Vice President JD Vance on Wednesday commended Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. For his openness to challenging conventional scientific views and incorporating alternative perspectives in healthcare, noting that throughout history, “all the experts were wrong.”
TL;DR
- Vice President JD Vance praised Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for challenging scientific views and embracing alternative healthcare perspectives.
- Vance endorsed Kennedy's MAHA movement, calling it a "critical part of our success in Washington."
- Critics argue Kennedy's dismissal of scientific consensus fuels public skepticism and puts public health at risk.
- Kennedy's administration has implemented reforms, including staff reductions and remaking vaccine guidelines.
During a fireside chat at a “Make America Healthy Again” summit in Washington D.C., Vance also endorsed Kennedy’s MAHA movement, stating it has been “a critical part of our success in Washington.”
Vance's remarks illustrate how Kennedy, known for his disruptive tactics regarding public health agencies and his persistent doubts about vaccines, has become a divisive personality for both the public and in Congress, yet has found favor with The White House, seen as a valuable agent of transformation.
“Of all the specific initiatives that you guys have worked on effectively, the most important thing is that your team is willing to ask questions that people in government haven’t been asking in a long time,” Vance told Kennedy onstage.
The Vance-Kennedy event was livestreamed, but the summit was otherwise off limits to the press.
Despite President Donald Trump and Kennedy holding differing views on topics ranging from COVID-19 vaccines to abortion, the White House has generally allowed Kennedy autonomy this year to implement significant reforms within the agencies under his purview, which have included widespread staff reductions, the dismissal of scientific advisors, and remaking vaccine guidelines.
The Trump administration has praised Kennedy's work to phase out artificial dyes in food, combat ultra-processed foods, and revise the nation's dietary recommendations. As health secretary, he has stated his goal is to identify the fundamental reasons for chronic illnesses and assist Americans in lessening their contact with harmful substances.
Leading medical associations and other critics contend that Kennedy's dismissal of established scientific consensus is fueling public skepticism toward conventional medicine, and that his once-marginalized opinions are now gaining traction due to his position as health secretary.
“This closed-door convention is nothing more than an ego-stroking symposium of ‘wellbeing influencers’ and ‘MAHA moms’ whose rejection of scientific expertise puts our public health at risk,” said Erik Polyak, executive director of the progressive political action committee 314 Action, which works to elect Democratic scientists to office.
Kennedy and his allies dispute that their agenda is anti-science.
Vance acknowledged that numerous individuals within Kennedy’s circle aren't from traditional healthcare backgrounds, with some possessing more business acumen than medical expertise. It's true that many of the health secretary's trusted associates and recent staff have openly dismissed established medical agreement on subjects such as immunizations and methods for addressing long-term illnesses.
“We’ve got to be comfortable challenging some of these old orthodoxies, and part of that is welcoming people that are a little unusual,” Vance said.
Vance noted Kennedy’s interest in disrupting bureaucracy comes under a president with a similar mentality.
“That is a good summary of Donald J. Trump is that he takes a bulldozer to Overton windows every single day,” Vance said. The Overton window refers to “the range of policies considered acceptable by the majority of a population,” according to Britannica.com.
The MAHA event held at a Washington hotel followed a separate gathering in Austin, Texas, which included many of the same participants — the yearly convention of Children’s Health Defense, the anti-vaccine organization formerly headed by Kennedy.
The weekend conference, which had Kennedy's wife, Cheryl Hines, as a main speaker, concentrated more directly on vaccinations, including sessions like “The Enduring Nightmare of COVID mRNA Technology” and “Understanding the Enormity of Vaccine Injury.”.
Wednesday's large gathering of Trump administration officials, biotech entrepreneurs, MAHA influencers, and others featured discussions on subjects including the application of artificial intelligence in healthcare, age reversal, enhancing food healthiness, and more.
MAHA Action, the group backing Kennedy and organizing the event, stated that Trump's endorsement of the movement signifies “a decisive turning point in U.S. Health policy.”
“Today is an important milestone,” Tony Lyons, president of MAHA Action, said in the release. “It’s the culmination of a movement that was 40 years in the making.”