Former "Meet the Press" host Chuck Todd on Thursday called Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. the "biggest problem" facing President Donald Trump, saying Kennedy's performance and policy positions have undermined public confidence in federal vaccine guidance and could prompt the White House to abandon him.
Todd made the remarks on CNN during an appearance with host Kasie Hunt following Kennedy's combative Senate Finance Committee hearing on Sept. 4, 2025, where lawmakers from both parties pressed the secretary over his anti-vaccine views and policy proposals. "He's been beyond disastrous," Todd said, adding that Kennedy is "putting lives in danger" and that the fallout has prompted states to develop their own vaccine protocols as trust in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention erodes.
Todd said there are people inside the White House who have been alarmed by Kennedy's approach, and he portrayed the president as reluctant to act because of political considerations. "It’s Trump that says, you know, he’s afraid of losing the Kennedy constituency, and he’s just been letting Kennedy go, letting Kennedy go," Todd said. He predicted that at some point the administration would "throw Kennedy overboard," even as Trump values the symbolic gain of having a Kennedy in his cabinet: "he loves his trophy. And for him, the trophy is 'I got a Kennedy.'"
At the Sept. 4 hearing, senators of both parties questioned Kennedy about his stance on vaccines and public health guidance, reflecting bipartisan concern about the secretary's impact on national health policy. Lawmakers cited scientific consensus and public-health standards in challenging Kennedy's assertions and the direction of HHS under his leadership.
Administration officials have privately expressed unease about the political and policy consequences of Kennedy's tenure, according to Todd. Those concerns center on the potential for state-level divergence from federal recommendations, the erosion of trust in established public health institutions such as the CDC, and the practical effects on vaccination campaigns and other preventive measures.
Kennedy, a scion of the Kennedy family who has long advanced vaccine skepticism, was confirmed to lead HHS earlier this year. His appointment was hailed by some supporters as symbolically significant but drew immediate scrutiny from public-health experts and many lawmakers who argued his views could conflict with the department's mission to base policy on consensus science.
The Senate hearing and subsequent criticism underscore a broader tension for the White House: balancing political alliances with the need to maintain effective federal public-health leadership. Todd framed that tension as a potential breaking point for the Trump administration, saying that political calculations that once shielded Kennedy may not withstand mounting public-health concerns and bipartisan alarm on Capitol Hill.
Kennedy's office issued statements during and after the hearing defending his policy positions and urging support for what it characterized as efforts to reform federal health agencies. The White House has not publicly signaled any personnel changes since the hearing.
Public-health experts who have criticized Kennedy's views said the hearing amplified longstanding worries about the potential impact of his policy preferences on vaccine uptake, disease prevention, and federal-state coordination. Some state health officials have already begun exploring alternate vaccination guidance and protocols, a development public-health advocates say could complicate nationwide responses to outbreaks and undermine uniform messaging.
Todd's remarks and the Senate hearing both reflect escalating scrutiny of Kennedy's role at HHS and the political calculations surrounding it. Whether the administration moves to alter the secretary's position remains unclear, but the episode has intensified debate over how political considerations intersect with federal public-health leadership and the integrity of scientific institutions.