Vaccines and autism: What deal did RFK Jr. have to make to get confirmed at HHS?

While there are many Trump Cabinet nominees who have yet to be confirmed, one major — and highly controversial — player has narrowly advanced through his confirmation hearings.

That would be RFK Jr., who has squeezed past the Senate Finance Committee with a 14-13 vote along party lines.

“So all of the Republicans fell in line, which is good. I don’t want to be negative Nancy here, that is good, but wow, too close: 14-13, so just barely. And now he is going to go before the full Senate Chamber in confirmation hearings to lead the Department of Health and Human Services,” Sara Gonzales of “Sara Gonzales Unfiltered” comments.

Among RFK Jr.’s strongest opposition in the Senate was Senator Bill Cassidy, who is also a physician. Cassidy ended up voting to confirm RFK Jr., which Gonzales believes might have been due in part to a social media post from Donald Trump.

“20 years ago, Autism in children was 1 in 10,000. NOW IT’S 1 in 34. WOW! Something’s really wrong. We need BOBBY!!! Thank You! DJT,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

Less than an hour after Trump’s post, Cassidy posted his own statement on social media platform X, writing, “I’ve had very intense conversations with Bobby and the White House over the weekend and even this morning. I want to thank VP JD specifically for his honest counsel.”

“With the serious commitments I’ve received from the administration and the opportunity to make progress on the issues we agree on like healthy foods and a pro-American agenda, I will vote yes,” he concluded.

However, another social media user on X raised concerns about why Cassidy really agreed to confirm RFK Jr.

“Cassidy says he got a commitment that if confirmed, he will meet with RFK Jr. multiple times per month. CDC won’t change vaccine advisory cmte or remove info from websites saying vaccines don’t cause autism,” Nathaniel Wexler posted on X.

“That one rubs me a little bit the wrong way,” Gonzales says. “Which, by the way, I want to be clear. RFK Jr. is not going to go in and immediately change the CDC website to say ‘vaccines cause autism.’ He’s not going to do that.”

“What he is going to do is try to replicate the studies that they claim that they did that prove that vaccines do not cause autism,” she adds.

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