Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Clears Critical Hurdle In Nomination Process

The Senate voted Wednesday along party lines to advance Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination for Health and Human Services secretary.

The vote to invoke cloture ends debate and sets up the final vote on RFK Jr.’s nomination.

WATCH:

BREAKING: RFK Jr. has passed the Senate cloture vote, clearing a major hurdle toward confirmation!

One step closer to officially becoming Secretary of HHS! pic.twitter.com/RFInDbAQsM

— American Values (@AVPac_US) February 12, 2025

Fox News reports:

The Senate agreed to advance the nomination by a party-line, 53-47 vote, setting up a final roll call vote on Kennedy’s confirmation early Thursday morning.

Kennedy, the well-known vaccine skeptic and environmental crusader who ran for the White House in 2024 before ending his bid and endorsing Trump, needed a simple majority to advance to a final vote in the chamber, which Republicans control by a 53-47 majority.

Kennedy survived back-to-back combustible Senate confirmation hearings late last month, when Trump’s nominee to lead 18 powerful federal agencies that oversee the nation’s food and health faced plenty of verbal fireworks over past controversial comments, including his repeated claims in recent years linking vaccines to autism, which have been debunked by scientific research.

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During the hearings, Democrats also spotlighted Kennedy’s service for years as chair or chief legal counsel for Children’s Health Defense, the nonprofit organization he founded that has advocated against vaccines and sued the federal government numerous times, including a challenge over the authorization of the COVID-19 vaccine for children.

NEW: Senate Advances RFK Jr.’s HHS Nomination – Final Confirmation Vote to be Held Thursday

READ: https://t.co/wRLG1Dc76X pic.twitter.com/3UDK4DOprD

— The Gateway Pundit (@gatewaypundit) February 12, 2025

It seems that RFK Jr. HAS THE VOTES to be confirmed tomorrow as HHS Secretary. pic.twitter.com/eXFphb1wYk

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) February 12, 2025

Per Forbes:

The Senate voted 53-47, along party lines, to invoke cloture and end debate on Kennedy’s nomination, teeing him up for a final vote Thursday (though some of the GOP senators who advanced the nomination could still vote no).

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine—one of three GOP senators who was previously considered a possible hurdle for Kennedy—told CNN’s Manu Raju she plans to vote for Kennedy after he “seemed to understand the concerns that I was raising” and told her he would “re-examine” the White House’s National Institute of Health cuts she earlier said would be “devastating, stopping vital biomedical research and leading to the loss of jobs.”

Kennedy’s odds of achieving confirmation soared, according to election betting platforms, with Kalshi placing his odds at 96% and blockchain-based site Polymarket showing a 97% chance of confirmation.

This is a Guest Post from our friends over at 100 Percent Fed Up.

View the original article here.