RFK Jr. Confronts Sen. Sanders Over Big Pharma Donations In Heated Exchange

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. directly challenged Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) during his Senate confirmation hearing for Secretary of Health and Human Services, accusing the self-proclaimed socialist of benefiting from pharmaceutical industry donations despite his vocal criticism of the sector. The clash occurred as Kennedy faced questioning from the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.

Kennedy, nominated by President Donald Trump, took aim at Sanders for allegedly protecting pharmaceutical interests while claiming to fight against them. “By the way, Bernie, you know the problem of corruption is not just in the federal agencies, it’s in Congress, too,” Kennedy said. “Almost all the members of this panel, including yourself, are accepting millions of dollars from the pharmaceutical industry and protecting their interests.”

The remark drew cheers from the audience, prompting Sanders to wave his hand dismissively and insist he was not influenced by industry contributions. “Oh no, no, no! No, no, no,” Sanders shot back. “I ran for president like you. I got millions and millions of contributions. They did not come from the executives. Not one nickel of PAC money from the pharmaceutical industry. They came from workers.”

Kennedy countered, citing OpenSecrets data showing that Sanders was the top recipient of pharmaceutical industry donations in the 2019-20 election cycle, taking in over $1.4 million. The records also revealed that in the 2015-16 cycle, Sanders ranked second among senators in pharmaceutical and health product contributions, receiving $439,256.

Sanders defended the donations, arguing that they came from employees rather than corporate political action committees. “Because I had more contributions from workers all over this country,” Sanders said, his voice rising. “Workers, not a nickel from corporate PACs… from workers in the industry.”

Despite his past criticism of pharmaceutical companies, Sanders has received substantial financial support from individuals connected to the industry. Records show that during the 2020 campaign, President Joe Biden received the most contributions from the pharmaceutical and health products sector, totaling $13 million, followed by President Trump at $6.9 million, with Sanders ranking third at $1.4 million.

The confrontation over Big Pharma was just one of several fiery exchanges between Kennedy and Sanders during the hearing. A day earlier, Sanders had grilled Kennedy over his past leadership of Children’s Health Defense, an organization known for its opposition to vaccine mandates. Holding up baby onesies sold by the group with slogans such as “Unvaxxed, Unafraid,” Sanders questioned how Kennedy could claim to be pro-vaccine.

Kennedy, who resigned from the organization’s board months ago, maintained that he no longer had control over its operations. However, Sanders remained unconvinced, using the moment to further challenge Kennedy’s credibility.

As the hearing continued, tensions between the two persisted, with Sanders pressing Kennedy for a commitment to universal healthcare. Kennedy responded by saying he would “make America healthier than any other country in the world right now,” but declined to endorse Sanders’ push for government-run healthcare.