Robert F. Kennedy Jr: Time Magazine’s ‘Hero of the Planet’ Who Became Health Secretary for the ‘Drill Baby Drill’ Administration
- Brontë Massucco
- 4 days ago
- 4 min read
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stood in the hallowed halls of the Oval Office on Feb. 13 and was sworn in as the 26th Secretary of the Health and Human Service Department of the United States.
The nephew of former President John F. Kennedy, Kennedy Jr. is one of the most prominent faces of the Kennedy dynasty involved in contemporary politics, and his most recent pursuit landed him in charge of a $1.8 trillion department budget and more than 80,000 federal employees.
Kennedy stepped into his new role with a background rooted in prestigious academic settings and a lasting career in environmental law, despite struggles in early adulthood that weren’t as illustrious. His father, Robert F. Kennedy Sr., was assassinated when Kennedy Jr. was only 14, leading to a turbulent high school experience culminating in his expulsion from multiple boarding schools for marijuana possession charges.
Kennedy attended Harvard University to earn his undergraduate degree in American history and literature, going on to study at the London School of Economics and then earning a law degree from the University of Virginia in 1981. However, his childhood troubles seemed to follow him when after a short time working as an assistant district attorney in Manhattan, Kennedy failed the New York bar exam and was arrested for heroin possession.
This arrest led to an experience that directed Kennedy toward public service. During his probation, Kennedy volunteered for a nonprofit then-called the Hudson River Fishermen's Association, which was devoted to cleaning the Hudson River. His service inspired him to pursue environmental law and earn his masters degree in environmental law from Pace University.
He spent over 40 years as an environmental lawyer and clean water activist, co-founding the largest advocacy group in the world, the Waterkeeper Alliance. Under his leadership, the organization negotiated the New York Watershed Agreement, which invested $1.5 billion into clean water projects, and prevented the building of dams in Chile and Peru. He resigned as president of the organization in November 2020.
Kennedy actively protested government encroachment on indigenous land during both the Keystone XL pipeline project and the Dakota Active Pipeline Project, the former of which he was arrested for. Time Magazine awarded him their “Hero for the Planet” award in 1999 for his efforts in environmental activism and his plethora of successes in the legal field to this effect.
Kennedy’s acceptance of the Health Secretary role under the second Trump administration raised controversy because his focus on protecting the environment with such conviction contrasted President Donald Trump’s environmental policy which has taken on the slogan “drill baby, drill.”
Kennedy stated in his Senate confirmation hearing that he and Trump have differing opinions on matters of this nature, including the fact that he doesn’t agree with the president’s opinion that climate change is a “hoax.”
This bookends a long history of Kennedy’s public criticism of Trump, as he spoke out against his actions during his 2016 presidency frequently and with fervor. On his radio show “Ring of Fire,” he denounced Trump as one of the most dangerous perpetrators of climate denial and described his approach to environmental policy as one focused on "pollution-based prosperity."
During his first presidential term, Trump rolled back regulations stipulated in the Clean Water Act, a law which Kennedy spent most of his career trying to defend and uphold against corporations skirting or shirking its requirements.
Before accepting the position as health secretary, Kennedy ran against Trump in the 2024 presidential election. He announced his presidential campaign as a Democrat in April 2023 before switching parties in October to run as an independent.
The switch, accompanied with his acceptance of a role in the Trump administration, has many questioning exactly what Kennedy’s goals are as health secretary. Kennedy appears unpredictable in what stances he is flexible on, and Trump made it clear that loyalty to his political pursuits is a top priority in the positions surrounding his office.
With the slogan “Make America Healthy Again,” Kennedy has committed himself as an ingrained member of Trump’s administration. His website cites ambitions including “healing chronic disease” and “forcing medical authorities to do good science.” The stance that has garnered the most controversy, however, is his view on vaccine efficacy.
Kennedy repeatedly claimed vaccines are a cause of childhood autism, a claim based on a 1998 study that has been disproven and retracted from the journal it was first published in.
Experts said the spreading of misinformation such as this can lead to dangerous outcomes for families that might believe it is unnecessary to vaccinate their children from dangerous diseases like polio, but many Americans resonate with his overall approach to the policy agenda for the department. His supporters are intrigued by the idea of utilizing the Department of Health and Human Services to research ingredients in the food on their local grocery stores’ shelves.
Kennedy’s actions thus far have already differed from what he promised during his confirmation hearing. He previously committed to not examining childhood vaccine schedules while in office, which he began working on in the second week of February.
The last year of his political forays have been marked by other controversies. After state courts disqualified Kennedy from appearing on the presidential ballot due to his submission of a false New York address, he lost a subsequent Supreme Court bid to allow his name to appear.
Other issues incited public disapproval, including his admission of once dumping a bear carcass in Central Park after deciding against skinning it – his initial intention upon removing it from the woods during a hiking trip. This conversation occurred during a hearing for the ballot lawsuit, and prompted him to reveal that roadkill collection has been a longtime practice of his.
Kennedy’s departure from his party of longtime loyalty and willingness to compromise on beliefs has staunchly sowed seeds of doubt among fellow politicians about the future of the Health and Human Services Department.
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