Despite all the controversy – and one Republican holdout vote – Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was sworn in yesterday as Health and Human Services Secretary.

The trend line ever since the confirmation vote on Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has been a positive one for Trump’s Cabinet picks. Vice President Vance had to be called in to break the voting tie on Hegseth, but the vice president is currently in Europe, which signaled the confidence of the administration in getting the more “controversial” Trump choices confirmed. Tulsi Gabbard is now Director of National Intelligence, and RFK made it through on a 52-48 vote, with Mitch McConnell once again being the lone Republican holdout. I’m not going to argue with McConnell’s specific issues with RFK, as they are obviously personal ones related to vaccination and McConnell’s own medical history, but it’s clear that now that he is no longer in leadership, McConnell feels free to be a thorn in the side of current leadership. (And given McConnell’s current health, the odds that he follows through on his intent to run for re-election in 2026 is getting lower by the day.)

RFK was sworn in yesterday in the Oval Office with President Trump watching.

Immediately after the swearing-in, President Trump signed an executive order to create the “Make America Healthy Again” commission, which will be headed by RFK. The order reads, in part:

To fully address the growing health crisis in America, we must re-direct our national focus, in the public and private sectors, toward understanding and drastically lowering chronic disease rates and ending childhood chronic disease. This includes fresh thinking on nutrition, physical activity, healthy lifestyles, over-reliance on medication and treatments, the effects of new technological habits, environmental impacts, and food and drug quality and safety. We must restore the integrity of the scientific process by protecting expert recommendations from inappropriate influence and increasing transparency regarding existing data. We must ensure our healthcare system promotes health rather than just managing disease.

The initial mission of the Commission shall be to advise and assist the President on how best to exercise his authority to address the childhood chronic disease crisis. Therefore, the Commission shall:

(a) study the scope of the childhood chronic disease crisis and any potential contributing causes, including the American diet, absorption of toxic material, medical treatments, lifestyle, environmental factors, Government policies, food production techniques, electromagnetic radiation, and corporate influence or cronyism;

(b) advise and assist the President on informing the American people regarding the childhood chronic disease crisis, using transparent and clear facts; and

(c) provide to the President Government-wide recommendations on policy and strategy related to addressing the identified contributing causes of and ending the childhood chronic disease crisis.

The executive order, which also puts several other cabinet secretaries on the commission (plus the directors of the CDC and NIH), asks for an assessment of the health of American children within 100 days, with a strategy plan presented in 180 days.

All of this seems perfectly within the scope of what should fall under the interests of the HHS Secretary. RFK, for his part, is perfectly sensible of the opportunity that has been given to him, and gave credit to Donald Trump for delivering on the promises he made when RFK endorsed him last summer.
https://twitter.com/VigilantFox/status/1890155394779255287
Kennedy’s full quote reads:

“For 20 years, I’ve gotten up every morning on my knees and prayed that God would put me in a position where I could end the childhood chronic disease epidemic in this country. On August 23rd of last year, God sent me President Trump.

“He’s now given me—he’s kept every promise that he’s made to me. He’s kept his word on every account and gone way beyond it. I’m so grateful to you, Mr. President. A lot of people told me that I couldn’t trust President Trump—that I better get it in writing.

“And we did a handshake, and everything that he told me he was going to do, he has done. And I’m so grateful to him. And I’ve told you before, I genuinely believe that you are a pivotal historical figure, and you are going to transform this country.”

RFK said while answering questions from the press that he wants “radical transparency” when it comes to science. “Radical transparency” might as well be a motto for Trump 2.0. So what might that look like when RFK gets started?

Many doctors — including Dr. Brett Osborn, a Florida neurosurgeon and longevity expert — believe that food is the “root cause of chronic disease.”

“Kennedy understands that fixing the food system is a priority,” he told Fox News Digital.

“Americans should expect policies to increase access to real, whole foods, counter corporate lobbying, and make nutrition a cornerstone of healthcare.”

“If Americans stopped consuming nutrient-deficient, ultra-processed junk laden with sugar, we wouldn’t need a drug like Ozempic to compensate for poor dietary discipline,” the doctor also said. “Remember, aside from the rare exception, a leaner body is always a healthier body.”

While some lawmakers have expressed concerns about Kennedy’s vaccine views, the incoming secretary has vowed not to take away anyone’s access to vaccines, but rather provide them with access to “good science.”

“Medical decisions – like surgery — should be rooted in informed consent, not blind compliance,” Osborn said.

“Kennedy’s is not an ‘anti-vax’ position, but a pro-transparency, pro-science position. Patients deserve full access to data, risk-benefit analysis, and the ability to choose what is injected into their bodies without coercion or censorship.”

The pandemic exposed “glaring issues” in our public health infrastructure, Osborn said, and he believes Kennedy will address those head on.

RFK Jr. has regularly shared videos of his rigorous gym workouts on social media, including some with Ike Catcher, a bodyweight training influencer.

Osborn refers to exercise as “the forgotten prescription,” blaming physical inactivity as one of the strongest predictors of chronic disease.

“Our system prioritizes pharmaceutical interventions over lifestyle changes that actually address the root cause,” he said. “In this context, RFK will push for initiatives that reinforce movement as medicine.”

That first assessment by the MAHA Commission on American children’s health is sure to be interesting. The next step, though, will be the confirmation of Dr. Jay Bhattacharya as the new head of the NIH, since he will also be on this commission. Bhattacharya, a Stanford professor of public health who was one of the authors of the “Great Barrington Declaration,” and who has been proven largely correct regarding COVID lockdowns, will offer a valuable perspective once he is confirmed.

RFK has a lot of work ahead of him, but this is the job he desperately wanted. Now we get to see what he does with it.

Featured image: original Victory Girls art by Darleen Click