RFK grilled during contentious hearing
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What happened during RFK Jr.'s contentious hearing?
Good morning, I'm Taylor Wilson, and today is Thursday, May 15th, 2025. This is The Excerpt. Today we break down a fiery hearing over health and RFK Jr. 's plans, plus international college students bring billions to the U.S. That may change, and how Republican state houses are joining Trump's fight to root out DEI. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. defended the president's proposed cuts to top health agencies as committee members in the House and Senate peppered him with questions on a number of health topics and spending. Many questions revolved around the secretary's response to a measles epidemic, which last week crossed the 1,000 cases mark in the U.S., the largest single outbreak in 25 years.
The outbreak has also recently spread to both Mexico and Canada. If you had a child today, would you vaccinate that child for measles?
For measles? Um, Probably for measles. What I would say is my opinions about vaccines are irrelevant. I have directed Jay Bhattacharya to the science so that everybody can make that decision. But I don't want to seem like I'm being evasive. Yeah. But I don't think people should be taking advice, medical advice from me. Right, no, I got that.
What are RFK Jr.'s views on vaccines?
And I'm not asking you to give them medical advice, but would you vaccinate your child for measles? I think if I answer that question directly, that it will seem like I'm giving advice to other people, and I don't want to be doing that. I want people to make up their mind. But that's kind of your jurisdiction because CDC does give advice.
That was Democratic Rep. Mark Pocan from Wisconsin. When pressed on whether he would vaccinate his children for chickenpox and polio, Kennedy once again dodged the question and said he didn't want to be giving advice. Republican Rep. Mike Simpson from Idaho, a dentist, expressed concerns to Kennedy about the fluoride issue, noting that the Food and Drug Administration, an agency of the HHS, announced it had begun removing ingestible fluoride supplements for children. Fluoride is a mineral that occurs naturally in water, soil, and air, and has been demonstrated to prevent dental cavities and tooth decay. For decades, it's been added to community water supplies and dental products like toothpaste. Utah has become the first state to remove fluoride from its drinking water, a ban that went into effect earlier this month. Florida and Ohio are also considering bans.
Why is fluoride being debated in Congress?
Congressman also criticized the decision by the National Institutes of Health, which Kennedy oversees, to cut programs that research critical medical issues like maternal health, Alzheimer's treatment, and youth mental health. You can read more with a link in today's show notes. International students bring billions to the U.S., but that may be changing. I spoke with USA Today education reporter Zach Shermaly to learn more. Hello, Zach. Hey, Taylor. Thanks for having me. Thanks for hopping on. So just starting here, kind of backtracking a little bit. What actions have we seen really from the Trump administration as it pertains to foreign students?
There have been a lot of actions, and I'll try and tick through a couple of them here. So in March, college officials started checking a federal immigration database that they have to use often. It's called the Student and Exchange Visitor Program, or SEVIS database, and they were really alarmed to see that the Department of Homeland Security was beginning to quietly remove the records of what ultimately became thousands of foreign students. At first, it wasn't really clear why the students' records were being terminated, but Then the Trump administration later revealed in a court battle that those names of students were being cross referenced with a separate criminal database. So in some cases, students were being targeted simply for being involved in minor traffic violations. On April 16th, the Department of Homeland Security also threatened to impede Harvard University's ability to enroll students from abroad. And that would be a really unprecedented move that could devastate that campus if the White House moved forward with it.
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
What happened during RFK Jr.'s contentious hearing?
0:05–1:24
2
What are RFK Jr.'s views on vaccines?
1:24–2:25
3
Why is fluoride being debated in Congress?
2:25–5:18
4
How do international students impact the U.S. economy?
5:18–5:45
5
What actions has the Trump administration taken regarding foreign students?
5:45–10:47
6
What controversy surrounds Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem?
10:47–12:40
7
Who is Ksenia Petrova and what are the charges against her?
12:40–14:53
Speakers
5 identifiedMore from The Excerpt
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