The Regime Media’s shift into Resistance mode continues apace. The major media outlets uniformly melted down over President Elect Donald Trump’s decision to nominate Robert F. Kennedy to lead the nation’s public health apparatus as Secretary of Health and Human Services.
Watch as NBC’s Lester Holt attempts to convey concern over the selection of Kennedy:
LESTER HOLT: Good evening, and welcome. Breaking tonight, another head-turning personnel picked by President Elect Trump, choosing Robert F Kennedy Jr, an anti-vaccine activist, to serve as Secretary of Health and Human Services. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate Kennedy, an environmental lawyer, would lead a family of agencies responsible for protecting the health of Americans, including the Centers for Disease Control and Food and Drug Administration. In the past, Kennedy has spoken out against Covid-19 vaccines and childhood vaccinations, though recently said he wouldn't take them away, endorsing Donald Trump after his own run for the white house ran aground.
One does not recall “head-turning” being used as a descriptor for any of the Biden Administration’s nominees to the public health agencies. No one ever questioned the qualifications of former California congressman and Attorney General Xavier Becerra, save his wielding of the levers of government power in service of abortion.
ABC wasn’t that much better than NBC, although they opened with the vaccine stuff. Over at CBS:
NORAH O’DONNELL: President-Elect Donald Trump promised to shake up Washington, and he is doing just that as he staffs up his administration. Trump late today announced he intends to nominate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. As Secretary of Health and Human Services. This is a sprawling department that touches the lives of every American. Take a look at this. HHS is in charge of Medicare, Medicaid, the safety of food and medicine, the CDC, and the NIH, one of the world's leading medical research centers.
All of the reports had a heavy dose of the vaccine stuff, but none featured Kennedy’s efforts with our food supply, and it’ll be curious to see whether they do so going forward. If today’s performance is ani indication, the media have learned nothing this past week.
Click :”expand” to view the full transcripts of the aforementioned report as aired on their respective networks on Thursday, November 14th, 2024:
ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT
11/14/24
6:32 PM
DAVID MUIR: Good evening and it's great to have you with us here on a Thursday night. We begin tonight with President-Elect Donald Trump, choosing prominent vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. As his Secretary of Health and Human Services, planning to put RFK Jr. In charge of the nation's health, the CDC, the FDA, and the many agencies and nearly a quarter of the federal budget. RFK Jr. Is an environmental lawyer, skeptical of mainstream medicine, and has said vaccines do not work. He gave up his own independent run for president and threw his support behind Donald Trump, saying well before the election that Trump promised him control of America's public health agencies. At a rally before the election, Trump saying he would let RFK Jr. go wild on health. Tonight, what Kennedy has said he would like to do, and will he get confirmed? ABC's Mary Bruce leading us off from West Palm Beach, Florida, tonight.
MARY BRUCE: Tonight, President-Elect Donald Trump delivering on a promise he made to one of his top campaign supporters, announcing he's nominating Robert F. Kennedy Jr. To be Secretary of Health and Human Services, putting a noted vaccine skeptic in charge of the nation's health system.
DONALD TRUMP: I'm going to let him go wild on health. I'm going to let him go wild on the food. I'm going to let him go wild on medicines.
BRUCE: Well before the election, Kennedy made it clear Trump had promised him this role.
ROBERT F. KENNEDY, JR: The key that I’m you know- that President Trump has promised me is control of the public health agencies, which are HHS and its subagencies, CDC, FDA, NIH, and a few others. And also the usda, which is, which you know, key to making America healthy.
BRUCE: HHS is one of the biggest departments in the federal government. It includes agencies that touch every aspect of American life, from the foods you eat to the medicine you take. It includes the Centers for Disease Control, the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes of Health, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. And it's the primary agency that oversees the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. Today, the President-Elect saying, "For too long, Americans have been crushed by the industrial food complex and drug companies who have engaged in deception, misinformation, and disinformation when it comes to public health."
KENNEDY: President Trump has told me that he wants to see measurable, concrete results within two years in terms of a measurable diminishment in chronic disease among America's kids.
BRUCE: Kennedy, who is not a doctor and has no medical training or public health experience, has endorsed a host of debunked conspiracy theories, including falsely claiming that childhood vaccines cause autism, although numerous high quality studies say that is not true. There is no link between vaccines and autism. Most of the vaccines used today have been used safely for decades, though Kennedy claims otherwise.
KENNEDY: There is no vaccine that is safe and effective.
BRUCE: In fact, vaccines are considered one of the greatest public health accomplishments of modern medicine, saving countless lives and even eliminating some diseases. Kennedy has accused the FDA of a war on public health, including, quote: “its aggressive suppression of psychedelics, peptides, stem cells, raw milk, hyperbaric therapies,chelating compounds, ivermectin, hydroxychloroquine, vitamins, clean foods, sunshine, exercise, nutraceuticals, and anything else that advances human health and can't be patented by pharma.” Kennedy, the son of Robert F. Kennedy, abandoned his own independent campaign for The White House to endorse Trump.
KENNEDY: If you want to see me go to Washington, you better vote for Donald Trump.
BRUCE: Most of his own family has publicly disavowed his decision to endorse Trump. His own sister, Kerry Kennedy, saying she does not trust her brother to be in charge of healthcare in the United States. Kennedy has already said the Trump administration would advise local water systems to remove flouride from drinking water, though health experts say it helps fight tooth decay. He’s also said he would remove 600 employees who currently work at HHS. The big question, of course, would Kennedy get enough support in the Senate to be confirmed, or will Trump push the Senate to waive the confirmation process and push him through via a recess appointment? David?
MUIR: A lot of questions moving us forward. Mary Bruce leading us off. Mary, thank you.
CBS EVENING NEWS
11/14/24
NORAH O’DONNELL: President-Elect Donald Trump promised to shake up Washington, and he is doing just that as he staffs up his administration. Trump late today announced he intends to nominate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. As Secretary of Health and Human Services. This is a sprawling department that touches the lives of every American. Take a look at this. HHS is in charge of Medicare, Medicaid, the safety of food and medicine, the CDC, and the NIH, one of the world's leading medical research centers. Kennedy has a long record of criticizing vaccines, often spreading misleading claims about their safety, and just last week, Kennedy vowed to fire and replace hundreds of employees at the National Institute of Health. We have reporters covering all angles of the Trump transition and we start with CBS News Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Jon Lapook, who reports on the big changes that could be coming to our health care system.
ROBERT R. KENNEDY, JR: Make America healthy again.
JON LAPOOK: That's the name of the platform Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Launched with President-Elect Donald Trump.
DONALD TRUMP: I'm going to let him go wild on health.
LAPOOK: It contains a wide-ranging list of promises that could significantly change health care in the United States.
KENNEDY: There is no vaccine that is safe and effective.
LAPOOK: RFK Jr. Has criticized vaccines and their safety.
RICHARD BESSER: We have the best vaccine system in the world.
LAPOOK: Dr. Richard Besser is the former Acting Director for the Centers for Disease Control, and the current head of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
BESSER: We have so many checks and balances in our vaccine system here. As a pediatrician, I know that there is nothing I did that had more value for the children in my practices than ensuring that they were vaccinated fully and on time. Nothing had more impact.
LAPOOK: Kennedy has also claimed fluoride is associated with arthritis and neurodevelopmental disorders, and says the Trump administration will advise taking fluoride out of the public water supply.
BESSER: What the science tells us about fluoride is that if you consume low levels of fluoride, it will reduce the risk of cavities in children by 25%. And it's totally safe to do that.
LAPOOK: The CDC named fluoridation of drinking water one of the great public health achievements of the 20th Century, but it’s become controversial. In September, a federal court ruled the EPA had to review the levels of fluoride in water.
Where is your worry meter in terms of thinking about public health going forward now?
BESSER: I'm worried because we have not moved forward from the Covid pandemic in terms of restoring trust in public health. We need to see signs from the new administration that trust in public health is important to them.
O’DONNELL: And Dr. Jon Lapook joins us now. Jon, good to have you. So how are doctors and scientists reacting tonight?
LAPOOK: Well, I have been on the phone with several of them and I have to say the consensus is they’re angry. They are very concerned that RFK Jr. simply does not have the scientific background to do this job properly. I mean, he's had some misinformation that he's been saying about vaccines and some other things. On the other hand, he’s been talking about addressing childhood obesity, and nutrition, and additives, and getting rid of special interest groups that are perhaps harming the health of Americans, so what's going to happen, that remains to be seen.
O’DONNELL: Dr. Jon Lapook, thanks for being with us. Want to turn now to CBS's Caitlin Huey-Burns, who is covering the transition in West Palm Beach, and Caitlin, so what did you learn today about why the President-Elect chose RFK Jr.?
CAITLIN HUEY-BURNS: Good evening, Norah. Well, this is a pick that the President-Elect has been pledging for months, and in recent days, he's been telling associates that he was standing by his pick of Kennedy for HHS and wouldn't hear otherwise. One source saying no one could talk him out of it. Even Trump's transition team leaders said just two weeks ago that there was no way that Kennedy would be chosen for HHS, and yet, this decision was made. And since Election Night, Kennedy has been a ubiquitous presence here in West Palm Beach, holding court with Donald Trump and supporters. And just moments ago, Norah, the President-Elect announced that he was tapping his lead defense attorney Todd Blanche as Deputy Attorney General. And the pick of Kennedy comes, of course, after several controversial picks, including Florida Republican Matt Gaetz as Attorney General. Norah.
O’DONNELL: All right. Caitlin Huey-Burns, thank you.
NBC NIGHTLY NEWS
11/14/24
6:31 PM
LESTER HOLT: Good evening, and welcome. Breaking tonight, another head-turning personnel picked by President Elect Trump, choosing Robert F Kennedy Jr, an anti-vaccine activist, to serve as Secretary of Health and Human Services. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate Kennedy, an environmental lawyer, would lead a family of agencies responsible for protecting the health of Americans, including the Centers for Disease Control and Food and Drug Administration. In the past, Kennedy has spoken out against Covid-19 vaccines and childhood vaccinations, though recently said he wouldn't take them away, endorsing Donald Trump after his own run for the white house ran aground. News of the RFK Jr. pick coming as both sides of the aisle in Washington are still awaiting the viability of Mr. Trump's preference of former congressman Matt Gaetz to serve as Attorney General. Vaughn Hillyard begins our coverage.
VAUGHN HILLYARD: Tonight, after teasing a potential administration role for weeks.
DONALD TRUMP: RFK Jr., he's going to help us on health and the health of women, men, and children, and he is so good.
HILLYARD: President Elect Trump selecting Robert F Kennedy, Jr. to be his next Secretary of Health and Human Services, writing, "Americans have been crushed by the industrial food complex and drug companies who have engaged in deception, misinformation, and disinformation when it comes to public health." Kennedy is a former Democratic and independent presidential candidate who dropped out and endorsed Trump. But, he has faced criticism because of his history of acting skepticism, publicly espousing discredited assertions that vaccines cause autism. Vice President Harris slammed Trump for printing him.
KAMALA HARRIS: He has indicated that the person who would be in charge of health care for the American people is someone who has routinely promoted junk science and crazy conspiracies.
HILLYARD: Kennedy telling us last week that he would not block any vaccines.
Are there specific vaccines that you would seek to take off the market?
KENNEDY: I'm not going to, I'm not going to take away anybody's vaccines. I have never been anti-vaccine.
HILLYARD: You will not take any vaccine that is currently on the market?
KENNEDY: I’m not- if somebody, if vaccines are working for somebody, I'm not going to take them away.
HILLYARD: During the campaign, Kennedy made headlines when he said that 15 years ago, doctors told him he had a parasitic worm in his brain that died. Kennedy is a critic of U.S. health care policy, who has advocated for big changes to food and drug regulations, writing last month, "The FDA's war on public health is about to end," telling us he would eliminate parts of the FDA.
KENNEDY: The nutrition department of the FDA. That has to go. They are not doing their job, they are not protecting our kids.
HOLT: And Vaughn, we understand that Kennedy is now responding to his selection.
HILLYARD: Lester, just in the last few minutes Kennedy writing in a statement that he’s committed to making America healthy again, saying we, quote: “have a generational opportunity to put an end to America’s chronic disease epidemic. Lester.
HOLT: All right. Vaughn Hillyard starting us off. Vaughn, thank you.
