Trump, RFK, and Vaccines: Be Afraid. Be Very Afraid.

 In The Politics of Autism, I analyze the myth that vaccines cause autism. This bogus idea can hurt people by allowing diseases to spread.    Examples include measles, COVID, flu, and polio.

A number of posts discussed Trump's support for the discredited notion.

 Another leading anti-vaxxer is presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.  He has repeatedly compared vaccine mandates to the Holocaust.  Rolling Stone and Salon retracted an RFK article linking vaccines to autism.  He is part of the "Disinformation Dozen."

He recently ran for president as an independent and has now endorsed Trump.  If Trump wins, RFK could get a major job in the administration.

Alexandra Marquez and Garrett Haake at NBC:

In the closing days of the presidential campaign, former President Donald Trump and some of his top allies have increasingly embraced and spread anti-vaccine rhetoric typically linked to former independent presidential candidate and vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

"He’s a great guy. I’ve known him a long time. And all he wants to do — it’s very simple — he wants to make people healthy," Trump told NBC News on Friday.

Misinformation about vaccines has not been a focal point of Trump's 2024 campaign, but recently, Kennedy's influence — and the large role he could play in a Trump administration — have come to the forefront.

During an event with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson and Kennedy in Arizona Thursday night, Trump said that Kennedy wants to "look" at pesticides and vaccines in a potential Trump administration — and he was more than happy to give him carte blanche.

"He can do anything he wants," Trump said.

Dr. Kavita Patel, physician and health policy researcher, writes at NBC:

As a physician on the front lines of public health, I find myself in a state of constant disbelief and growing alarm, watching the level of disinformation and dangerous false rhetoric around public health emanating from Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. A recent CNN interview with Howard Lutnick, co-chair of the Trump-Vance transition team, has sent shockwaves through the medical community. Lutnick’s casual endorsement of long-debunked vaccine conspiracy theories wasn’t just a momentary lapse in judgment — it was akin to tossing a lit match into a powder keg of public health concerns.

Ronald Bailey at Reason:

During a Fox News interview in 2023, Kennedy reiterated, "I do believe that autism comes from vaccines." Despite the claims by Kennedy, now being echoed by Lutnick, years of research have turned up no evidence that childhood vaccinations cause autism spectrum disorders. Of course, nearly any medical treatment will have some adverse side effects in some people. However, a 2021 comprehensive analysis of vaccine safety by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality found "no new evidence of increased risk for key adverse events following administration of vaccines that are routinely recommended for adults, children, and pregnant women."

 

 

Trump Transition Co-Chair Pushes the Autism-Vaccine Myth

In The Politics of Autism, I analyze the myth that vaccines cause autism. This bogus idea can hurt people by allowing diseases to spread.    Examples include measles, COVID, flu, and polio.

A number of posts discussed Trump's support for the discredited notion.

 Another leading anti-vaxxer is presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.  He has repeatedly compared vaccine mandates to the Holocaust.  Rolling Stone and Salon retracted an RFK article linking vaccines to autism.  He is part of the "Disinformation Dozen."

He recently ran for president as an independent and has now endorsed Trump.  If Trump wins, RFK could get a major job in the administration.

Shania Shelton at CNN:

The co-chair of the Trump-Vance transition team on Wednesday night endorsed vaccine conspiracy theories pushed by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and suggested the activist and Trump ally would be given federal data in order to check vaccines’ safety if former President Donald Trump is elected.

Speaking to CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on “The Source,” Howard Lutnick, who said he recently spent two and a half hours with Kennedy, also said Kennedy is “not getting a job for (the Department of Health and Human Services),” which is contrary to a claim the activist made earlier this week in which he said Trump promised to give him “control” of several public health agencies, HHS among them. Lutnick also said tech entrepreneur Elon Musk would “help” rather than serve in the government if Trump wins.

“He says, ‘If you give me the data, all I want is the data, and I’ll take on the data and show that it’s not safe.’ And then if you pull the product liability (protections), the companies will yank these vaccines right off, off of the market,” Lutnick said.

Lutnick added, “Let’s give him the data. I think it’ll be pretty cool to give him the data. Let’s see what he comes up with. I think it’s pretty fun.” But vaccines that are currently approved and authorized for use in the US have been proven safe and effective and are continually monitored for risks and side effects.

Lutnick also pushed debunked conspiracy theories that vaccines are behind autism in children. Although it is still unclear what causes autism, the scientific consensus is that vaccines do not.

Transcript here

Zachary B. Wolf at CNN:

Regarding Kennedy’s goal. If it is as Lutnick says, it seems that Kennedy is interested in opening up a wave of vaccine lawsuits to get manufacturers to yank vaccines.

Regarding liability. Congress responded to a wave of lawsuits related to vaccines in 1986 to create the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, which is intended to compensate the extremely small portion of the population that develops adverse reactions to vaccines. The program, which is funded by an excise tax on recommended vaccines, has paid more than $4.5 billion to around 9,500 people since 1988, according to the Department of Justice. Vaccine manufacturers can be sued for injury in state court.

Regarding the allegation of “blocked” data. What are Kennedy and Lutnick talking about? It’s not at all clear.

...

Jerome Adams, who was US surgeon general under Trump, said Kennedy should not get a senior role in a Trump administration.

“Bottom line: It’s hard to implement your other political priorities if you’re busy dealing with a measles or polio outbreak,” he told The Washington Post.

...

In the years since the pandemic, the portion of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents who say it is extremely important for parents to get their children vaccinated has fallen from 52% in 2019 to 26% in 2024. A strong majority of Democrats and Democratic leaners, 63%, still say childhood vaccination is extremely important.