Kennedy Senate confirmation at HHS likely hinges on support for pro-life policies   

If Robert Kennedy, Jr. wants to be Health and Human Services Secretary, (HHS), he’ll have to convince some U.S. Senators that he’ll continue the pro-life policies of the first Trump presidency. 

“I have a lot of life questions,” Sen. James Lankford, Republican, Oklahoma, and a pro-life stalwart, told Politico. “I want to know if the second Trump administration will have the same life perspective at HHS that the first one did. … They were very, very good about all the different [pro-life] issues.”  

The first Trump administration delivered on campaign promises to uphold pro-life values, including appointing Supreme Court justices who would invalidate Roe v. Wade.  

Back then, Trump was aided in his first term by a steadfast life supporter at HHS in Dr. Ben Carson, who has recently called for a nationwide abortion ban.  

This time around, Kennedy’s Democrat background makes conservatives suspicious of his pro-life bona fides. That’s in part because he’s been all over the map on the issue, saying he opposes abortion restriction, and then saying he favors limits on abortion. 

Politico reported that those close to Kennedy have said that he has “little personal interest in abortion policies.”  

He’s mostly interested in public health that relates to food and drug policies, they said.  

While the mainstream media has been enchanted by former Vice President Mike Pence’s opposition to Kennedy over the life issue, Republican U.S. Senators, who will likely determine if Kennedy is confirmed, want to hear what Kennedy has to say on the issue.  

“There’s several questions I want to talk to him about,” said Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R–Alabama, according to Fox News.  

For Tuberville, it’s a question of “How far? What month?” at which Kennedy would oppose abortion, he told Fox.   

These are also concerns shared by pro-life advocates outside the Senate who want assurances that the pro-life policies that animated Trump’s first term will also be the spirit of the second term.  

“There’s no question that we need a pro-life HHS secretary, and of course, we have concerns about Robert F. Kennedy Jr,” Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, told the Washington Examiner.  

Politico says Kennedy could help himself by selecting pro-life lieutenants who were veterans of the last HHS regime under Trump, such as Roger Severino, who served as the director of HHS’ Office for Civil Rights, and Eric Hargan, the former deputy HHS secretary.  

Trump’s transition team has insisted that nothing has changed in the pro-life policies of the administration and that Kennedy in the top spot at HHS will follow Trump’s vision.  

“Mr. Kennedy has every intention of supporting President Trump’s agenda to the fullest extent,” Katie Miller, a Trump-Vance transition spokesperson, told Fox News. “This is President Trump’s administration that Robert F. Kennedy has been asked to serve in, and he will carry out the policies Americans overwhelmingly voted for in President Trump’s historic victory.” 

Prominent Republicans such as Sen. Marsha Blackburn, Tennessee, Sen. Ron Johnson, Wisconsin, have agreed.  

“I could not be happier that @realDonaldTrump has selected @RobertKennedyJr to lead the Department of Health and Human Services,” said Johnson via X (formerly Twitter). “He’s a brilliant, courageous truth-teller whose unwavering commitment to transparency will make America a healthier nation.”   

And even Pro-life America’s Dannenfelser said it’s probably not important who’s in charge at HHS if Trump remains committed to pro-life values.  

“I believe that no matter who is HHS secretary, baseline policies set by President Trump during his first term will be reestablished,” she told the Examiner.