Rev. Franklin Graham said he supports Vice President J.D. Vance’s defense of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. but criticized the vice president’s use of profanity in a viral social media post.
In an exclusive statement to Fox News Digital, Graham, one of the nation’s most prominent Christian voices, said he admired Vance’s stand and that "the point Vice President Vance was making is correct," while adding that Vance’s "salty" choice of words could have been better. "Could he have used a better choice of words? In my opinion, yes; but I appreciate the vice president standing up for Secretary Kennedy, who is trying to buck a very corrupt system and is trying to improve the health of the American people. God bless Secretary Kennedy and Vice President Vance," Graham said.
The comments came after Vance posted a viral message on X in which he declared that certain senators were "full of s---," a rebuke that followed a contentious congressional hearing involving Kennedy. Kennedy publicly endorsed Vance’s message.
Graham’s intervention places a prominent evangelical voice squarely in support of the vice president’s substantive criticism while drawing attention to tone in public discourse. He noted that past vice presidents have at times used coarse language, but said the substance of Vance’s criticism mattered.
Vance’s post drew broad attention on social media and in political circles, amplifying debate over Kennedy’s role at HHS and the conduct of senators who questioned him at the hearing. The episode highlighted tensions within Washington over health policy, oversight and how elected officials discuss one another in public.
The exchange underscores how allies and critics alike are parsing both message and manners as political disputes over Kennedy’s tenure and policy positions continue to play out publicly. Graham’s statement served both as endorsement of Vance’s stance and as a reminder from a leading religious figure that rhetoric, even in heated exchanges, can be tempered.
Graham’s remarks, delivered exclusively to Fox News Digital, add to the list of public responses to the confrontation. They also reflect the ongoing involvement of faith leaders in national political debates, particularly when those debates intersect with questions of public health and institutional reform. The broader political fallout from the hearing and the ensuing social media exchanges remains a subject of attention among lawmakers and commentators.