Kennedy, who has staunch critics on the right and the left – inclusive most of his own family — is just the latest in a string of surprising Trump cabinet picks, all of which are likely to face stiff resistance in the Senate. On Wednesday, Trump said he would nominate former Rep. Matt Gaetz, a far-right loyalist facing a string of ethics charges, as attorney general and former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence.

A former scion of America’s most famous Democratic political family, Kennedy pursued a independent presidential campaign before giving up and endorsing Trump and helping him across the country. Trump has long teased that Kennedy would have a prominent role in his administration in shaping health policy, saying at various times that he would make him “run wild on health” and even put him in charge of “women’s health.”

A few weeks ago, senior Trump officials downplayed the role Kennedy might play in his administration. In an interview with CNN, financier Howard Lutnick, co-chairman of the Trump transition, said flatly, “He’s not getting a job for HHS.”

After Trump won, many believed Kennedy might be given a broader role as “healthcare czar,” which did not require Senate confirmation. But by selecting him to lead HHS — which houses the Food and Drug Administration but also administers the massive Medicare and Medicaid programs — Trump has invited a contentious confirmation process that will look at Kennedy’s extreme views on certain issues, as well as its ambiguous positions vis-à-vis others. such as abortion.

A former Democrat, Kennedy previously supported abortion rights, but recently changed his tune; both parties attacked his position during the campaign. As HHS secretary, he would have immense influence over federal reproductive rights policy.

Kennedy’s sometimes bizarre personal history may come up during his confirmation hearings. Only on the campaign trail did Kennedy admit to throwing a dead bear cub in Central Park a decade ago and revealed that doctors once found a dead worm in its brain.

Many Republicans were quick to applaud Kennedy’s appointment, particularly Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who has vocally opposed the push for COVID vaccines. “Finally, someone to detox the place after the (Anthony) Fauci era,” Paul posted on X. He used the shortened version of Kennedy’s twist on Trump’s slogan: “Make America Healthy Again!”

Even a few Democrats applauded the selection, such as Gov. Jared Polis of Colorado, who Kennedy greeted X for “helping us defeat vaccination mandates” and touted his opposition to the pharmaceutical industry and food conglomerates.

Indeed, Kennedy has won plaudits from some public health officials for his views on nutrition and his opposition to ultra-processed foods, which he says should be removed from school cafeterias. He’s advocating for a crackdown on food dyes that have been linked to cancer and wants to prevent food stamps from being used to buy soda. But he has also promoted some foods and drugs that the FDA has previously warned against, such as raw milk and hydroxychloroquine, the antimalarial drug that some have used in the hope that it will prevent COVID infection.

While there may be a sympathetic audience for Kennedy’s emphasis on better nutrition and chronic disease, his long-standing opposition to vaccines of many types has made him a non-starter for many Democrats and public health experts, not to we’re talking about his unsupported claims that Wi-Fi can cause cancer, that chemicals in water can cause people to identify as transgender, and that major media organizations are controlled by the CIA.

In recent months, Kennedy has insisted that he advocates for “vaccine choice” and is not “anti-vaccine”; In a recent interview with NBC, Kennedy said he would not have blocked the approval of COVID vaccines if he had been in charge of the FDA, but said there was “no effort” to have the “best science” at hand at that moment.

Kennedy is also a vocal opponent of fluoride, a mineral that has been added to drinking water supplies since the 1940s to prevent tooth decay and keep bones strong.

Senator Ed Markey he had a three-word reaction on news of Kennedy’s selection on X: “Dangerous. Unskilled. Not serious.”

“There’s no telling how far a fringe conspiracy theorist like RFK Jr. it could set America back on public health, reproductive rights, research and innovation, and more,” added Sen. Patty Murray, D-Washington, who serves on Senate Leadership.

One recent interview with the GlobeAshish Jha, President Biden’s White House coronavirus response coordinator and dean of Brown University’s School of Public Health, warned of the potential health impacts of Kennedy’s influence in a Trump administration.

“RFK Jr., of course, is someone who has undermined vaccines and vaccine confidence,” Jha said. “I also worry if he’s in a position of authority, if these people are in positions of power, they’re going to do real harm.”

Meanwhile, some Kennedy allies who worked with him on vaccine issues were celebrating its potential influence even before Trump made the announcement Thursday. They expect him to focus on efforts such as removing fluoride from water and potentially increased liability for vaccine manufacturers.

“The bully pulpit is going to be huge for President Trump and for Bobby Kennedy,” says Mary Holland, who heads Kennedy’s department. the Children’s Health Defense organizationwho has spread misleading antivaccine information — he said shortly after last week’s election.

Asked about vaccination mandates, Holland said, “I don’t think this administration is going to try to tell private industry what to do or what not to do. I think what they’re going to try to do is make sure that people have proper information and that there’s proper remedies and proper accountability.”

Medical and public health experts say serious side effects from vaccines i am rare; the risk of injury from contracting measles, for example, is much greater than the risk of getting the measles vaccine.

Michael Sussman, a lawyer who worked with Kennedy on a trial related to the vaccine mandate in New York, also said in a recent interview that he expects Kennedy to “focus significantly” on vaccine companies.

“I think he believes that these vaccines are making huge profits and that those who provide them have a vested interest in misrepresenting their negative effects,” Sussman said last week. “He won’t eliminate vaccines,” but he will talk about his “skepticism about pharmaceuticals” and his “desire to promote American health through better diet, better food production.”

Sussman, who voted for Vice President Kamala Harris for president and called Trump’s victory a “terrible result for the country,” still said he agreed with Kennedy in some areas.

“Bobby Kennedy believes that American culture does not prioritize health. And I think he’s right about that. I think he thinks that our fixation with any number of interventions, medical interventions, is counterproductive,” Sussman said.

Kennedy promised that if appointed to federal office and empowered to do so, he would change federal agencies tasked with overseeing public health, which he claims have been corrupted by the pharmaceutical industry and other special interests. He suggested he could replace as many as 600 people at the National Institutes of Health, and there are entire sections, such as the FDA’s nutrition department, that “have to go.”

Months before dropping out of the presidential race and endorsing Trump, Kennedy criticized Trump’s cabinet picks in his first administration — and perhaps a glimpse into how he views those elite administration roles.

“President Trump promised to drain the swamp and address the social downgrades of the American middle class and what they’re facing,” he said during a wide-ranging interview with the Globe in July. “But when he got in there, he brought in (Steven) Mnuchin, a Goldman Sachs banker at Treasury, a Verizon lobbyist to run the FCC, an oil lobbyist to run the interior department, a pharmaceutical lobbyist to run HHS, and a coal lobbyist. to lead the EPA.”

“It could be,” Kennedy said, “an evidence of a lack of focus or an inclination to trust other people who are rich.”

The Globe staff’s Jason Laughlin, Jim Puzzanghera and James Pindell contributed to this report.

Sam Brodey can be reached at [email protected]. Follow L @sambrodey. Emma Platoff can be reached at [email protected]. Follow a @emmaplatoff. Adam Piore can be reached at [email protected].