August 29, 2025 10:40 AM UTC

With CDC in Turmoil and Vaccine Access at Risk, Polis Sticks by RFK Jr.

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• by: Colorado Pols

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) is in turmoil this week after President Trump — at the request of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — fired CDC Director Susan Monarez less than a month into the job because of her apparent reluctance to base policy decisions on whatever the worm in RFK’s head recommends on a given day.

As POLITICO reports:

The firing of Monarez set off a chain reaction at the CDC, which fights infectious disease and has come under heavy criticism from Kennedy for how it handled the pandemic.

Other top career CDC officials resigned Wednesday in protest of Kennedy’s policies, with one warning that Kennedy’s moves to cast doubt on the safety of vaccines will result in the deaths of vulnerable people. [Pols emphasis]

The upheaval also prompted rare criticism from Republicans on Capitol Hill, with Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who leads the Senate’s health panel and was the deciding vote in confirming Kennedy as secretary of health and human services in February, calling for oversight of the CDC departures. Pointedly, he said the administration should reject future vaccine recommendations from a panel of advisers hand-picked by Kennedy.

As the editorial board of The Washington Post explains, this is as scary as it sounds:

When Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana) voted to confirm Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as health and human services secretary, he did so with the expectation that he and other serious people would be able to contain the worst impulses of the anti-vaccine activist. Cassidy, a physician and chair of the Senate health committee, said in a floor speech that he believed they could “have a great relationship to make America healthy again,” focused on the parts of Kennedy’s agenda that many found promising: tackling chronic diseases, promoting healthier food and reforming the nation’s health agencies.

That illusion — to the extent that it still existed — was fully shattered late Wednesday. Kennedy’s decision to oust Susan Monarez as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention over disagreements on vaccine policy proves that no one will provide an effective check on Kennedy — not Republican senators, not thoughtful leaders at HHS and certainly not President Donald Trump.

The drama paints an ominous portrait of the state of the country’s crucial health agencies. [Pols emphasis] Monarez, a longtime government scientist, was confirmed as CDC director just weeks ago. She was seen as a responsible pick for the job, especially after Trump withdrew his first nominee, Dave Weldon, because Republican senators raised concerns about his history of anti-vaccine statements.

But it took little time for Monarez’s sensible views to clash with her boss’s. The Post reports that Kennedy pressed her for days on whether she would support moves to rescind approvals for coronavirus vaccines and fire staff members.

Staffers at the CDC headquarters in Atlanta staged a walkout on Thursday in protest of the firing of Monarez. Democrats from Colorado’s Congressional delegation were united in their concern:

Governor Jared Polis had a different take, however. Marshall Zelinger of 9News asked Polis about whether or not he now regretted voicing support for RFK Jr. after Trump nominated him for HHS Secretary last fall. Polis responded that he “tries to work with everybody” and that he hopes to continue working with RFK Jr “on making America healthier”:

NEW: RFK Jr’s purge of CDC leadership isn’t shaking Democratic Gov Jared Polis’ enthusiastic support of Kennedy to lead America’s health policy. Today, Polis praised his collaboration with Kennedy, saying “We hope to work on making America healthier.” #copolitics

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— Kyle Clark (@kylec.bsky.social) August 28, 2025 at 8:07 PM

During the previous Trump administration — and particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic — Polis made a point of not antagonizing Trump in order to avoid any retaliatory measures that would harm Colorado’s efforts to combat the pandemic. It’s possible that Polis is making a similar calculation now, though if there were ever a time to draw a line in the proverbial sand, this would be that moment. If nothing else, Polis should absolutely NOT be repeating the nonsense “Make America Healthy Again” MAGA narrative.

Polis does share some, um, non-traditional philosophical beliefs with RFK Jr, but he has an easy out to criticize the HHS Secretary. Remember, RFK Jr. absolutely lied about his intentions to restrict vaccines during his Senate confirmation process earlier this year. As POLITICO noted in a separate story from late June:

Rep. Kim Schrier (D-Wash.) accused Kennedy of lying to Sen. Bill Cassidy, the chair of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, about his intentions on vaccine policy.

Cassidy was the deciding vote on Kennedy’s confirmation at the committee level, and the Louisiana Republican said he agreed to vote for Kennedy only after he promised not to upend the nation’s decision-making process on vaccines.

Americans are dying because of RFK Jr’s dangerous politics that value ideology over science. Things are only going to get worse as top experts resign from the CDC rather than abide by the policy demands of a man who himself has absolutely no medical or scientific background.

We can’t say why Polis isn’t speaking out against RFK Jr’s dangerous decisions when given the opportunity. Now is not the time to remain silent.