US President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday nominated Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services in his administration.
“I am thrilled to announce Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS),” Trump said in a statement.
“For too long, Americans have been crushed by the industrial food complex and drug companies who have engaged in deception, misinformation, and disinformation when it comes to public health. The safety and health of all Americans is the most important role of any Administration, and HHS will play a big role in helping ensure that everybody will be protected from harmful chemicals, pollutants, pesticides, pharmaceutical products, and food additives that have contributed to the overwhelming health crisis in this country,” he added.
“Mr. Kennedy will restore these agencies to the traditions of gold standard scientific research, and beacons of transparency, to end the chronic Disease epidemic, and to Make America Great and Healthy Again!” stated Trump.
Kennedy was a presidential candidate but dropped out of the race in August and endorsed Trump.
During his campaign, Kennedy came under fire after The New York Post published a video of him floating a conspiracy theory about COVID-19 and Jews.
In the video, Kennedy quoted a theory that COVID-19 was “targeted to attack Caucasians and Black people.” He later added that “the people who are most immune are Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese.”
After he was widely condemned for those remarks, Kennedy appeared before a House committee " where he denied making antisemitic comments.
Kennedy told the committee that he had "never uttered a phrase that was either racist or antisemitic" and, despite repeatedly spreading conspiracy theories and misinformation on public health issues in the past, insisted that he was not anti-vaccination.
In March, Kennedy offered staunch support for Israel in an interview with Reuters, calling the country a "moral nation" that was justly responding to Hamas provocations with its attacks on Gaza.