Trump Threatens to Ban Vaccines

During a call with NBC News over the weekend, former president Donald Trump revealed that famed conspiracy nut and anti-vaxxer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. would play “a big role in the administration” if he were to be elected on Tuesday.

Trump also didn’t rule out banning vaccines, something Kennedy Jr. had previously vowed to do — an unhinged and incredibly dangerous plan that flies in the face of common sense and scientific evidence.

Even more strangely, the move would come in spite of the Trump administration’s early efforts to accelerate the rollout of a COVID-19 vaccine, which ultimately paid off in one of the administration’s signature accomplishments.

“Well, I’m going to talk to [Kennedy] and talk to other people, and I’ll make a decision, but he’s a very talented guy and has strong views,” Trump said of the man who bafflingly confessed to dumping a dead bear in Central Park earlier this year.

Make no mistake, Kennedy Jr. is the furthest one could get from being a “talented guy.” The former presidential candidate, who dropped out to publicly endorse Trump, has repeatedly made easily debunked claims such as the conspiracy theory that vaccines cause autism.

His opposition to vaccines made him a prominent voice during the COVID-19 pandemic, despite being woefully misinformed on the subject and repeatedly leaning into nutty conspiracy theories.

“There’s no vaccine that is safe and effective,” Kennedy Jr. told Lex Fridman during a 2023 podcast episode.

Kennedy Jr. has gone as far as to claim that COVID-19 was “ethnically targeted” to spare Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese people, an incorrect and racist comment that should fully discredit anything he has to say on the topic.

He has also called for a ban on fluoride in the water supply, saying it causes cancer. That’s despite there being no scientific evidence linking the two. In fact, fluoride in both drinking water and toothpaste has been demonstrated to prevent cavities and strengthen teeth.

Naturally, that kind of unhinged pseudoscience is catnip for a former president who once suggested we should inject ourselves with bleach to fight off COVID.

“Well, I haven’t talked to him about it yet, but it sounds OK to me,” Trump told NBC, referring to Kennedy’s vow to ban fluoride. “You know, it’s possible.”

Kennedy Jr. revealed last week that Trump promised him “control” of the US Department of Health and Human Services and the US Department of Agriculture, foreshadowing a terrifying future for healthcare in the country if Trump is elected.

Trump, however, has remained vague about Kennedy Jr.’s future role — though he did vow that he will “go wild on the medicines.”

In short, Trump’s comments may be pure pandering in the days leading up to the presidential election. As his fuzzy language suggests, there’s a good chance the former president has absolutely no plan when it comes to vaccine policy anyway.

But even being willing to keep the idea of banning vaccines on the table, despite a mountain of evidence that doing so would be incredibly dangerous, should have everybody terrified of a future with Trump back in the White House.

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