WASHINGTON — Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to be Health and Human Services Secretary, began meeting with senators Monday.
He plans to meet with over two dozen Republicans on Capitol Hill this week, according to a source familiar with his plans. The meetings include key incoming leaders like Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., and soon-to-be Senate Finance Chair Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, whose committee will oversee and vote on Kennedy’s planned nomination.
Kennedy is poised to face questions about his long history of anti-vaccine rhetoric, his vision for reshaping the health care industry and his support for abortion rights as he meets with GOP senators who largely oppose legal abortion.
“Mr. Kennedy is immensely prepared to meet with over 2 dozen Senators this week. He is energized, he is excited to talk about President Trump’s vision to make America healthy again,” the source familiar with Kennedy’s plans told NBC News.
His first sit-down was with Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., who called it a “great meeting” and said, “I’m completely supportive of what he wants to accomplish, and I wish him the best of luck.”
Scott said he and Kennedy both want “transparency” on vaccines.
Other notable names on Kennedy’s expected meeting list are moderate Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska; Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., who faces re-election in 2026; and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., a senior member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee that will also review his nomination.
Senate Republicans will have 53 seats starting on Jan. 3, meaning they can afford three defections and still confirm Trump’s nominees. A fourth defection would be fatal to a nomination unless some Democrats vote yes. Hearings have not been scheduled yet but could occur before Trump takes office on Jan. 20; final confirmation votes must wait until he is in the White House.
One key senator to watch in Kennedy’s battle for confirmation is Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., who is stepping down from GOP leadership after 18 years in the top job but staying on as a senator, eliminating a political hurdle to voting as he pleases. McConnell, a polio survivor, fired a warning shot Friday in response to a New York Times report that a Kennedy adviser once asked the FDA to rescind approval of the polio vaccine.
“The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives and held out the promise of eradicating a terrible disease,” McConnell said in a statement. “Efforts to undermine public confidence in proven cures are not just uninformed — they’re dangerous.”
A Kennedy spokesperson told the New York Times that he and the adviser in question had not discussed the adviser’s push to revoke approval of the polio vaccine. Kennedy spokeswoman Katie Miller told NBC News on Friday, “The Polio Vaccine should be available to the public and thoroughly and properly studied.”
Asked Monday if he supports the polio vaccine, Kennedy told reporters, “Yeah, I support it.”
Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., said he will have “questions” for Kennedy on his abortion views.
“Obviously, HHS under the first Trump administration was very clear on the issue of abortion conscience protections and all those things. But [President Joe] Biden’s team unwound all of that,” Lankford said in a recent interview. “Those are questions I’m going to ask.”
