"Charlatan," "ignorant": Democrats blast RFK Jr. on vaccines [View all]

Source: msn/Axios

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Senate Democrats lambasted Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Thursday for repeatedly questioning the safety and effectiveness of vaccinations, including the COVID shots President Trump championed in his first term.

The big picture: Kennedy had assured Senators during his confirmation he would do nothing to discourage or hinder people from using vaccines, but in his tenure at HHS, lawmakers say he's created confusion among physicians and families and eroded access.

Driving the news: During a heated line of questioning about Kennedy's "clean sweep" of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) said "This is not a podcast. It is the American people's health that's on the line here."

Kennedy, asked if he would publicly share evidence the panel will rely on, argued that "the evidence is transparent for the first time in history."

Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Washington) slammed the secretary as a "charlatan," saying he conflates "chronic disease with the need for vaccines."

Zoom out: Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) lambasted Kennedy who said he was unaware how many Americans died from COVID and sidestepped questions on whether the vaccine saved lives.

"I don't think anybody knows that [the number of deaths] because there was so much data chaos coming out of the CDC," Kennedy said. Asked if the vaccine did anything to prevent additional deaths, Kennedy replied, "I would like to see the data."

"How can you be that ignorant?" Warner asked.

Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/charlatan-ignorant-democrats-blast-rfk-jr-on-vaccines/ar-AA1LSF2q