clear and present danger to the nation's health. He shouldn't be allowed in the building at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), let alone be placed in charge of the nation's public health agency,"" said Public Citizen co-president Robert Weissman.
"Donald Trump's bungling of public health policy during the Covid pandemic cost hundreds of thousands of lives. By appointing Kennedy as his Secretary of HHS, Trump is courting another, policy-driven public health catastrophe," he added.
Co-president Lisa Gilbert, on her end, said that "Kennedy is a science-denying, morally-bankrupt conspiracy theorist who will endanger people's lives if placed in a position of authority over health." "The U.S. Senate should unanimously reject this nomination."
Trump last month told supporters he would let Kennedy, a noted vaccine skeptic who has called for the removal of fluoride from the US water supply, "go wild on health" and food policy under his administration.
Last week, RFK Jr. stated that he believed entire departments of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), such as the nutrition department, were obsolete and should be dissolved in an interview with MSNBC, creating concerns about what he might do if given a top health official position.
It is not clear whether Trump will have enough votes to secure RFK Jr.'s nomination, but some senators have already come out to pressure their colleagues to refrain from letting their personal opinions interfere with Trump's plans.
One of them is Sen.Tommy Tuberville from Alabama, who warned that those who vote against the nominations could be removed from their posts.
"Everybody's got an opinion up here but at the end of the day, President Trump was elected by an enormous vote, and he deserves the team around him that he wants. It's not up to us to determine that," Tuberville said during a Wednesday appearance on Fox Business.
"Vote with President Trump," Tuberville added "This is the last chance we're going to have to save this country. And if you want to get in the way, fine. But we're going to try to get you out of the Senate, too, if you try to do that."
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