Former Vice President Mike Pence on Friday unequivocally expressed his opposition to the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to lead the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
“The Trump-Pence administration was unapologetically pro-life during our four years in office. There are hundreds of decisions made at HHS every day that move our nation toward respect for life or away from it, and HHS under our administration always stood firm for life,” Pence said in a lengthy statement on the website of his nonprofit Advancing American Freedom on Friday.
“I believe the nomination of RFK Jr. to serve as Secretary of HHS is an abrupt departure from our administration’s pro-life record and should deeply concern millions of pro-life Americans who have supported the Republican Party and our presidential candidates for decades.”
Pence claimed that Kennedy has “defended abortion on demand during all nine months of pregnancy” for most of his career and supports overturning the Dobbs decision and codifying Roe v. Wade.
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Former Vice President Mike Pence said he opposes the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images; Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
“If confirmed, RFK, Jr. would be the most pro-choice Republican-appointed HHS secretary in modern history,” Pence wrote.
President-elect Trump announced Thursday that he would nominate Kennedy to lead the agency, as he had said he would during the campaign.
“I am delighted to announce Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as United States Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS). For too long, Americans have been crushed by the food industrial complex and the pharmaceutical companies that have become involved in deception, misinformation, and disinformation when it comes to Public Health,” Trump said in his announcement.
President-elect Trump nominated Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to lead HHS this week. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
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Kennedy was frequently seen with Trump in the final months of the campaign after he abandoned his independent bid for the White House and endorsed the Republican candidate.
Pence, who served as Trump’s vice president during Trump’s first term, did not run with him again in 2024 and refused to endorse Trump.
Kennedy has changed radically regarding abortion. In May, he said a woman should be able to have an abortion when she is full-term, but later backtracked and said there should be restrictions at some point during pregnancy. And last year he said he supported banning abortion for 15 weeks before his campaign said he was wrong.
Pence served as President-elect Trump’s vice president during Trump’s first term. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
On his campaign website, he said he would support legislation to overturn the Dobbs decision, according to The Hill.
Last month, Trump said he would veto any attempt to ban abortion nationwide, saying it is an issue for the states.
Liberals are also concerned about Kennedy’s nomination because of his controversial stances on vaccines, fluoride in water and other issues.
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Fox News Digital has reached out to Kennedy for comment.
