‘The most dangerous part’: A CNN fact-checker calls out Trump’s lies on a misunderstood issue
CNN fact-checker Daniel Dale delivered a warning about Donald Trump’s recent comments suggesting a link between vaccines and autism, calling them “the most dangerous part” of the president-elect’s sprawling Mar-a-Lago press conference.
“I think the most dangerous part was an equivocation,” said Dale. “It wasn’t really a claim, but he was asked whether he thought there was a link between vaccines and autism, and he equivocated. He said, ‘Well, we have some brilliant people looking at this,’ and he talked about the increased prevalence of autism diagnoses.”
“Look, there is no link between vaccines and autism. This notion has been discredited by study after study over decades,” Dale emphasized in his analysis with CNN’s Dana Bash.
The fact-checker’s alarm stems from Trump’s equivocation when asked about vaccines and autism. Rather than acknowledge what we know is global scientific consensus, Trump claimed “very brilliant people” were investigating the issue and suggested “something wrong” with rising autism rates warranted further study.
This dangerously dumb dance of absurdity, with already debunked theories, has gained new urgency with Trump’s nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Secretary of Health and Human Services. Kennedy, a prominent anti-vaccine activist and conspiracy theorist, has repeatedly promoted the thoroughly discredited claim that vaccines cause autism.
The vaccine-autism myth, which anti-vax celebrities like Jim Carrey later jumped on, originated from a 1998 study that was later exposed as fraudulent, with its author losing his medical license. Carrey, Kennedy, and others were not deterred by the exposure and put their heads further into the sands of conspiratory dissonance. The problem, of course, is that reputable doctors came up with legitimate answers. Multiple large-scale studies, including one examining over 650,000 children in Denmark, have definitively shown no link between vaccines and autism.
Now, Kennedy’s potential leadership of HHS threatens to mainstream these dangerous falsehoods, sabotaging decades of study from professionals far more qualified to answer any question he’d be asked. As HHS Secretary, he would oversee critical public health agencies, including the CDC and FDA, potentially undermining vaccine policy efforts that have prevented countless deaths and illnesses from preventable diseases all over the world.
“The idea that ‘Well, we’re just going to look into this,’ I think is dangerous to consider because the idea is simply wrong,” Dale warned, highlighting how Trump’s seemingly moderate position of “just asking questions” versus stamping out what we know to be incorrect, provides cover for dangerous misinformation.
Kennedy’s nomination marks a nasty shift from traditional HHS leadership. His public criticism of federal health agencies and embrace of disproved theories signals potential upheaval in established public health initiatives. During his campaign, Kennedy frequently cited misleading elite bro-science nonsense about autism rates, claiming they were much lower “when I was a kid” while ignoring changes in diagnostic criteria and awareness that explain the increase.
The elevation of vaccine skepticism through Kennedy’s nomination fits into a broader pattern of Trump’s approach to healthcare. By sowing doubt about established medical science—therefore, and at a deeper level, undermining what we know to be scientific fact—and appointing figures who challenge public health consensus, the incoming administration could weaken crucial public health initiatives while potentially boosting private insurance companies who benefit from a confused and fearful public.
As Dale notes, Trump’s press conference contained “a lot of lying,” but his legitimization of debunked vaccine theories stands out for its potential to cause real harm to public health. With Kennedy poised to take control of America’s health apparatus, experts worry that decades of progress in disease prevention could be undermined by the revival of medical conspiracy in the mainstream—unhinged and unfounded thoughts of YouTube conspiracy that should stay in the dark being made in the light.
Every study examining the purported link between vaccines and autism has reached the same conclusion—there isn’t one. Yet by elevating Kennedy and entertaining long-debunked views, Trump threatens to unravel public trust in one of medicine’s greatest achievements.
Have a tip we should know? tips@themarysue.com
