![RFK Jr nomination to serve as Trump's Health secretary clears key hurdle in Senate](https://static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/08/Trump-rfk.jpg)
RFK Jr nomination to serve as Trump's Health secretary clears key hurdle in Senate
Fox News
The Senate voted to advance Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s controversial nomination to serve as Health and Human Services secretary in President Donald Trump's Cabinet, sending him on a path to final confirmation.
Kennedy, the well-known vaccine skeptic and environmental crusader who ran for the White House in 2024 before ending his bid and endorsing Trump, needed a simple majority to advance to a final vote in the chamber, which Republicans control by a 53-47 majority.
Kennedy survived back-to-back combustible Senate confirmation hearings late last month, when Trump's nominee to lead 18 powerful federal agencies that oversee the nation's food and health faced plenty of verbal fireworks over past controversial comments, including his repeated claims in recent years linking vaccines to autism, which have been debunked by scientific research.