BreakupRupture,
RFK JR was a controversial candidate due to his anti-vaccine opinions and his health theories related to health.
The American Senate approved the former environmental lawyer Robert F Kennedy Jr to lead the Department of Health and Social Services of the Federal Government (HHS), during the last controversial vote against a candidate of the cabinet chosen by President Donald Trump.
But Thursday’s vote was close, given the history of Kennedy to adopt anti-vaccine opinions and health theories related to health.
Fifty-two Of the 100 members of the Senate voted yes, all Republicans. Democrats and self -employed have lined up to offer 48 “no” votes.
However, there was a notable republican defection: Senator Mitch McConnell from Kentucky, a survivor of the childhood polio and former party leader in the Senate. He had previously warned Trump’s candidates to “avoid” “efforts to undermine public confidence in proven remedies”.
The leaders of minority democrats in the Senate, Chuck Schumer in New York, sought to appeal to the Republicans in the vote of the vote. He described the prospect of directing Kennedy a federal department responsible for ensuring that “dangerous” public health and security.
“My colleagues on the republican side, you know the consequences of what you do. My colleagues on the Republican side, you know how dangerous it is. My colleagues on the other side, you know that you do not put your voters – their health, their families – first when you vote yes, “said Schumer.
The Republicans, however, have a small but solid majority in the Senate, holding 53 seats.
And Trump has so far managed to confirm all his candidates for high -level positions, despite the controversies on some of them.
This includes the director of national intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who was confirmed on Wednesday despite the previous statements expressing his sympathy for the “legitimate security problems” of Russia when he invaded Ukraine in 2022.
The head of the Pentagon Pete Hegseth, on the other hand, was approved in January after the Senate was uniformly divided, 50-50, about his appointment, received allegations of sexual misconduct and drink alcohol at work. Vice-president JD Vance finally expressed the rupture vote.
Kennedy himself did not face a shortage of controversy in the Thursday vote game period.
His cousin, the former United States ambassador, Caroline Kennedy, published an open letter calling him “predator” who continued to “lie and deceive his life”.
Democrats also sought to highlight its history of vaccination skepticism. Although he testified in his confirmation hearings that his own children were vaccinated, Kennedy has spread the theories of the demystified conspiracy, including vaccination was linked to autism.
It was also linked to a fatal epidemic of measles in the Samoa which caused around 83 deaths. While Kennedy denied that his visit concerned vaccines, health officials on the island accused him of spreading doubts about the effectiveness of the prevention tool.
In his last words before Thursday’s vote, Schumer warned the Republicans against the follow -up of Trump’s example by approving Kennedy for the high -level health position, calling “bad, very badly”.
He encouraged to overthrow party management and vote with their conscience.
“Today, the question in front of this body is not simply to confirm RFK to manage the country’s health service. The question we are seized is very simple: what is the most important for you? The health and well-being of your voters, or blindly obeying orders? »»
