President Donald Trump expressed support for vaccines on Friday, distancing himself from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. amid growing controversy over changes to federal vaccine policy.
Speaking during an Oval Office meeting, Trump was asked about Kennedy’s vaccine mandate revisions, which limit which children are eligible for certain vaccines. “I think you have to be very careful when you say that some people don’t have to be vaccinated,” Trump said. “They’re just, pure and simple — they work. They’re not controversial at all. And I think those vaccines should be used.”
The remarks mark a clear break from Kennedy, who has been widely criticized for his overhaul of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and new vaccine rules. Senators this week grilled him over sweeping staffing changes and his reversal of long-standing recommendations.
Trump’s position highlights a shift in his own history with vaccines. Early in the pandemic, he expressed skepticism before launching Operation Warp Speed in 2020 to accelerate development of the COVID-19 vaccine. He later hailed the vaccine as a “medical miracle” that could save millions of lives, and Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla recently said Trump deserved the Nobel Peace Prize for his role. Trump had also previously echoed debunked theories linking vaccines to autism, including during his 2015 campaign.
While backing vaccines, Trump has opposed federal mandates. Earlier this year he signed an order cutting federal funding for school COVID-19 vaccine requirements, citing what he called the low risk of serious illness for children and young adults.
Kennedy, meanwhile, has faced backlash over his new policies. Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon said at a Senate hearing that Kennedy was making it harder for children to get vaccines, warning, “kids are going to die because of it.” Kennedy’s nephew, former U.S. congressman Joe Kennedy III, also called for his resignation Friday, saying the health secretary was “a threat to the health and well-being of every American.”
