RFK Jr. to testify before Senate in wake of ousting CDC director
The article reports that Robert F. kennedy Jr., the Secretary of Health and Human Services, is scheduled to testify before the Senate Finance committee on September 4 regarding the president’s 2026 health care agenda. This hearing comes shortly after Kennedy ordered the firing of Susan Monarez,the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),who had been in the position for less than a month.Monarez described her dismissal as “legally deficient,” arguing that only former President Donald Trump had the authority to remove her. The firing triggered further resignations within the CDC and has led to potential legal challenges. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that Trump personally fired Monarez after she allegedly refused to resign at Kennedy’s request. Senate members,including Sen. Bill Cassidy and Senate Finance Committee chairman Mike crapo, expressed concern over the high-profile departures and emphasized the need for oversight. Kennedy blamed the turmoil on disagreements over vaccine policy, a topic on which he has a history of skepticism. He stated that the agency was in trouble but is being fixed,implying some current employees may no longer work there.
RFK Jr. to testify before Senate in wake of ousting CDC director
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will testify before a Senate panel next week, a high-stakes setting for the Cabinet member to be peppered with questions about firing the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Kennedy will go before the Senate Finance Committee on Sept. 4 for a hearing on “the president’s 2026 health care agenda,” the panel revealed Thursday, but will undoubtedly also be grilled on ousting former CDC Director Susan Monarez after less than one month on the job.
The committee’s announcement came less than 24 hours after Monarez’s departure, which led to a string of other resignations at the agency, setting off a possible legal battle with the former Senate-confirmed director. The hearing was scheduled before the staff shake-up, according to a committee spokesperson.
Monarez called her firing “legally deficient” and made the case that only President Donald Trump possesses the power to fire her.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt claimed during a briefing Thursday that Trump fired Monarez himself, saying the firing came after the CDC director refused to step down at Kennedy’s request and that the president had “every right” to do so.
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), a member of the committee who also chairs the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, said the “high-profile departures will require oversight” by his own panel. Cassidy voted to confirm Monarez last month.
“Secretary Kennedy has placed addressing the underlying causes of chronic diseases at the forefront of this Administration’s health care agenda,” Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo (R-ID) said in a statement. “I look forward to learning more about the Department of Health and Human Services’ Make America Healthy Again actions to date and plans moving forward.”
CDC DIRECTOR’S LAWYERS SAY FIRING IS ‘LEGALLY DEFICIENT’ BASED ON A TECHNICALITY
Kennedy suggested the firing and subsequent resignations were over a clash regarding vaccine policy. Kennedy has a long history of promoting vaccine skepticism and, prior to Monarez’s confirmation, had an active role in overseeing vaccine policy that is traditionally overseen by the CDC and the Food and Drug Administration.
“The agency is in trouble, and we need to fix it, and we are fixing it,” Kennedy said Thursday on Fox & Friends. “And it may be that some people should not be working there anymore.”
Gabrielle Etzel contributed to this report.
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