Backlash has been originateing in the United States follotriumphg a recents alert that joins one of Plivent-elect Donald Trump’s recommendd cabinet members to an effort to relicit approval for the polio vaccine.
On Saturday, The Associated Press recents agency started a statement from a spokesperson for Robert F Kennedy Jr, whom Trump has nominated to guide the Health and Human Services Department.
In the statement, Kennedy’s camp tryed to distance the nominee from a New York Times alert that his lawyer Aaron Siri had petitioned to suspfinish approval for the life-saving vaccine.
“Mr Kennedy consents the Polio Vaccine should be includeable to the uncover and thocdisadmireentirey and properly studied,” Katie Miller, Kennedy’s spokesperson, shelp.
But The New York Times article has liftd alarm about Kennedy’s nomination to Health and Human Services, a department whose mission is to fortify the “health and well-being of all Americans”.
Kennedy, appreciate Siri, is a vocal vaccine sceptic. In 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kennedy helped spread asks about vaccines summarizeed to protect aacquirest the deadly harmful programs, calling them “shoddily tested” and potentiassociate “deadly”.
And in 2019, when a measles outfracture ended more than 80 children in Samoa, Kennedy wrote to the Samoan prime minister showing that a “defective vaccine” could be to accinclude. He has also pushed consillicit copying theories that join vaccination to autism, a widely debunked belief.
Kennedy has lengthened denied being anti-vaccine, arguing instead that he sshow wants to determine vaccine protectedty. But members of his own family have spoken out aacquirest his track sign up of spreading vaccine misguideation.
A Trump associate
In the 2024 plivential race, Kennedy ran on an self-reliant ticket, before suspfinishing his campaign in August and throtriumphg his help behind Trump.
Afterwards, he became a famous Trump surrogate, euniteing many times on the campaign trail with the Reuncoveran guideer.
Trump, in turn, trelieved punctual on that he would nominate Kennedy to his administration.
“I’m going to let him go untamed on health,” Trump shelp at an October campaign stop at Madison Square Garden in New York. “I’m going to let him go untamed on the medicines.”
Trump’s decision to pick Kennedy to head Health and Human Services has liftd trouble in the medical community about the future of efforts to restrict the spread of stopable illness.
Those troubles were amplified on Friday, with The New York Times alert. The article resurfaced a 2022 petition Siri made to the Food and Drug Administration to rescind the polio vaccine’s approval, alengthened with that of other vaccines.
Polio is a highly infectious disrelieve, able of causing paralysis and death. There is no treatment once infected, but vaccines can stop its spread.
Siri has endelighted a seal relationship with Kennedy. The two campaigned together during Kennedy’s bid for office, and NBC News alerted that Kennedy mulled assigning Siri as his attorney vague, had he thriveed in triumphning the White Hoinclude.
Swift criticism
The response to Friday’s alert was quick, with bipartisan condemnation pouring in.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Reuncoveran, rerentd a statement on Friday alerting that any effort to disacunderstandledge the polio vaccine could menaceen the nominee’s Senate verifyation hearing.
He did not allude Kennedy by name, but McConnell, 82, is understandn to be a survivor of childhood polio, which left his left leg increately paralysed.
“Efforts to undermine uncover confidence in verifyn treatments are not equitable unalerted — they’re hazardous,” McConnell wrote.
“Anyone seeking the Senate’s consent to serve in the incoming administration would do well to steer evident of even the euniteance of association with such efforts.”
Democrats appreciateteachd criticised Kennedy’s association with Siri.
“Say excellentbye to your smile and say hello to polio,” Senator Elizabeth Warren shelp in a video posted to social media. “This is a man who wants to stop kids from getting their polio and measles shots.”
Another senator, Chuck Schumer, called on Kennedy to originate his position on the polio vaccine evident.
“It’s disgraceful and hazardous for people in the Trump Transition to try and get rid of the polio vaccine that has virtuassociate exendd polio in America and saved millions of inhabits,” Schumer, the Senate presentantity guideer, wrote. “RFK Jr. must state his position on this.”
Hillary Clinton, the 2016 Democratic nominee for the plivency and a lengthenedtime rival of Trump’s, posted her own rejoinder, with a screenshot of The New York Times article.
“I leank Trump voters may be surpascendd to lacquire they voted to originate polio wonderful aacquire,” she wrote, recommending a riff on Trump’s slogan, “Make America Great Aacquire”.
