Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Donald Trump’s controversial nominee to run the Department of Health and Human services, faced scrutiny from Democrats and Republicans Wednesday about his record on the issue of abortion.
Throughout the hearing before the Senate Finance Committee, Kennedy largely deferred to Trump’s positions on abortion — stating that abortion regulation should be left to the states — and vowed to restore the conscience protections that were stripped from HHS under the Biden administration.
Senator James Lankford (R., Okla.), an ordained Baptist minister, asked Kennedy a series of detailed questions about how he would handle abortion policy at the agency, acknowledging that, as a staunch pro-lifer, he has a difference of opinion with the nominee, who has repeatedly argued against abortion bans throughout his long public career.
Lankford asked Kennedy if he agreed with the first Trump administration’s prohibition against the use of federal funds going toward abortion providers. Under President Biden, federal funds were directed to abortion providers, such as Planned Parenthood, under Title X, a family planning program. Kennedy said he would support President Trump’s policy and proceeded to expand on his views of abortion.
“I agree with President Trump that every abortion is a tragedy. I agree with him that we cannot be a moral nation if we have 1.2 million abortions a year. I agree with him that the states should control abortion. President Trump has told me that he wants to end late term abortions and that he wants to protect conscience exemptions and that he wants to end federal funding for abortions here or abroad,” Kennedy asserted.
“I serve at the pleasure of the president. I’m gonna implement his policies.”
Pro-life Republican Senators and advocates have voiced concerns about Kennedy’s past support for late term abortions and the overturned Roe v. Wade court decision that legalized abortion nationally for decades.
On the flip side, pro-abortion Democrats have been worried about Kennedy’s support for some abortion restrictions at the state level. Senator Maggie Hassan (D., N.H.) accused Kennedy of selling out for a position in the Trump administration by shifting his views on abortion.
“In your own words, ‘it’s not the government’s place to tell people what to do with their bodies,'” Hassan said, asking Kennedy to confirm if he said that. Kennedy responded affirmatively as she pointed to an image of Kennedy calling himself “pro-choice” in 2023 during a campaign stop in her state.
Hassan similarly asked him if he made that comment and Kennedy replied affirmatively again. Then she directed him towards another statement about the “need to trust the women to make that choice” rather than the government.
“It is remarkable that you have such a long record of fighting for women’s reproductive freedom,” Hassan said.
“When was it that you decided to sell out the values you’ve had your whole life in order to be given power by President Trump?” Hassan inquired.
Kennedy repeatedly said abortion is a tragedy as Hassan pressed him on abortion and whether he is prioritizing his allegiance to President Trump over his past views.
Earlier in the hearing, Senator Michael Bennet (D., Colo.) scrutinized Kennedy’s abortion views, and Kennedy replied by asserting that all abortions are tragedies.
Multiple Democratic Senators also castigated Kennedy throughout the hearing for his long track record of vaccine skepticism and openness to various conspiracy theories.
Seeking to mitigate those attacks, Kennedy said in his opening statement that his children are vaccinated and his concern is simply about transparency regarding vaccine side effects. Kennedy also said he does not oppose the measles or polio vaccines, seemingly reversing his prior views on those treatments.