I Get RFK Jr.’s Appeal. But This Is Dangerous
Donald Trump shakes hands with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at a Turning Point Action campaign rally on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024, in Duluth, Ga. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made health policy the cornerstone of his failed presidential campaign, critiquing America's healthcare and public health systems with bold, often controversial proposals.
From vaccine safety" to food and environmental health, RFK Jr.'s platform challenges the status quo, calling for sweeping reforms to improve transparency, accountability, and personal freedom in medical decision-making. He's raised concerns about the chronic disease epidemic that many are fighting in silence and has been a vocal critic of the industrial food system, pointing to the objective dangers it poses to public health. He's coined the slogan #MAHA - Make America Healthy Again - a phrase that has gained more traction in the health-conscious corners of the country than the original MAGA. You can often find it boldly displayed in juice bars, wellness shops, and fitness centers, where it has become emblematic of a movement that purports to prioritize health over the politics of the moment.
And honestly, I get it.
I'm hyper-focused on health. After a grueling battle with long COVID following my infection in 2022 and the many, many years I've spent uncovering the grave realities of water contamination, air pollution and disease outbreaks as a reporter and filmmaker, I've fully embraced the mantle of an overprotective, fiercely vigilant mom. For the most part, my kid eats whole, organic foods, his water filtered to pristine purity eight times over. His clothing is 100% organic cotton and when there's pollution, or we enter crowded spaces indoors, he wears an N95 mask. By our society's standards, I might seem extreme. But to me, it's not madness - it's what happens when you live in a country that's dangerously out of step with reality.
So, to RFK Jr.'s supporters, I understand your fervor. But here's where I'm lost.
RFK Jr. has aligned himself with an administration - and been announced as Trump's pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services as a reward - that is committed to weakening the very protections that have the most direct, proven impacts on our health, particularly the health of our children. He has paradoxically placed his support behind a president committed to dismantling the regulatory frameworks that ensure clean air, safe water, toxic-free work environments and uncontaminated food. These are not just abstract concepts - they are the very protections that shield us and our children from the invisible, insidious dangers that lurk in our environment everyday. By aligning himself with leaders associated with Project 2025's radical overhaul of environmental regulations, he is effectively endorsing a future where corporate interests are prioritized over the health of all Americans, especially children.
Project 2025, an ambitious policy agenda crafted by conservative think tanks for the next Republican president, aims to diminish the EPA's role in regulating the environment. At the core of this initiative is the plan to remove the EPA's authority under the Clean Air Act, the foundation of the nation's air quality standards. If enacted, this would severely weaken federal oversight of pollution, undermining decades of progress in protecting public health and the environment.
Without the Clean Air Act's regulatory framework, fossil fuel companies - along with other industrial sectors - would face far fewer restrictions on emissions, particularly those related to particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, and carbon emissions. They would operate with less oversight and fewer penalties for pollution, allowing them to prioritize cost-saving measures over environmental protection.
The consequences of this would be disastrous for everyone who breathes. Air pollution is linked directly to respiratory illnesses, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.
Their assault doesn't end with our air.
Project 2025 also threatens the Clean Water Act, which regulates pollutants in our waterways and drinking water. The Clean Water Act has been instrumental in ensuring that public health is protected from harmful contaminants like lead, arsenic, bacteria, pesticides, industrial chemicals, and substances like PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) and dioxins, which are known carcinogens. Without the Act's protections, municipalities and industries would be emboldened to delay or avoid the necessary actions to replace lead pipes, fix aging infrastructure, or prevent contamination of public water systems.
As a reporter who spent two years in Flint, Michigan, I witnessed firsthand the devastating impact water contamination has on a community. It's an ongoing public health crisis of epic proportions. Even a decade later, the community grapples with new life-threatening health complications.
Weakening the Clean Water Act would not only exacerbate existing water crises but also cripple our ability to address emerging and persistent threats like PFAS - chemicals that have already contaminated drinking water systems nationwide exposing millions of Americans to serious health risks, including liver damage, thyroid issues, infertility, and cancer. Without federal oversight, PFAS and similar pollutants would spread unchecked.
The consequences would be severe for everyone who drinks water.
And without regulations, there's no objective measure to define what levels of pollution or contamination are dangerous, leaving individuals to navigate complex and often conflicting information on their own. This creates particular challenges for the 35% of America that rents, who are at the mercy of landlords when it comes to addressing issues like lead in water or radon in the air. If a landlord dismisses these hazards as subjective opinions, tenants have little recourse without enforceable legal standards, leaving families vulnerable to significant health risks caused by negligence or greed.
The fight for health begins with the most fundamental right: clean air and water. Without them, all else falls away.
Yet, in a striking irony, the very man championing the cause of public health, which inspired so many to support him and consequently Trump, seems poised to support policies that dismantle the protections vital to preserving that health. So I call on the latest Kennedy to ascend to Washington to address the stark contradictions between the values he claims to champion - our society's health and well-being - and the policy framework laid out in Project 2025, which threatens to undermine those very ideals.
RFK Jr.speaks of prioritizing the health of the American people, but Project 2025's proposals promote deregulation and weaken critical environmental protections, putting our air, water, food and future at risk. Now that his chosen candidate empowered him to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, it's time for RFK Jr. to confront this glaring dissonance head-on and make clear where his true priorities lie.
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