Trump Nominee Implodes under Cross-Exam at Hearing

0.2 - 23.525 Ben Meiselas

right let's talk about this disastrous senate hearing where donald trump's nominee to be the surgeon general was just eviscerated under cross-examination by democratic senators and also some republican senators so we've been without a surgeon general for the entire trump term thus far So Trump has nominated someone by the name of Casey Means to be the next surgeon general.

23.966 - 49.485 Ben Meiselas

She is not a licensed or practicing physician. She's been inactive for quite some time. She never finished her residency after she was at Oregon. She dropped out about three years in. She's been out there mostly selling kind of supplements. She talked about how these whispers that she heard in the air told her to do psychedelics. She's been a strong ally of RFK Jr.

50.066 - 54.152 Ben Meiselas

But again, someone who actually despises the medical community.

54.472 - 64.868 Ben Meiselas

And this is who Donald Trump has picked to be the surgeon general. So I wanted to give you that framework going into this. So you have Senator Bernie Sanders cross-examining this Casey Means individual.

64.848 - 93.977 Senator Cassidy

and he says to her so is health care a human right watch her response right here let's play this clip running out of time we are the only major country on earth that does not guarantee health care to all people as a human right dr means is health care a human right should the united states join every other major country and say to everybody whether you're young old rich or poor you are entitled to health care as a human right yes no maybe my focus is on ensuring

93.957 - 103.447 Casey Means

that Americans have access to the best healthcare in the entire world, which, as you talked about, as I talked about, as everyone who's spoken has talked about, is pretty much the opposite of what we have right now.

129.385 - 150.071 Ben Meiselas

And he cross-examines her about not disclosing the money she was making in the supplements that she was selling when she would go out and sell these various supplements. And her Senate financial disclosures show that she was making all of this money, but she told people she was not making money selling these supplements when she would talk about them. Here, let's play this clip.

150.091 - 176.85 Senator Murphy

Dr. Means, are you familiar with FTC policy that requires those who are recommending products online to disclose their financial connection to those companies. In particular, the document from the FTC says this, if you endorse a product through social media, your endorsement message should make it obvious when you have a relationship with the brand. Are you familiar with that? Certainly.

176.83 - 214.574 Senator Murphy

So, as you know, there is a pending complaint regarding your failure to adhere to those guidelines that basically makes the contention, and this committee has verified the data that underlies their complaint, that you routinely violated this policy and that, in fact, in the majority many of the products you recommend, you did not transparently reveal your financial connection.

214.655 - 245.832 Senator Murphy

Let me give you an example. That's false. Well, I'll give you an example. So there's a prenatal vitamin called WeNatal. Your filings before this committee show that you started receiving compensation in the spring of 2024. And yet in September of 2024, you posted a video saying that you had no financial relationship to the company, just a big fan.

246.452 - 269.99 Senator Murphy

And then in October, you said, not sponsored, just love these. But in fact, you have documentation before this committee that showed when you said those things, you had a financial relationship. You had already started receiving money from that company. You weren't telling the truth when you said you were just a fan.

270.01 - 271.692 Senator Murphy

You were actually receiving money, correct?

272.674 - 277.261 Casey Means

In any post where I said I am not receiving money, I had not been receiving money at that time.

277.982 - 293.727 Senator Murphy

But you had received partnership fees for this particular prenatal vitamin. In fact, prior to September and October, you had posted partnership links in which you get compensated based upon click-throughs, correct?

332.542 - 353.903 Ben Meiselas

Then you have Democratic Senator... Murray cross-examining Casey Means and asking her about her position on birth control because Casey Means has said that birth control pills are a disrespect to life and they carry with it horrifying health risks. And Casey Means is someone who wants to ban birth control. So watch this cross-exam. Let's play it.

353.883 - 376.178 Senator Murray

Mr. Chairman, thank you, Dr. Means, for being here. Let me start with this. You called birth control pills, I'm going to quote, a disrespect of life. And you said Americans, quote, use birth control pills like candy. You also claim, contrary to established science, that hormonal birth control has, quote, horrifying health risks for women.

376.158 - 402.081 Senator Murray

Now, here are the facts. There are 18 FDA approved contraceptive methods, both hormonal and non-hormonal. And there are decades, decades of evidence showing that every one of these birth control methods is safe and effective. So I wanted to ask you, help me understand. Should women trust the FDA, which approved all 18 methods of birth control after a very rigorous look at the evidence?

402.061 - 409.136 Senator Murray

Or should they trust your statement that there are horrifying health risks to birth control, which contradicts that evidence?

410.218 - 419.378 Casey Means

Thank you, Senator Murray, for your question. I'm curious if you're aware of what the side effects of hormonal contraception are.

435.445 - 458.493 Casey Means

And also, all medications have risks and benefits. And in our current medical climate with the burden on doctors, doctors do not have enough time for thorough informed consent conversations. Some of the horrifying side effects of birth control that I have mentioned include blood clots and stroke risk in women who have clotting disorders, who are smokers, who have obesity. No, it's not general.

458.793 - 475.048 Casey Means

I'm very careful with my words. And when I say those comments, which are taken out of context, I'm speaking about particular women that can be hurt if there is not informed consent about their medical history, their lifestyle exposures, and their family history. I want those women, and I know you do too,

475.028 - 481.095 Casey Means

to be able to have a thorough conversation with their doctor and know whether they are at higher risk for side effects when prescribed the medication.