https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7ojABSOLtw
WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), a member of the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, on Wednesday questioned U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on President Trump’s Fiscal Year 2026 skinny budget request for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Murphy pressed Kennedy on broken promises made during his confirmation hearing and accused him of misleading the Committee and the public about his support for vaccines, especially measles.
Transcript
FIND A LOT OF SUPPORT IN THIS
COMMITTEE FOR THAT.
SEN. MURPHY: WANT TO TALK TO YOU
ABOUT YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH
THIS COMMITTEE AND THIS
CONGRESS.
I WANT TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT
STATEMENTS HE MADE TO THE
CHAIRMAN OF THIS COMMITTEE AND
MEMBERS OF THIS COMMITTEE DURING
YOUR CONFIRMATION HEARING, ABOUT
VACCINES.
YOU DID NOT TELL THE TRUTH.
I FIND THAT TO BE REALLY
DANGEROUS FOR OUR RELATIONSHIP.
THE CHAIRMAN, WHO BELIEVES IN
VACCINES AND VOTED FOR YOU
BECAUSE HE BELIEVED WHAT YOU
SAID ABOUT SUPPORTING VACCINES
-- IN THE HEARING, YOU TOLD US I
WILL NOT WORK TO IMPOUND DIVERT,
OR OTHERWISE REDUCE ANY FUNDING
APPROPRIATE BY CONGRESS FOR THE
PURPOSE OF VACCINATION PROGRAMS.
THAT IS NOT THE TRUTH.
LET ME FINISH MY QUESTION.
SEC. KENNEDY: I'M JUST ASKING
YOU TO REPEAT IT.
SEN. MURPHY: YOU SAID TO THIS
COMMITTEE AND THE FINANCE
COMMITTEE I WILL NOT WORK TO
REDUCE FUNDING APPROPRIATED BY
CONGRESS FOR THE PURPOSE OF
VACCINATION PROGRAMS.
THAT IS NOT WHAT HAPPENED.
YOU HAVE DONE THE OPPOSITE.
YOU HAVE WITHHELD $12 BILLION IN
GRANTS FOR THE STATES, INCLUDING
MY STATE, THAT ARE USED TO
ADMINISTER AND TRACK VACCINES.
YOU PROMISED CHAIRMAN CASSIDY.
MADAME CHAIR, WILL YOU LET ME
FINISH MY QUESTION?
LET ME FINISH MY QUESTION.
SEC. KENNEDY: JUST TELL ME WHAT
I DID SO I CAN UNDERSTAND THE
QUESTION.
SEN. MURPHY: YOU HAVE CANCELED
$12 BILLION IN PUBLIC HEALTH
GRANTS TO STATES, WHETHER YOU
KNOW THIS OR NOT.
THAT FUNDING WAS USED BY THE
STATES IN PART TO BE ABLE TO
ADMINISTER AND DISPENSE
INFORMATION ABOUT VACCINES.
WHICH WE -- MR. SECRETARY, LET
ME GIVE YOU THE FULL PANOPLY OF
--
SEC. KENNEDY: OF ACCUSATIONS?
SEN. MURPHY: OF THINGS YOU SAID
BEFORE THIS COMMITTEE THAT DID
NOT TURN OUT TO BE TRUE.
YOU ALSO PROMISED CHAIRMAN
CASSIDY THAT THE FDA WOULD NOT
CHANGE VACCINE STANDARDS FROM
HISTORICAL LEVELS.
WHAT HAPPENED AS SOON AS YOU
WERE SWORN IN?
YOU ANNOUNCED NEW STANDARDS FOR
VACCINE APPROVALS THAT YOU
PROUDLY REFERRED TO IN YOUR OWN
PRESS RELEASE AS A RADICAL
DEPARTURE FROM CURRENT PRACTICE.
EXPERTS SAY THAT DEPARTURE WILL
DELAY APPROVALS.
YOU ALSO SAID, SPECIFIC TO THE
MEASLES VACCINE THAT YOU SUPPORT
THE MEASLES VACCINE, BUT YOU
HAVE CONSISTENTLY BEEN
UNDERMINING THE MEASLES VACCINE.
YOU TOLD THE PUBLIC THAT THE
VACCINE WANES QUICKLY.
YOU WENT ON THE DR. PHIL SHOW
AND SAID THE MEASLES VACCINE WAS
NEVER FULLY TESTED FOR SAFETY.
YOU SAID THERE WAS FETAL DEBRIS
IN THE MEASLES VACCINE.
SEC. KENNEDY: ALL TRUE.
DO YOU WANT ME TO LIE TO THE
PUBLIC?
SEN. MURPHY: NONE OF IT IS TRUE.
SEC. KENNEDY: OF COURSE IT'S
TRUE, SENATOR.
SENATOR --
YOU DO NOT KNOW WHAT YOU ARE
TALKING ABOUT.
[GAVEL]
SEN. MURKOWSKI: LET'S HAVE A
LITTLE BIT OF ORDER.
SEN. MURPHY: I DID NOT ASK FOR A
RESPONSE.
I WOULD LIKE TO COMPLETE MY
QUESTION BEFORE I AM INTERRUPTED
BY THE WITNESS.
SEN. MURKOWSKI: GO AHEAD.
SEN. MURPHY: YOU ALSO SAID YOU
WOULD NOT RECOMMEND YOUR KIDS
GET VACCINATED FOR MEASLES.
YOU SAID YOU WOULD JUST LAY OUT
THE PROS AND CONS.
THIS IS THE SUMMATION OF
EVERYTHING THAT YOU HAVE SAID TO
COMPROMISE PEOPLE'S FAITH IN THE
MEASLES VACCINE IN PARTICULAR.
IT IS CONTRARY TO WHAT YOU SAID
BEFORE THIS COMMITTEE.
YOU SAID YOU SUPPORT THE MEASLES
VACCINE, YOU HAVE LAID OUT A SET
OF FACTS THAT ARE CONTESTED, AND
I WILL SUBMIT INFORMATION FOR
THE RECORD TO CONTEST WHAT YOU
HAVE SAID ABOUT THE VACCINE.
THE RESULT IS TO UNDERMINE FAITH
IN THE VACCINES.
KIND OF LIKE SAYING I THINK YOU
SHOULD SWIM IN THAT LAKE, BUT
YOU KNOW THE LAKE IS PROBABLY
TOXIC AND THERE ARE A TON OF
SNAKES AND ALLIGATORS, WHAT I
THINK YOU SHOULD SWIM IN IT.
NOBODY IS GOING TO SWIM IN THAT.
I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WHEN
YOU SAY YOU SUPPORT THE MEASLES
VACCINE AND THEN GO OUT AND
REPEATEDLY UNDERMINE THE VACCINE
WITH INFORMATION THAT IS
CONTESTED BY PUBLIC HEALTH
EXPERTS, THAT IS NOT SUPPORTING
THE VACCINE.
I GUESS I HAVE TWO SIMPLE
QUESTIONS.
ONE IS, CAN YOU CLARIFY WHAT YOU
SAID?
ARE YOU OR ARE YOU NOT
RECOMMENDING THAT FAMILIES GET
THEIR CHILDREN VACCINATED?
OR ARE YOU JUST GIVING PEOPLE
THE PROS AND CONS?
AND DO YOU UNDERSTAND THAT WHEN
YOU SAY THESE THINGS ABOUT THE
MEASLES VACCINE, WHAT ENDS UP
HAPPENING IS LESS PEOPLE GET
VACCINATED.
THAT MAY BE WHAT YOU WANT, BUT
DO YOU UNDERSTAND THAT THE
RESULT OF CONST JUSTLY
QUESTIONING THE EFFICACY AND
SAFETY OF THE VACCINE RESULTS IN
LESS PEOPLE GETTING THE VACCINE?
I DON'T NECESSARILY WANT TO
SPEND THE REMAINING 20 SECONDS
IN AN ARGUMENT OVER THE SCIENCE.
BUT DO YOU AT LEAST UNDERSTAND
THAT IS THE CONSEQUENCE OF WHAT
YOU ARE SAYING?
ARE YOU ACTUALLY STILL
RECOMMENDING PEOPLE GET THE
VACCINE OR ARE YOU NOT?
SEC. KENNEDY: IF I WAS IN A LAKE
AND I KNEW THERE WERE TO BE
ALLIGATORS, WOULDN'T YOU WANT ME
TO TELL YOU THERE ARE
ALLIGATORS?
SEN. MURPHY: ARE YOU
RECOMMENDING THE MEASLES VACCINE
OR NOT?
IT DOES NOT SOUND LIKE YOU ARE.
SEC. KENNEDY: ARE YOU GOING TO
LET ME ANSWER OR ARE YOU GOING
TO INTERRUPT?
I SAID THAT I WOULD TELL THE
TRUTH DURING MY CONFIRMATION.
I HAVE TOLD THE TRUTH ABOUT
EVERYTHING WE KNOW AND DON'T
KNOW ABOUT VACCINES.
I'M NOT GOING TO JUST TELL
PEOPLE EVERYTHING IS SAFE AND
EFFECTIVE IF I KNOW THERE IS
ISSUES.
I NEED TO RESPECT PEOPLE'S
INTELLIGENCE.
SEN. MURPHY: I THINK YOU ARE
ANSWERING THE QUESTION.
THAT IS REALLY DANGEROUS FOR THE
AMERICAN PUBLIC.
SEC. KENNEDY: THE PUBLIC FAITH
IN THIS PROGRAM -- THEY HAVE
BEEN LIED TO BY PUBLIC
OFFICIALS.
