President Trump on Friday expressed support for mandatory vaccines for school-aged children, amid Health and Human Services Secretary RFK Jr.’s push to end unnecessary vaccination.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testified Thursday before the Senate Finance Committee, where Democrats sought to grill him about his personnel and vaccine guidance shake-up at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Per the Hill, “the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stopped recommending the COVID-19 vaccine for those under 18. Kennedy, meanwhile, has fired all 17 sitting members of CDC’s vaccine advisory panel and also moved to oust the CDC head and other top HHS experts.”
During the Senate hearing, RFK revealed that in the early 2000s, a senior CDC scientist was ordered to destroy data from an internal study that showed a staggering link between the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine and autism risk in young Black boys. The data showed that black boys, who got vaccinated before 24 months of age or 36 months of age, “had a 260% greater chance of getting an autism diagnosis than children who waited,” RFK said.
This also comes after Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo announced earlier this week that the Florida Department of Health is planning to remove “every last” vaccine mandate from Florida law.
“All of them. Every last one of them,” Ladapo said to loud cheers and a standing ovation.
“Who am I, as the government, or anyone else, who am I as a man standing here now to tell you what you should put in your body? Who am I to tell you what your child should put in their body? I don’t have that right.”
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Trump has seemingly shown support for ending vaccine mandates and sharing concerns about vaccines contributing to autism in the past. However, his latest comments appear to be a break from RFK and Florida’s position.
Trump previously signed an Executive Order halting federal funding to schools with a COVID vaccine mandate, The Gateway Pundit reported.
When a reporter asked about vaccine mandates being rolled back for school children, Trump stated that some vaccines “are so amazing,” including the polio vaccine, and “a lot of people think that COVID is amazing.”
“I think you have to be very careful when you say that some people don’t have to be vaccinated,” he added, noting that he thinks non-controversial vaccines “should be used.”
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Reporter: The vaccine mandates that were rolled back for school children, what do you think about that?
Trump: Well, I think we have to be very careful. Look, you have some vaccines that are so amazing. The polio vaccine, I happen to think is amazing. A lot of people think that COVID is amazing. You know, there are many people that believe strongly in that, but you have some vaccines that are so incredible. And I think you have to be very careful when you say that some people don’t have to be vaccinated.
It’s a very, you know, it’s a very tough position. So I’d give you an answer, I’ll give you a feeling, but just, initially, I heard about it yesterday, and it’s a tough stance. Look, you have vaccines that work. They just pure and simple work. They’re not controversial at all. And I think those vaccines should be used. Otherwise, some people are going to catch it, and they endanger other people. And when you don’t have controversy at all, I think people should take it.
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