Democratic Gov. Jared Polis ‘excited’ by Trump’s RFK Jr. nomination for health secretary

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) – Colorado Gov. Jared Polis took to social media Thursday to praise President-elect Donald Trump's decision to nominate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. as the next secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Kennedy, who has strongly advocated for a vaccine ban through his anti-vaccine organization Children’s Health Defense and is known for spreading misinformation about their safety, was nominated for the role on Thursday – an appointment that was quickly met with both criticism and praise online.

In a post to X, formerly Twitter, Gov. Polis said he was "excited" by the appointment and commended Kennedy for helping Colorado "defeat vaccine mandates" in 2019.

"I hope he leans into personal choice on vaccines rather than bans (which I think are terrible, just like mandates) but what I’m most optimistic about is taking on big pharma and the corporate ag oligopoly to improve our health," Gov. Polis wrote.

Polis went on to share a selection of quotes from Kennedy as reasons he supported the nomination, including discussions on lowering drug prices, eliminating the "nutrition department" of the FDA and ending "pesticide-intensive" agriculture.

"He will face strong special interest opposition on these, but I look forward to partnering with him to truly make America healthy again and I hope that we can finally make progress on these important issues," Polis wrote.

After receiving thousands of comments in response to the post, Polis once again took to X to expand on his stance.

"Science must remain THE cornerstone of our nation’s health policy and the science-backed decision to get vaccinated improves public health and safety," Polis wrote. "But if as a country we follow the science we would also be far more concerned about the impact of pesticides on public health, ag policy on nutrition, and the lack of access to prescription drugs due to drug high prices.

"This is why I am for a major shake-up in institutions like the FDA that have been barriers to lowering drug costs and promoting healthy food choices. Lest there by any doubt, I am vaccinated as is my family. I will hold any HHS Secretary to the same high standard of protecting and improving public health," he added.

Polis' praise comes just months after he criticized Kennedy for his vaccine skepticism, suggesting it could lead to "bringing back Measles and bringing back Polio."

The Governor's Office issued a statement Thursday night further clarifying Polis' statements on X:

"Governor Polis has not changed his view as a whole on RFK Jr. or on the Governor's previously stated concerns regarding some of RFK Jr's positions. While opposed to RFK's positions on a host of issues, including vaccines and banning fluoridation, he would appreciate seeing action on pesticides and efforts to lower prescription drug costs and if Trump is going to nominate someone like him then let them also take on soda, processed food, pesticides and heavy metals contamination. But he definitely does not endorse actions that would lead to measles outbreaks and opposes unscientific propaganda that undermines confidence in the lifesaving impact of vaccines. The Governor himself was vaccinated last week with the flu vaccine and the COVID vaccine."

Kennedy responded to the post Thursday night, thanking the governor for his support.

“Thank you, Governor Polis. I look forward to working with you," he wrote. "Let’s Make America Healthy Again."