DLATITUDE252 As the president-elect continues to assemble his new administration, Donald Trump has appointed Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a vaccine skeptic and former independent presidential candidate, as his health secretary.
Kennedy, who goes by his initials RFK Jr., has a history of disseminating health advice that is deemed inaccurate by scientists.
If the Senate approves his nomination, he will head a massive organization that will be in charge of everything from welfare initiatives to medical research and food safety.
The American Public Health Association (APHA) will “absolutely oppose” Kennedy’s nomination, according to the organization’s executive director.
Georges C. Benjamin harshly criticized Kennedy’s qualifications for the position in an interview with BBC Newsday on Friday.
“He lacks the temperament, management abilities, training, and trust necessary for this position. Benjamin remarked, “He’s just the wrong guy for it.”
“He is really just a person without a health background who’s already caused great damage in health in the country.”
Benjamin cited Kennedy’s earlier remarks casting doubt on the effectiveness and safety of vaccines as well as the potential consequences of another epidemic occurring while he was president.Georges C. Benjamin harshly criticized Kennedy’s qualifications for the position in an interview with BBC Newsday on Friday.
“He lacks the temperament, management abilities, training, and trust necessary for this position. Benjamin remarked, “He’s just the wrong guy for it.”
“He is really just a person without a health background who’s already caused great damage in health in the country.”
Benjamin cited Kennedy’s earlier remarks casting doubt on the effectiveness and safety of vaccines as well as the potential consequences of another epidemic occurring while he was president.
Benjamin continued: “We’re going advocate as loudly and as often as we can to make sure that people know what a risk he is to the public and to the public’s health.”
Kennedy’s nomination came amid a flurry of announcements on Thursday evening, with Trump also declaring his intention to nominate North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum as his interior secretary.
Trump said he would formally announce the selection of Burgum – a former businessman who ran against the president-elect for the Republican presidential nomination – on Friday.
He had initially teased the move during a speech to supporters at Mar-a-Lago – his first since election night – saying he would be appointing Burgum to a “very big position”, before seemingly deciding to dispense with the suspense.
Other nominations announced on Thursday include:
- Former Georgia Congressman Doug Collins as secretary of veterans’ affairs.
- Todd Blanche, Trump’s defence lawyer in his “hush money” criminal trial, to serve as deputy attorney general.
- Dean John Sauer, who represented Trump in a US Supreme Court case earlier this year, as solicitor general. He will be charged with supervising and conducting government litigation in the Supreme Court.
- Jay Clayton, former chairperson of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, as US attorney for the Southern District of New York, one of the most influential federal trial courts.
