Eagle-eyed attendees at Wednesday’s U.S. Senate committee hearing for Robert F. Kennedy caught reporters pre-writing negative headlines about President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the U.S. Health and Human Services before he even stepped up to the microphone to answer a single question.
Kennedy, who has repeatedly drawn controversy for his past statements about vaccines as well as outlandish stories about his personal life, is front and center in Washington, D.C., at the Senate Finance Committee hearing on his nomination. In advance of his opening remarks, sources close to Kennedy let it be known that he was prepared to downplay his past statements about the efficacy of vaccines.
“I want to make sure the Committee is clear about a few things. News reports have claimed that I am anti-vaccine or anti-industry. Well, I am neither; I am pro-safety,” RFK said on Wednesday.
But that didn’t stop members of the press in attendance from getting a jump start on their clickbait headlines.
Calley Means, an entrepreneur and author, shared footage and a screenshot of a laptop being frantically worked by a reporter in the empty hearing room. Zooming in on the screen, Means showed off the scurrilous working title, “RFK