# Could RFK Jr. Really Become HHS Secretary? {Yes, he did} **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [October 30, 2024, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451 "2024-10-30T16:19:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2025, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/122 "2025-02-01T15:48:29Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > **“Expressed hesitancy”**??? > > That’s the best ya got, Cassidy? 🤦‍♀️ Cassidy is “struggling” with RFK Jr.'s nomination. 😃 That pseudo-battle will conclude with whatever’s left of Cassidy’s conscience giving way to the urgent need to brown-nose Trump. > [@](#): > > One received a [warning letter from the Federal Trade Commission](https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/warning-letters/covid-19-letter_to_dr._brownsteins_holistic_medicine.pdf), which said he was unlawfully advertising products as treatments or prevention for COVID-19, including intravenous nutrient therapy and vitamins. The supplement shoppe run by this doc’s practice offers homeopathic poison ivy, Aconitum and Nux Vomica (sounds bad, but at a 30C dilution there shouldn’t be any molecules of active substance left, meaning patients are paying $$ for water). ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2025, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/123 "2025-02-01T15:54:49Z")
He should have a heart-to-heart with Senator Collins. That will put some rubber in his backbone. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2025, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/124 "2025-02-02T03:02:03Z")
Either rubber or overcooked fettuccine. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2025, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/125 "2025-02-10T21:25:15Z")
Susan Collins is concerned. [![](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:ihpglfqq3dapqjmwl2ntktil/bafkreibewetf43blbqpv4jibwjc3boyz2czk3z2fomqk7gark7x5busi2a@jpeg) ](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:ihpglfqq3dapqjmwl2ntktil/bafkreibewetf43blbqpv4jibwjc3boyz2czk3z2fomqk7gark7x5busi2a@jpeg) Not so concerned that she’s gonna do something crazy like not vote for him, but still. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2025, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/126 "2025-02-10T22:58:13Z")
Susan Collins is going to have to set her brow to AutoFurrow. ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2025, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/127 "2025-02-11T16:10:01Z")
Yeah, RFK Jr will “re-examine” the decision right before he does away with the NIH and CDC. Her brow will be so, so furrowed! ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2025, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/128 "2025-02-11T17:44:04Z")
Susan Collins, the honorable senator from the State of Concern. [![](https://media.vanityfair.com/photos/62744446ec6efc8eda6d95d2/master/pass/1228424232) ](https://media.vanityfair.com/photos/62744446ec6efc8eda6d95d2/master/pass/1228424232) ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2025, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/129 "2025-02-11T18:14:27Z")
She does seem skilled at brow-furrowing. With a bit of displeased eyes & oh-so-slightly pursed lips. Let all of MAGA beware! She’s got it in for you. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2025, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/130 "2025-02-14T15:03:56Z")
Ol’ Mitch was the only GOP senator to vote against him; every Democrat voted no. [https://www.usnews.com/news/national-news/articles/2025-02-13/the-senate-just-confirmed-rfk-jr-to-lead-hhs-heres-what-he-said-he-will-and-wont-do-at-the-agency](https://www.usnews.com/news/national-news/articles/2025-02-13/the-senate-just-confirmed-rfk-jr-to-lead-hhs-heres-what-he-said-he-will-and-wont-do-at-the-agency) > **[3 things to watch for as RFK Jr. takes the helm as health secretary](https://www.aol.com/3-things-watch-rfk-jr-180834284.html)** > > Kennedy will set up a 'MAHA' commission to address chronic disease. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2025, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/131 "2025-02-14T15:06:27Z")
Well, Mitch actually had polio, so maybe he’s concerned about getting rid of that vaccine. Of course, he would have voted yes if his vote had mattered. ---
**Author:** ![scudsucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scudsucker/32/14101_2.png) [@scudsucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scudsucker)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2025, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/132 "2025-02-14T16:12:28Z")
I take it “MAHA” does not include mental health? ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2025, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/133 "2025-02-14T16:19:10Z")
> [@scudsucker](#): > > "MAHA” does not include mental health? It does, but in the form of “The beatings will continue until morale improves.” ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2025, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/134 "2025-02-21T06:00:43Z")
RFK Jr. proposes sending people with mental disorders to “special farms” to be “reparented.” Is he, like, a closet Scientologist or something? Oh, and by the way, RFK, you go there first. Part way through the story, it mentions RFK Jr. wanting to do the same thing to black kids. Really. [https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/rfk-s-plan-to-make-america-healthy-again-round-up-people-with-mental-health-conditions-in-camps/ar-AA1zlMXc?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=HCTS&cvid=858709b0044a4e0196882354f7118f50&ei=159](https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/rfk-s-plan-to-make-america-healthy-again-round-up-people-with-mental-health-conditions-in-camps/ar-AA1zlMXc?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=HCTS&cvid=858709b0044a4e0196882354f7118f50&ei=159) ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2025, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/135 "2025-03-29T14:56:16Z")
Expert on vaccines resigns from FDA; apparently was given the choice of resignation or dismissal. > **[Top US vaccine official resigns over RFK Jr’s ‘misinformation and lies’](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/29/top-us-vaccine-official-resigns-over-rfk-jrs-misinformation-and-lies-dr-peter-marks)** > > Dr Peter Marks was seen as a guardrail against any future politicisation of the FDA’s approval of life-saving vaccines ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/136 "2025-04-01T14:38:09Z")
Bring back teen vaping? > King, who joined the agency in 2022, has been vigorously criticized by vaping lobbyists for ordering thousands of companies to remove their fruit and candy-flavored e-cigarettes from the market. During his time at FDA, teen vaping [has fallen to a 10-year low.](https://apnews.com/article/vaping-teens-elf-bar-zyn-9d25127da2db9cbc2634fae13511ef09) > **[FDA's top tobacco official is removed from post in latest blow to health...](https://apnews.com/article/fda-tobacco-rfk-brian-king-cf2d5657e5d55410073aece19592be09)** > > The Food and Drug Administration’s chief tobacco regulator has been forced out. Brian King's departure Tuesday comes just days after the FDA's top vaccine official stepped down over disagreements with health secretary Robert F. ---
**Author:** ![simster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/simster/32/1047_2.png) [@simster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/simster)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/137 "2025-04-01T14:44:00Z")
Make america cough again. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/138 "2025-04-01T18:05:14Z")
Tobacco: the next great American cash crop. Right after marijuana. ---
**Author:** ![SunUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SunUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SunUp)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/139 "2025-04-01T18:10:38Z")
Hey, it’s grown right here in the US of A! And it’s natural! What could possibly be bad about it? ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/140 "2025-04-02T00:57:14Z")
> **[Kansas reckons with large tuberculosis outbreak as health officials hamstrung](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/06/kansas-tuberculosis-public-health)** > > Experts fear consequences of Trump’s restrictions on CDC as state sees one of largest outbreaks ever recorded in US Perhaps some horse dewormer, now OTC across the Arkansas border, would wipe out the TB? /s ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451/141 "2025-04-02T15:06:33Z")
I’m starting to feel a bit like I suppose the citizens in Warsaw Pact countries felt during the height of the Cold War. For accurate news about our own country, it’s best to tune into the media of foreign countries not under the thumb of our own criminal regime. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-rfk-jr-really-become-hhs-secretary-yes-he-did/1009451.md?page=8)