RFK Jr. on defensive over his vaccine views as a key confirmation vote hangs in the balance

WASHINGTON (AP) — Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 's bid to be the nation's top health official is uncertain after a key Republican joined Democrats to raise persistent concerns over the nominee's deep skepticism of routine childhood vaccinations that prevent deadly diseases.

Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican, ended a three-hour confirmation hearing Thursday by telling Kennedy that he was “struggling” with his nomination and might call him over the weekend, though he did not say how he would vote.

Cassidy, a liver doctor who has regularly encouraged his constituents to vaccinate against COVID-19 and other diseases, implored Kennedy several times to reject theories that vaccines cause diseases like autism. Kennedy's refusal to do so clearly troubled Cassidy.

“If there’s any false note, any undermining of a mama’s trust in vaccines, another person will die from a vaccine preventable disease," Cassidy said.

The senator, who is up for reelection next year, laid out the dilemma before him, as a doctor who has seen how vaccines can save lives and as a Republican who is aware of Kennedy's formidable support and wants to help President Donald Trump advance his policies. Cassidy is no stranger to these predicaments and the outcry they might spark — he voted to convict Trump on impeachment charges after his first term in 2021.

Kennedy's vaccine views could jeopardize his standing with a few crucial Republicans and has certainly not helped him win over any votes among Democrats in his bid to become health secretary. If all Democrats reject Kennedy’s nomination, he can only afford to lose three Republican votes.

Kennedy will also have to win over the swing votes of Sens. Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski and Mitch McConnell, who have raised concerns about Kennedy and also voted against Trump’s defense secretary nominee.

Any Republican considering a “no” vote will face a maximum pressure campaign from Trump to line up and confirm his nominees. When others have expressed reservations about supporting nominees, they have met a coordinated campaign of political threats from Trump’s allies. Kennedy's “Make America Healthy Again” movement has also encouraged followers to overwhelm the inboxes and phone lines of senators who may waffle.

Kennedy and other Cabinet nominees like Tulsi Gabbard represent a new coalition built by Trump's campaign. Kennedy last year launched his own campaign for president before joining forces with Trump in a shared vision of dismantling the status quo.

Kennedy, an environmental lawyer turned public health critic, repeatedly promised senators he is not “anti-vaccine” and, in fact, supports inoculations. But Thursday's Senate health committee hearing questions exposed Kennedy's deep-seated mistrust in the nation's vaccine program.

Cassidy directly asked Kennedy if he would unequivocally reassure parents that the hepatitis B and measles vaccines do not cause autism.

Kennedy would not. Instead he avoided answering directly, saying “if the data is there, I will absolutely do that.”

In a rare show of across-the-aisle cooperation, Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent, followed up on Cassidy’s line of questioning. Again, Kennedy refused to give a definitive answer.

Then, in the closing moments of the hearing, Cassidy offered Kennedy studies that have proven vaccinations do not cause autism, prodding him to accept the research. Kennedy would not, instead responding with an article — one that Cassidy said had “issues.”

Saying clearly that vaccines do not cause autism “would have incredible impact,” Cassidy told him. "That would have incredible impact. That’s your power.”

At times, questioning from other senators was intensely personal. Sen. Maggie Hassan, D.N.H., shared her anguish as a mother who has spent decades wondering what caused her 36-year-old son's cerebral palsy. She worried about whether vaccines contributed to her son's condition after an infamous study years ago falsely found a link between autism and vaccines. That study has since been roundly discredited.

Hassan said Kennedy's suggestions that vaccines could cause autism were hurting families.

“He is relitigating and churning settled science so we can’t go forward and find out what the cause of autism is and treat these kids and help these families,” she said, later adding, “When you continue to sow doubt about settled science, it makes it impossible for us to move forward.”

Aside from Cassidy, Republicans on the health committee remained friendly to Kennedy. Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, who said his two sons wanted to vote for Kennedy in the presidential election, told the hearing that his granddaughter, due in the coming weeks, would not “be a pincushion” when it came to vaccines.

Two others expressed doubts about the safety of vaccines, although both said they've vaccinated their own children.

Sen. Markwayne Mullin, an Oklahoma Republican, chided his colleagues for scrutinizing Kennedy’s skeptical stances on vaccinations.

“We can’t question science?” Mullin asked.

Others raised concerns about Kennedy's financial stake in lawsuits against vaccine makers.

Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, where the Gardasil vaccine to guard against cervical cancer is made, questioned Kennedy’s financial disclosure forms, which state that he still plans to collect fees in cases referred to the law firm in a suit against that vaccine. Last year, Kennedy made $850,000 off the deal.

“How can folks who need to have confidence in federal vaccine programs trust you to be independent and science-based when you stand to gain significant funding if lawsuits against vaccine manufacturers are successful?” Kaine asked.

Kennedy told Kaine he has given away his financial rights in the case.

Kaine also questioned Kennedy for saying on social media that he would not “take sides” as conspiracy theorists question what happened during the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

Kennedy responded that he had been taught from a young age to question authority, saying, “My father told me when I was 13 years old, he said, ‘People in authority lie.’”

Democrats and Republicans alike repeatedly pressed the nominee on his plans around abortion, with Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina asking if he would appoint “pro-life” deputies and several Democrats asking him how he would handle the abortion drug mifepristone.

The Biden administration defended lawsuits against the use of the drug, including its availability over telehealth. Kennedy said no decision had yet been made about how to handle the controversial drug, which the Food and Drug Administration approved to end pregnancies safely more than two decades ago.

“With mifepristone, President Trump has not chosen a policy and I will implement his policy,” Kennedy told the committee.

Kennedy wants to lead the $1.7 trillion agency that oversees health care coverage — Medicare, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act marketplace — for roughly half the country, approves then recommends vaccines for deadly diseases and conducts safety inspections of food and hospitals.

The Senate finance committee, which Cassidy sits on, will ultimately decide how to send Kennedy's nomination to the Senate floor for a vote.

During a three-hour hearing with that committee Wednesday, Kennedy misstated basic facts about Medicare and Medicaid. But Republicans offered strong support for Kennedy's proposal to promote healthier foods to Americans and research the root of chronic diseases like obesity.

Amanda Seitz And Stephen Groves, The Associated Press