RFK Jr. Defends Racist Black ‘Immune System’ Theory, Reveals Lack Of ‘Basic’ Medical Knowledge

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., nominee to be Secretary of Health and Human Services, testifies in front of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee in Washington D.C., on Jan. 30, 2025. | Source: Anadolu / Getty

In today’s episode of Trump’s MAGA DEI Administration, for two days, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Donald Trump’s nominee for Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary, sat through his confirmation hearing, and for two days he reminded us that the white conservative narrative around the ills of DEI is applied to every demographic except woefully underqualified white men.

Just as Pete Hegseth, who was recently confirmed to lead the Department of National Defense, was unable to answer basic questions about U.S. foreign policy and the international organizations we are allied with, RFK Jr. struggled to answer basic questions any health official should be able to answer, such as the difference between Medicare and Medicaid. Besides that, RFK Jr. was grilled on both days about statements he’s made promoting factless conspiracy theories and medical racism — such as the notion that Black people have better immune systems than white people and should, therefore, be put on a different vaccine schedule — and he also responded to those lines of questioning by stuttering, stammering, crashing and burning.

MORE: RFK Jr. Whitesplains How ‘Education’ Will Make Us Immune To Racism ‘Like The Avengers’

The worst part is, if recent history is any indication, none of that glaring incompetence and ignorance will prevent RFK Jr. from being confirmed.

Let’s start with RFK Jr.’s call back to classic white supremacist medical racism — the narrative that Black people are naturally more resilient and, therefore, less in need of proper care.

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On Thursday, Sen. Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.) grilled RFK Jr. about when he said the following:

“We should not be giving Black people the same vaccine schedule that’s given to whites because their immune system is better than ours.”

“Can you please explain what you meant?” Alsobrooks asked RFK Jr..

“A series of studies, I think most of them by Poland, show that to particular antigens that Blacks have a much stronger reaction. There’s differences in reaction to different products by different races…,” RFK Jr. responded before Alsobrooks cut him off, because — bruh…what?

From The Hill:

Kenney seemed to allude to the idea that Black people need “fewer antigens” than white people, something Alsobrooks quickly deemed “dangerous” rhetoric.

“Mr. Kennedy, with all due respect, that is so dangerous. Your voice would be a voice that parents would listen to,” Alsobrooks said.

Many studies have shown racial bias in the medical system, affecting how Black Americans are treated compared to white Americans. A 2016 study published by the National Center for Biotechnology Information found that among first year medical students, more than 20 percent believe false claims that Black people have a stronger immune system than white people.

Results of racial bias in the medical system have led to less treatment, pain management and even death for Black Americans.

This isn’t the first time RFK Jr. revealed his weird obsession with Black immunity. Last year, while he was still running for president, he tried to appeal to Black voters by whitesplaining to them that they would be “immune” to racism “like the Avengers” if they would just get a better “education.”

Mind you, on Day 1 of his confirmation hearing, RFK Jr. was questioned by Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colorado) about past statements he has made claiming that “Covid-19 was a genetically engineered bioweapon that targeted Black and White people but spared Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese people.” Once again, RFK Jr.’s response was essentially: Oh come on, there was totally a study that said it first!

From the LA Times:

“I didn’t say it was deliberately targeted. I just quoted an NIH-funded, published study,” the nominee answered. Bennet said he would take the answer as a yes.

RFK Jr. then rejected having said “exposure to pesticides causes children to become transgender,” that “African AIDS is an entirely different disease to Western AIDS.” Bennet then said he had the answers on record and he would give them to Committee chair Mike Crapo.

RFK Jr. denied he said all the craziness he definitely said, but he was willing to admit that he “probably” said Lyme disease is a “highly likely militarily engineered bioweapons.”

“I probably said that,” RFK Jr. told Bennet.

But, OK, come on — so RFK Jr. is a little racist and very much prone to spreading around any piece of conspiracy theory-laced medical misinformation from any pseudoscientific study he comes across. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t have the medical knowledge necessary to serve in the nation’s top medical office, does it?

Oh wait, I forgot about the Medicare/Medicaid thing.

From CNBC:

“You want us to confirm you to be in charge of Medicare, but it appears that you don’t know the basics of this program,” said Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, after Kennedy struggled to answer a series of questions about Medicare before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.

Kennedy, 71, stumbled when answering questions about Medicare and Medicaid during both of his confirmation hearings this week. He appeared before the Senate Committee on Finance on Wednesday.

Hassan, who sits on both panels, asked Kennedy on Thursday to explain what each part of Medicare is. But he struggled to identify and explain the fundamental aspects of the program, which provides coverage to older and disabled Americans.

When asked what Medicare Part A is for, Kennedy said it is “mainly for primary care or physicians.” Hassan clarified that it is coverage for seniors who receive inpatient care at hospitals.

Kennedy, when asked what Medicare Part B is, said it is “for physicians and doctors.” Part B is coverage for a range of medical services such as doctor visits, outpatient care, home health, certain medical supplies and preventive services.

When asked what Medicare Part C is for, Kennedy called it “the full menu of all the services – A, B, C and D.” Hassan noted that Part C is also known as Medicare Advantage, which are privately run plans contracted by Medicare. Those plans serve as an alternative to traditional Medicare plans.

Kennedy insisted that he “just explained the basics” of the program, but Hassan said she had to correct him on several things.

Suffice it to say (but I’m going to say it anyway every time), if RFK Jr. were not a white man — and especially if he were a Black woman — the entire white, fragile and eternally racist MAGA world would be screaming “DEI nominee” from every rooftop they could find.  

But that logic can’t be applied to white men, because, obviously, their DEI allegation immune system is far better than Black people’s.

SEE ALSO:

Where’s The Same Energy For RFK Jr.’s ‘Antisemitism’ That Everyone Had For Kyrie Irving?

RFK Jr. Says Joe Biden Is A Bigger Threat To Democracy Than Donald Trump

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