‘Go wild’: Don’t expect a disengaged and science-ignorant president to contain RFK’ Jr.’s assault on science

Trump pledged that he’d empower Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to “go wild” on health care. The president has kept his promise — to the alarm of public health leaders and even some Republicans.

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In his first six months, Kennedy has used that power to remake agencies responsible for overseeing food, drugs and other medical products that touch millions of Americans’ daily lives. He has worked to limit access to vaccines and promoted debunked health theories despite near-daily condemnation from public health leaders.

Trump, however, has stood by Kennedy, brushing aside criticism from dozens of Democratic lawmakers and a smattering of GOP officials, some of whom have privately questioned whether Kennedy’s hard-line views on vaccines and other public health moves could hurt Republicans in the midterms.

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Kennedy’s elevation reflects a broader trend in Trump’s second term. This time, the guardrails around the president have fallen, with traditional Republicans and outsiders frozen out in favor of loyalists and people willing to amplify fringe beliefs embraced by Trump’s MAGA base.

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