- Senate invoked cloture on RFK Jr.'s HHS Secretary confirmation with a 53-47 vote, setting up final confirmation within two days.
- Key Republican senators, including previous Trump nominee opponents (Collins, Murkowski), support Kennedy's nomination, largely due to his stance on health care cost reduction and prevention.
- Kennedy's primary promises include stricter chemical safety standards in food, investigating food additives' links to chronic diseases, and maintaining vaccine programs while expanding research into their effects.
Wednesday morning, the Senate decided to invoke cloture on the final vote required to confirm Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Health and Human Services secretary.
This move, with 53 senators voting yea and 47 nay, requires the final confirmation vote to happen within two calendar days.
Longtime Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo spoke on the Senate floor Wednesday, urging his fellow senators to vote in favor of Kennedy’s confirmation.
In late December 2024, Crapo met with Kennedy privately about his priorities if confirmed HHS secretary. Crapo praised Kennedy for his transparency and his “decades of experience” in the public health sector.
“His passion for addressing America’s chronic disease epidemic will save lives, reduce costs and establish a foundation for a healthier, stronger country,” Crapo said.
After Tulsi Gabbard’s confirmation, Republican senators rally around Kennedy
Tulsi Gabbard’s nearly unanimous Republican vote Wednesday — excluding Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., who voted against her confirmation — has many supporters optimistic that Kennedy’s fast-approaching vote will result in confirmation.
Utah Sen. Mike Lee has been vocal on X with his support for Kennedy, while Sen. John Curtis, has not confirmed how he will vote.
Curtis voted in favor of Gabbard Wednesday, attributing his vote partly to his “trusted colleagues in the intelligence community” supporting her. Washington Examiner correspondent Ramsey Touchberry reported Curtis is “TBD” on Kennedy’s confirmation vote.
Other senators who have voiced some opposition to other Trump nominations appear to view Kennedy’s nomination favorably.
Having voted against Pete Hegseth’s confirmation as Defense secretary, Republican Sens. Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski intend to vote to confirm Kennedy.
Collins, R-Maine, explained her support for Kennedy to CNN reporter Manu Raju, saying he “seemed to understand the concerns that I was raising about about what it would mean for more very important ongoing biomedical research including clinical trials.”
Murkowski, R-Alaska, also explained her support to The Hill. She said, “Instead of focusing on who covers our exorbitant health care costs, we need to reduce these costs by directing our attention to prevention and keeping people healthy. This is the appeal of RFK, and many Alaskans have shared that view with me.”
What has Kennedy promised to do as HHS secretary?
During his first hearing, Kennedy said, “Should I be so privileged as to be confirmed, we will make sure our tax dollars support healthy foods, we will scrutinize the chemical additives in our food supply, we will remove financial conflicts of interest from our agencies, we will create an honest, unbiased gold standard science at HHS, accountable to the president, to Congress, and to the American people.”
“We will reverse the chronic disease epidemic, and put the nation back on the road to good health,” he concluded.
But what does this look like?
First, Kennedy has promised to implement a higher burden of proof that new chemicals used in foods are not harmful for consumers, per Holland and Knight. He has also announced plans to direct researchers at the NIH and FDA to investigate food additives' and dyes' correlation with chronic diseases.
Second, it is likely that Kennedy will also use the NIH to research vaccines. However, Kennedy promised senators he would not “do anything” that would prevent or discourage Americans from receiving measles vaccines and others.
During his hearings, Kennedy has maintained he is not “anti-vaccine or anti-industry,” but is instead “pro-safety.”
If confirmed, Kennedy will oversee the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and seven other agencies.