Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) accused President Donald J. Trump‘s nominee for Health and Human Services Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., of being someone who “chases money” by expressing skepticism of vaccinations. However, Wyden himself has reportedly received $1,207,873 in donations from the pharmaceutical and health products industry since 1990.
Speaking at a Senate confirmation hearing for RFK Jr. on Wednesday, Wyden said the ‘Make America Healthy Again’ frontman has “made it his life’s work to sow doubt and discourage parents from getting their kids life-saving vaccines. ” This has been “lucrative” for him and “put him on the verge of real power,” he alleged.
“This is the profile of somebody who chases money and influence wherever they lead, even if that means the deaths of children and other vulnerable people,” the Democrat accused.
Despite acknowledging that Big Pharma “relies on groundbreaking, taxpayer-funded drug research from the NIH, then takes those drugs to market at an outrageous markup” and pledging to clamp down on its tax practices under the Biden government, Wyden was among the lawmakers who received the most funding from the pharmaceutical and health products industry from 2021-2022.
Wyden played the part of lobbyist for vaccine manufacturers throughout his questioning of Kennedy, challenging him, for instance, on a petition to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) against COVID-19 vaccinations. Kennedy remained unflappable throughout their exchanges, noting that the petition was brought after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended the vaccine to six-year-old children “without any scientific basis.”
Senator Wyden: You tried to block Americans from accessing the COVID vaccine.
RFK Jr.: I brought that petition after the CDC recommended a COVID vaccine, without any scientific basis, for six year old children.
The Big Pharma shills are failing miserably today. pic.twitter.com/2knQp1wEh4
— Heritage Foundation (@Heritage) January 29, 2025