Sen. Ron Wyden is calling for a criminal investigation into HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over newly obtained letters about his 2019 Samoa trip, as HHS calls the claims defamatory.
The top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee is calling for a criminal investigation into Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over newly obtained letters that Democrats claim contradict his testimony during last year's confirmation hearings.
Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon said he would press his Republican colleagues to send a criminal referral on Kennedy to the Justice Department, arguing that the HHS secretary misled lawmakers about a 2019 trip to Samoa. The department has flatly denied the allegations, calling any suggestion that Kennedy lied to Congress "not only false but outright defamatory."
The dispute centers on letters obtained by the Guardian and the Associated Press through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit. In 2019, Kennedy traveled to Samoa while leading an anti-vaccine group. Months after the trip, a measles outbreak swept the Pacific island nation, sickening thousands and killing 83 people, most of them children under five.
During two confirmation hearings last year, both Wyden and Senator Ed Markey of Massachusetts pressed Kennedy about the trip. He testified that the visit had "nothing to do with vaccines." The newly obtained letters tell a different story, according to the reports.
In one letter, Kennedy explicitly told the Samoan prime minister he wanted to study the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine in the island nation. The letter reportedly used the words "vaccine" or "vaccination" eight times.
Wyden was blunt about what he wants to happen next. "RFK's platform is built on lies and grifts that leave a trail of dead children in their wake. There are consequences for lying to Congress," he said in a statement.
The government watchdog group American Oversight also weighed in Thursday, sending a letter to the Justice Department requesting an immediate investigation into whether Kennedy violated federal law by making false statements to Congress.
Markey joined the chorus, saying the records show Kennedy's testimony was false. "This is a pattern, not a slip. RFK Jr has lied to the Senate, lied to the American people and jeopardized the health of children to advance his anti-vaccine agenda," Markey said. Senator Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland repeated her call for Kennedy to resign or be fired, and Hawaii Governor Josh Green, a physician who helped respond to the Samoa outbreak, again demanded Kennedy step down.
HHS pushed back hard, noting that Kennedy was not under oath during the confirmation hearings and repeating its earlier position that his Samoa visit was unrelated to vaccines. Wyden's staff countered that lying during a confirmation hearing is a crime regardless of whether the witness is under oath.
Legal experts acknowledge the practical hurdles. "Lying to Congress is a crime, whether or not the witness is under oath," said Josh Chafetz, a Georgetown University law professor. "But this would require the executive branch to prosecute, and Trump's justice department is unlikely to do so."
The federal statute of limitations for lying to Congress is five years, meaning the clock would not run out for years -- even into a potential next administration.
The fight now moves to the Senate floor, where Republicans hold the majority. Whether GOP leaders act on Wyden's request for a criminal referral remains an open question.
Democrats have signaled they will keep the pressure on regardless. If they gain ground in November's midterms, attorneys with Senate procedure expertise say Kennedy's statements could become grounds for hearings, an impeachment inquiry, or other roadblocks for the administration.
For now, the administration is standing firmly behind its health secretary, and the ball is in the Justice Department's court. The coming weeks will show whether this is political theater or the opening salvo in a long legal fight.
Sen. Ron Wyden is calling for a criminal investigation into HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over newly obtained letters about his 2019 Samoa trip, as HHS calls the claims defamatory.
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