All things considered, everyone would be better off if Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had not joined Donald Trump’s White House Cabinet, including RFK Jr. himself.
Eight months into his tenure, the anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist is succeeding in uprooting much of the nation’s public health infrastructure, putting countless Americans’ health at risk. As William Foege, the former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, recently summarized, “Kennedy would be less hazardous if he decided to do cardiac surgery. Then he would kill people only one at a time rather than his current ability to kill by the thousands.”
But while RFK Jr.’s capacity to do real harm to people obviously matters far more than any political considerations, he’s in a political job in a political environment — and he’s burned through his political capital.
Officials who’ve worked closely with Kennedy, including Trump appointees, have characterized him as dangerous and incompetent. The list of people who’ve called on the secretary to resign — a list that includes many members of his own family — is long and growing. Even some congressional Republicans are tired of his antics.
As for Democrats, The Hill reported:
Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.) announced Thursday she would introduce articles of impeachment against Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. due to ‘health care chaos’ under his watch. … Stevens has repeatedly called for Kennedy’s removal from his role since he became health secretary. She called for Kennedy to resign earlier this month, citing the slashing of medical research for pediatric cancer and vaccines.
The Michigan Democrat, who’s also running for the Senate, is not exactly known as a partisan bomb-thrower. This week, however, Stevens said in an online statement, “Health care chaos. Reckless cuts. Rising costs. Michiganders and families across the country are paying the price for RFK Jr.’s agenda. Enough is enough, which is why I’m drafting articles of impeachment against [Kennedy].”
A day later, Stevens also introduced the “Stop RFK’s BS Act,” which would reverse the health care funding cuts that have unfolded since Kennedy took the reins at the Department of Health and Human Services.
Given the Republican majorities on Capitol Hill, the congresswoman’s efforts aren’t likely to advance, but Kennedy’s political troubles aren’t limited to Washington, D.C.
The latest national Quinnipiac University poll, for example, found that only 33% of Americans approve of how Kennedy is handling his job, down from 38% in June. Other recent data similarly reinforces the same point: RFK Jr. is not a popular public figure.
This stands out, not because it’s likely to lead to consequences — the president is already unpopular, and he won’t care whether his health secretary is in the same boat — but because it speaks to Kennedy’s stated mission. To hear the HHS chief tell it, his focus is on restoring trust and public confidence in the nation’s health agencies.
The more Americans reject him, the more obvious his failure becomes.
