GOP Sen. Markwayne Mullin defends RFK Jr. on vaccines, says he supports recess appointments as a last resort
Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., on Sunday defended Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, saying Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic, is “extremely intelligent when it comes to” vaccines and questioning levels of autism in the U.S. “I’ve sat down and had a long conversation with [Kennedy], and I actually find the guy extremely intelligent when it comes to this stuff.
Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., on Sunday defended Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, saying Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic, is “extremely intelligent when it comes to” vaccines and questioning levels of autism in the U.S.
“I’ve sat down and had a long conversation with [Kennedy], and I actually find the guy extremely intelligent when it comes to this stuff. And some of this stuff does raise a lot of questions,” Mullin said on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” when he was asked whether Kennedy’s history of questioning the efficacy of vaccines is a deal-breaker for him.
“I have said that there’s some positives to vaccinations. I’ve also questioned the vaccines multiple times, and I think they should be questioned,” Mullin told moderator Kristen Welker before he falsely linked vaccines to autism, something Kennedy has repeatedly done for years, even though there is no evidence that vaccines cause the condition.
“For instance, why is America highest in autism? What is causing that? Is it our diet, or is it some of the stuff we’re putting in our children’s system?” Mullin said, adding: “What is causing that? And if it isn’t vaccines, there’s nothing wrong with actually taking a hard look and finding out is that’s what’s causing it. Is it something else that we’re putting in our systems? We do know we’re not as healthy as we should be right now.”
While it is true that autism spectrum disorder has been diagnosed at increasing levels “most years since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began tracking ASD in 2000,” according to the CDC, the agency notes that “the studies continue to show that vaccines are not associated with ASD.”
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