The rift within America’s most famous political family widened Friday as multiple Kennedys publicly called for Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to resign following his contentious testimony before the Senate Finance Committee.
In a blistering statement, Kerry Kennedy, RFK Jr.’s sister and president of Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, accused her brother of “undermining trust in science” and “endangering lives” with his restrictive vaccine policies. “This is not what our father stood for,” she wrote, urging him to step down “before more harm is done.”
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— Kerry Kennedy (@KerryKennedyRFK) September 5, 2025
Former Congressman Joe Kennedy III, RFK Jr.’s nephew, echoed the demand, saying on X that his uncle has become “a threat to public health.” He added: “None of us will be spared from the consequences if this continues.”
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— Joe Kennedy III (@joekennedy) September 5, 2025
Jack Schlossberg, grandson of President John F. Kennedy, used even sharper language, posting during Thursday’s hearing that “RFK LOSER is choking so badly LIVE,” a viral moment that underscored the family’s deep frustration.
Better late than never ! I Couldn’t agree more — RFK LOSER IS A THREAT TO PUBLIC HEALTH and AMERICAN SCIENTIFIC LEADERSHIP. WHO PLEASURES HIMSELF by lying to Congress https://t.co/70XiBc9ySA
— Jack Schlossberg (@JBKSchlossberg) September 5, 2025
Thursday’s Senate hearing was marked by bipartisan criticism of Kennedy’s leadership, particularly his moves to slash CDC funding and restrict vaccine distribution programs. Lawmakers from both parties pressed him on rising measles outbreaks and delays in routine childhood immunizations, calling his policies “dangerous” and “unscientific.”
The unprecedented public rebuke highlights the political and personal stakes of RFK Jr.’s tenure as HHS secretary and suggests mounting pressure from both Congress and his own family could force a reckoning over his future in the Trump administration.
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