Summary
- Republican senators surprised by RFK Jr.'s recent public remarks.
- Remarks linked acetaminophen, autism, and circumcision controversially.
- RFK Jr. was confirmed as HHS secretary in a 52-48 Senate vote.
Kennedy, a longtime supporter of the erroneous belief that vaccines cause autism, veered off topic Thursday during a cabinet meeting about the causes of autism.
In particular, he described how he came across a TikTok video showing a pregnant woman "gobbling Tylenol." Despite the fact that the fetus develops in the uterus, Kennedy said that the woman took Tylenol "with a baby in her placenta." Kennedy added that the prevalence of autism is doubled in circumcised infant boys.
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), meanwhile, who supported Kennedy's confirmation on the Senate floor and in the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said he was perplexed.
“I want doctors to be doctors,”
he said.
“I want scientists to be scientists. If there's scientific evidence present that. That not interested in a non-practicing physician or scientist’s personal opinion.”
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) also seemed confused when asked about it. Despite her objections to mant of Kennedy’s views, Murkowski voted to refer Kennedy’s nomination out of committee and on the Senate floor.
“You're giving me new news now with your second question, so I have not seen that yet,”
Murkowski said.
“Well, the Tylenol, I have question[s], and I've said that,”
she said.
“In terms of what you've just referenced, in regards to circumcision, this is all brand new to me, so I guess I'm going to go read what you guys have reported.”
Sen. Bill Cassidy, the HELP Committee chairman and a doctor who supported Kennedy's confirmation despite his disapproval of Kennedy's autism beliefs, was contacted by The Independent.
Kennedy and Trump have stated their desire to identify the underlying causes of the "autism epidemic." The majority of studies, including those from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, attribute the rise in autism diagnoses over the past 35 years to increased detection, especially for girls, children from lower-income families, Black children, and other ethnic minority groups.
Trump and Kennedy said last month that they had discovered a connection between autism and pregnant women who took acetaminophen, the technical name for Tylenol. However, they did not explicitly state that using over-the-counter medications was the cause.
But Sen. Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), a member of the HELP Committee and a sharp critic of Kennedy, said Kennedy’s bizarre and unfounded claims are no laughing matter.
“We’re talking about whether or not parents can rely on the information provided by the Secretary of Health and Human Services,” she said. “
It's really not funny. This whole thing is dangerous. People will get sick and die based on it. And I think it's horrible.”
Kennedy has faced criticism for a number of his actions since taking over the department, including dismissing all of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices' members. Additionally, the group advised against giving young children the combined measles and chickenpox vaccine.
Kennedy dismissed Susan Monarez as CDC director, and she testified before the Senate HELP Committee last month. Even Republican senators have criticized Kennedy for his behavior.
Which Republican senators defended Kennedy after his acetaminophen remarks?
Cassidy, who is a physician and chair of the Senate Health Committee, was critical in the confirmation of Kennedy. Cassidy pressed Kennedy hard on all the vaccine questions but he also indicated support for his reform agenda as well.
Johnson, a someone who was an ally of the Trump administration as well as supportive of Kennedy's plans to reform the health agencies, described the Senate's often aggressive questioning of Kennedy as "abuse" and supported Kennedy's plans for health agencies.
While there are many Republicans who have concerns or are baffled by Kennedy's comments or public health policies, the Senators reflect that there is a strong reform agenda that Kennedy has and that we should not completely dismiss the points he has made.