The Washington Post editorial board accuses me of a conflict of interest that might bias me against Big Pharma, whose interests they apparently seek to protect. The alleged conflict comes from money I supposedly made from a settlement in a lawsuit against Merck for injuries caused by its Gardasil vaccine. The problem is that I never received a penny from the Merck Gardasil settlement, and neither has my son nor anyone else in my family.
Before taking office, I relinquished any interest in potential Gardasil fees back to the Wisner Baum law firm, which publicly confirmed this during my confirmation process. Yet @SenWarren, @Reuters, and @washingtonpost editorial board — in their ardor to protect Big Pharma — continue to push a false narrative that makes Big Pharma the victim and me the mendacious villain. They should correct the record — and spend more time examining the real conflicts that have long disabled the regulatory function of my Department, all of which I am now deconstructing.
I’m firing corrupt regulators and dismissing the panels formerly populated by heavily conflicted “experts.” We are dismantling the mechanisms of corporate capture that made this agency the sock puppet for the industry it was supposed to regulate. Why are Reuters, Warren, and WaPo inventing lies to besmirch the first @HHSgov Secretary in modern history to stand up to industry?
CNN’s Dana Bash: “I also don't want to use this interview to allow you to say things that aren't entirely true. It is also factually true that the COVID vaccine worked. The COVID vaccine prevented deaths. There is data, upon data, upon data.”
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.: “You think the COVID vaccine protected children?”
Dana Bash: “I have talked to scientists and doctors…”
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.: “Can you show me one study that shows that children were protected by the COVID vaccine?”
“That that vaccine did more good than harm to children? Can you show me one study that shows that?”
Dana Bash: “There have been studies that show that, because of vaccine disinformation, there could have been 100K to 200K in the U.S. saved But because people didn't get the vaccine, that's why.
Robert F. Kennedy: “You are saying nonsense. You are saying something that you cannot show me a single study.”
Dana Bash: “Excuse me! Excuse me!”
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.: “Cite me the study that you’re talking about. You said you’ve seen studies. Cite me the study.”
Dana Bash: *Can’t cite the study*
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.: “You're talking nonsense. You're making assertions you can't support, and then when I call you on them, you're telling me I'm arguing with you.”
Kennedy gave a MASTERCLASS on how to handle FAKE NEWS CNN.
This was a long-overdue moment on CNN.
RFK Jr. called out the network on air for helping to silence dissent during COVID.
Dana Bash was getting visibly irritated, after she repeatedly tried to move the conversation away from censorship.
Then he aimed his fire at Dana Bash directly: “Of course you want to move on because you were part of the problem!”
KENNEDY: “We need to protect our constitutional rights. That is the primary obligation in our country.”
BASH: “What does that mean?”
KENNEDY: “Well, during COVID, we completely dismantled our constitutional rights. We began censoring people in violation of the First Amendment.”
BASH: “You’re saying what not to do, I’m asking what to do.”
KENNEDY: “Well, that’s something to do. That is the number one priority: we protect the Constitution.”
BASH: “Forgive me, but you’re talking about rights and I’m asking about a potential public health crisis that is coming. But I do want to… let’s…”
KENNEDY: “And one of the mistakes we made last time was suppressing those rights. So people weren’t being heard. Doctors who were saying, ‘You’re doing it wrong,’ were being marginalized and vilified.”
BASH: “Again, I really want to move on…”
KENNEDY: “Yeah, of course you want to move on because you were part of the problem!”
BASH: “No! I wasn’t part of the problem!”
KENNEDY: “There was absolute press malpractice. Your job is to have a fierce skepticism toward authority, and you weren’t doing that.”
“You were beating up on people who were dissenting!”