Liz Essley Whyte
Appearances
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
That's all for today, Tuesday, February 4th. The Journal is a co-production of Spotify and The Wall Street Journal. Additional reporting in this episode by Dominique Mossbergen and Christina Peterson. Thanks for listening. See you tomorrow.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
Kennedy comes from one of America's most famous political dynasties. His uncle was President John F. Kennedy. His dad was the former Attorney General, Robert F. Kennedy, who was assassinated when RFK Jr. was a young teenager. Here's our colleague, Liz Essley White.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
Today on Capitol Hill, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. cleared his first major hurdle to becoming America's chief health officer.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
After decades of environmental activism, Kennedy announced a run for president in April of 2023, as a Democrat. But later, when it became clear he wouldn't defeat Joe Biden, he switched to running as an independent.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
He painted himself as an outsider candidate and appealed to people across the political spectrum. A lot of his platform focused on reforming the health system.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
By last summer, Kennedy's presidential hopes were fading. That's when he met with Trump to discuss bringing their camps together. Kennedy endorsed Trump, and Trump agreed he would work on one of Kennedy's main causes, fighting chronic disease. They turned their partnership into the MAHA movement, Make America Healthy Again. After the election, Trump put Kennedy forward for health secretary.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
His next and final test will be before the full Senate, which hasn't yet scheduled a vote. If confirmed as Secretary of Health and Human Services, Kennedy would lead a sprawling department with a budget of $1.7 trillion.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
I'm going to let him go wild on medicines. In the months since his nomination, Kennedy has laid out his priorities for the role.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
Kennedy has also said he would focus on regulating food additives like dyes, as well as ultra-processed foods.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
Kennedy had hoped to turn that excitement into bipartisan support for his nomination. But his qualifications have been called into question.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
And it's not just that he's critical of the health agency. He has championed some ideas that question established science.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
Which brings us to the hearings last week before two Senate committees, where lawmakers from both sides of the aisle asked him questions.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
The job oversees everything from making sure your lettuce doesn't carry a foodborne illness to approving new drugs, from setting the vaccine schedule for your kids to deciding how easy it is to get abortion pills. Kennedy's path so far has been incredibly tight and divided.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
It wasn't long before things got rocky.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
The hearings were interrupted twice by protesters. And during the questioning, some senators assailed him for his views. Here's Colorado Democrat Michael Bennett.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
I quoted an NIH study. What would you say were the big topic areas that Kennedy was probed on by the senators? The two biggest topics were abortion and vaccines.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
Here's an exchange with Republican Senator Tim Scott.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
The next big topic was Kennedy's history of controversial statements on vaccines, things that are at odds with scientific consensus. He's repeated these ideas a lot in the past.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
Kennedy's past views on vaccines came up repeatedly, including from a Republican senator, Bill Cassidy from Louisiana.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
During the hearings, Cassidy, who is a doctor, recounted how he once had a woman medevaced due to a potentially fatal liver problem, a condition that he said was preventable if she'd been immunized.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
The study Kennedy cited was funded by an anti-vaccine group, and it was not peer reviewed. Cassidy wasn't convinced by Kennedy's argument.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
And over the weekend, Cassidy came to a decision on his vote. That's coming up after the break. Around 10 o'clock this morning, the Senate Finance Committee met to vote on whether to push Kennedy's nomination to the full Senate for confirmation. At the hearing, senators aired their opposing views. Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock of Georgia spoke about why he opposed the nomination.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
Meanwhile, Republican Senator Tom Tillis of North Carolina said the exact opposite.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
The committee's 27 members voted along party lines, clearing Kennedy to a final vote. And Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy decided to vote yes. On the Senate floor later, Cassidy outlined what pushed him over the line.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
Cassidy said that if confirmed, Kennedy promised that federal vaccine recommendations wouldn't change and that he would allow the Senate Health Committee to choose a representative to be on any board formed to review vaccine safety.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
Now, Kennedy's nomination is headed to the full Senate, which hasn't yet scheduled a vote. To be confirmed, Kennedy needs 50 votes. The vice president would be a tiebreaker vote. As of this morning, no Republican senator has publicly opposed Kennedy's nomination. But Liz is hearing that some have reservations.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
There are also questions about whether Republican Senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski will object to Kennedy's nomination. But today's vote eases Kennedy's path to becoming health secretary.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
Welcome to The Journal, our show about money, business, and power. I'm Kate Leinbaugh. It's Tuesday, February 4th. Coming up on the show, the health disruptor who wants to lead America's health system.
The Journal.
RFK Jr.'s Nomination Just Got a Shot in the Arm
OK, so let's imagine that he does get confirmed. He gets the job and you have to write the headline. What would it be?
WSJ What’s News
How RFK Jr. Is Reshaping the U.S. Health Agencies
This is in keeping with a lot of criticism that Kennedy has leveled against HHS even before becoming secretary. One of his tweets last fall told FDA workers to pack your bags. And now they're facing some of the biggest cuts in this big reorganization. Also is very focused on fighting chronic disease.
WSJ What’s News
How RFK Jr. Is Reshaping the U.S. Health Agencies
And part of what he's doing is combining several offices into a new administration for a healthy America that he says will help fight chronic disease and make Americans healthier overall. One of the really key parts of this is that Kennedy would like to centralize the agency's comms, I.T., procurement, H.R., policy planning. Kennedy is saying that makes HHS really inefficient.
WSJ What’s News
How RFK Jr. Is Reshaping the U.S. Health Agencies
And it seems like FDA and CDC are going to bear a big portion of these cuts. FDA is poised to lose nearly 20 percent of its workforce under the proposed cuts and CDC a similar percentage. That was WSJ Health reporter Liz Esley-White. Thank you, Liz. Thank you so much.
WSJ What’s News
How RFK Jr. Is Reshaping the U.S. Health Agencies
It'll be workers from across the Department of Health and Human Services, including thousands from the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And we're not quite sure how this will play out. Kennedy has said this will not affect essential health services, but definitely people involved in the work there are worried.
WSJ What’s News
How RFK Jr. Is Reshaping the U.S. Health Agencies
Democrats and the union are coming out and saying this will definitely affect health services just because it will slow down the people who do drug approvals and who respond to outbreaks because they'll have less tech support or less external communication support. What does this tell us about Kennedy's broader goal for HHS?