Robert F. Kennedy Jr. appeared before the Senate Committee on Finance for his first confirmation hearing as President Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on Jan. 29.

Kennedy, who ran for president as a Democrat and then an independent before ending his White House bid and backing Trump in August 2024, entered the chamber to applause from supporters in the audience and shook hands with lawmakers before taking a seat.

The hearing showcased a sharp division between the parties over Kennedy’s views. Most Republicans praised Kennedy for his past advocacy work and his emphasis on addressing the nation’s chronic disease epidemic, while Democrats criticized the founder of the Children’s Health Defense for his stance on vaccine efficacy.

Democrats and Republicans on the panel also questioned Kennedy on his abortion views.

Fighting chronic disease, improving children’s health, and addressing corporate influence on government agencies have been vital parts of Kennedy’s platform.

If confirmed, he would head a department that manages 13 agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the National Institutes of Health.

Kennedy will appear at another hearing before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions on Jan. 30, but only the Senate Committee on Finance will vote on whether to advance him to a full Senate floor vote.

“I am neither; I am pro-safety.

“I worked for years to raise awareness about the mercury and toxic chemicals in fish, and nobody called me anti-fish.

“I believe that vaccines play a critical role in health care. All of my kids are vaccinated.”

Kennedy engaged in a heated exchange with Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, when Wyden asked the nominee about his view on the measles vaccine.

Wyden brought up a 2023 podcast with Lex Fridman in which Kennedy said, “There’s no vaccine that is safe and effective.”

Kennedy said his statements to Fridman had been taken out of context and clarified that he told the interviewer that there is no vaccine that is safe and effective for every person.

“Every medicine has people who are sensitive to them, including vaccines, right?” Kennedy said.

He added that he would not prevent U.S. citizens from getting vaccines.

“I support the measles vaccine,” he said. “I support the polio vaccine. I will do nothing as HHS secretary that makes it difficult or discourages people from taking [vaccines].”

Kennedy reiterated that he believes vaccines are an integral part of health care and that he advocates for science-based studies to improve vaccine safety.

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) asked Kennedy if he was a conspiracy theorist.

“That is a pejorative, senator, that’s applied to me, mainly to keep me from asking difficult questions of powerful interests,” Kennedy said.

He noted that he was called a conspiracy theorist for saying that the COVID-19 vaccines did not prevent infection or transmission of the disease. “And now everybody admits it,” he said.

Kennedy said he also was labeled a conspiracy theorist for saying that Red Dye 40 causes cancer. “And now FDA has acknowledged that and banned it,” he said.

“Mr. Kennedy has embraced conspiracy theories, quacks, charlatans, especially when it comes to the safety and efficacy of vaccines,” Wyden said. “It has been lucrative for him, put him on the verge of immense power.”

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Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) continued the attack on Kennedy’s credibility and trustworthiness by pointing out that he is pro-choice but is seeking a role in a pro-life administration.

“When was it that you decided to sell out the values you’ve had your whole life in order to be given power by President Trump?” Masto asked.

Kennedy answered, “Senator, I agree with President Trump that every abortion is a tragedy.”

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) appeared to suggest that Kennedy was profiteering based on his involvement with a law firm that has brought suits against drug companies, saying that he had “raked in two and a half million dollars” in compensation.

Warren asked Kennedy if he would agree not to take compensation from lawsuits against drug companies while in office and for four years after.

Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) noted that the Biden administration had denied his state federal funds under Title X—a program that funds family planning services—over its refusal to publicize an abortion referral hotline.

Lankford, who is pro-life, acknowledged that he disagreed with Kennedy on when life begins. He asked the nominee how he would handle Title X funding as HHS secretary.

Kennedy said he agreed with Trump on several aspects of the abortion debate and would follow the president’s lead.

“I agree with [President Trump] that we cannot be a moral nation if we have 1.2 million abortions a year,” Kennedy said. “I agree with him that the states should control abortion.

“President Trump has told me that he wants to end late-term abortions, and he wants to protect conscience exemptions, and that he wants to end federal funding for abortions here or abroad. ... I serve at the pleasure of the president. I’m going to implement his policies.”

Kennedy also said Trump had asked him to investigate the safety of the abortion drug mifepristone if confirmed as HHS secretary.

“We need to understand the safety of every drug—mifepristone and every other drug,” Kennedy said when asked whether medical professionals should be required to report adverse effects from the drug.

Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) challenged the need to study the matter.

“Here are the safety studies that tell us mifepristone is safe and effective,” she said, producing a stack of documents. “The safety is proved. The science is there.”

During the hearing, Masto suggested that Kennedy would be a “rubber stamp” for Trump’s agenda. Kennedy pushed back, saying that he was nominated because he is uniquely positioned to end the nation’s “chronic disease epidemic.”

“Senator, all of the other disputes we have about who’s paying and whether it’s insurance companies, whether it’s providers, whether it’s HMOs, whether it’s patients or families—all of those are moving deck chairs around on the Titanic,” Kennedy said. “Our ship is sinking.”

Medicaid spending has skyrocketed in recent years, Kennedy said, “and no other nation in the world has what we have here.”

“We have the highest chronic disease burden of any country in the world,” he said.

Kennedy has criticized the use of certain ingredients in food products, such as Froot Loops cereal, and has said that ingredients in Europe are better than those in the United States. He has also criticized fast-food giant McDonald’s for making its french fries in seed oils instead of tallow.

During the hearing, Kennedy said the increase in chronic disease is tied to ingredients in food. He added that his “boss” likes to eat a McDonald’s cheeseburger washed down with a Diet Coke.

“You should be able to do that,” Kennedy said, drawing some laughter from the gallery. “But you should know what the impacts are on your family and your health.”

Kennedy said that the United States “had 16 percent of the COVID deaths in a country [that has] 4.2 percent of the world’s population” and that U.S. citizens who died with COVID-19 had, on average, several chronic diseases.

“This is an existential threat economically, to our military, to our health, to our sense of well-being, and it is a priority for President Trump,” he said. “And that’s why he asked me to run the agency, and if I’m privileged to be confirmed, that’s exactly what I’ll do.”

He has repeatedly said little will change until the influence of giant or private corporations on the FDA, the CDC, and the Department of Agriculture is addressed.

He has pledged to ensure transparency, a topic that was raised during the hearing.

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) noted that he had difficulty extracting information from HHS and its Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) under the Biden administration.

“I expect you to produce to me the records and data I’ve requested and instruct HHS contractors to fully cooperate with my investigation,” Grassley told Kennedy.

“I also expect HHS to not retaliate against any whistleblowers, including those who identify ORR’s failures in vetting sponsors of unaccompanied [minors].”

Kennedy replied that his approach as HHS secretary would be “radical transparency.”

“If members of this committee or other members of Congress want information, the doors are open,” he said.

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) requested that 11 letters of support, signed by thousands of physicians, be entered into the record. He also noted that he had written more than 70 oversight letters to federal health agencies under the Biden administration.

He said he has received redacted materials and has “issued a subpoena now to cover the information“ that he ”requested in 70 oversight letters.”

Johnson asked Kennedy if he would honor these requests from Congress and make HHS transparent.

“My approach for HHS, as I said before, senator, is radical transparency,” Kennedy said. “Democrats and Republicans ought to be able to come in and get information that was generated at taxpayer expense that is owned by the American taxpayer. It shouldn’t get redacted documents.

“Public health agencies should be transparent. If we want Americans to restore trust in the public health agencies, we need transparency.”