RFK Jr. tells Congress the truth for once: Don’t take ‘medical advice from me’

In a rare moment of clarity, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr.) took a break from his usual medical hot takes to admit something astonishing during his May 14th congressional testimony.

According to USA Today, RFK Jr. said when asked about the measles vaccine, “What I would say is my opinions about vaccines are irrelevant. I don’t want to seem like I am being evasive, but I don’t think people should be taking medical advice from me.” Finally, something we can all agree on.

Kennedy, who has spent decades cultivating a reputation as the country’s most famous anti-vaccine crusader, appeared before the House Appropriations Committee, ostensibly to discuss the Health and Human Services (HHS) budget.

But the conversation quickly veered into his history of promoting fringe medical theories, a topic as inseparable from his public persona as questionable selfies with bodies of water that might double as bacterial soup.

Of course, this is the same RFK Jr. who runs Children’s Health Defense, an organization that has spread more health misinformation than a suburban Facebook group during cold and flu season. Over the years, he’s managed to link vaccines to autism, Wi-Fi to brain cancer, and 5G to — well, pick a random ailment.

Science has politely, but firmly, disagreed with him at every turn. But why let that ruin a perfectly good conspiracy?

RFK’s theories don’t hold (sewage-filled) water

And it’s not just vaccines. Recently, RFK Jr. found himself in hot water – or more accurately, murky water – when he posted photos of himself taking a dip in Washington D.C.’s Rock Creek, a waterway notorious for its raw sewage contamination. Clearly, the man has a unique interpretation of the term “immunity booster.”

As social media collectively shuddered, the National Park Service gently reminded everyone that the creek is less a swimming hole and more a bacterial amusement park, with pathogens ranging from E. coli to norovirus likely partying just beneath the surface.

Um, that’s kind of your “jurisdiction,” Mr Kennedy

Back in the hearing room, Kennedy’s attempt at self-awareness landed with all the grace of a cannonball into that same polluted creek. Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle seemed as skeptical of his sudden humility as they are of his medical theories.

Democratic Representative Mark Pocan and Republican Mike Simpson took turns grilling him over his past statements, clearly perplexed at his newfound commitment to not being taken seriously as a health authority.

Pocan said, “That’s kind of your jurisdiction because CDC does give advice,” referring to RFK’s don’t make my advice comment. “What we’re trying to do is to lay out the pros and cons, the risks and benefits accurately as we understand them, with replicable studies.”

Yet, Kennedy was there to defend more than just his questionable public health advice. He also backed the Trump administration’s budget proposals, which, among other things, call for deep cuts to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as well as the elimination of 10,000 health department jobs.

This, during a time when the country has seen a resurgence of vaccine-preventable diseases like measles, no thanks in part to anti-vax rhetoric. In a twist worthy of an Alanis Morissette song, RFK Jr. is now simultaneously telling us not to trust his health opinions while pushing for policies that would make the country more dependent on questionable sources of medical information. Neat trick.

So, what have we learned from RFK Jr.’s first dance in the congressional spotlight? Maybe just this: if even he is warning you not to take medical advice from him, it might be time to stop. Or, at the very least, hold off on that sewage-soaked swim.