5 takeaways from RFK Jr.’s first Senate hearing

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. went before the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday to vie for his confirmation as President Trump’s secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Kennedy is one of Trump’s most controversial nominees. That’s partly because of his highly skeptical attitude toward vaccines and what critics characterize as a fondness for pseudo-scientific conspiracy theories.

Kennedy is divisive for other reasons as well. Some social conservatives are dubious about the scion of the Democratic family, especially where his past support for abortion rights is concerned.