Mexican Standoff Theatrics; RFKjr sacrifices his vaccine-injured supporters on the proverbial battlefield to secure a JD Vance led tie-breaking vote for his HHS Sec appointment, I predict

In closing remarks, Senate Health Committee Chair (and former medical doctor) Bill Cassidy (R-LA), lets his guard down—through voice, tone, and body language, revealing the procedural plan...

“I have no doubt you will be confirmed as HHS Secretary” — Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) — in her remarks to Kennedy during the Finance Committee Hearing, on Wednesday, Jan 29th, 2025.

Prediction: “He’s-not-so-radical-as-you-think-Bobby” will make it out of the two senate committees—Finance and Health—and will ultimately be confirmed—when the formal votes are cast.

Bobby says he’s going to follow the science where ever it may lead—on the question of vaccine safety. I disagree with this approach.

The correct approach, instead, is this: The testimony of mothers. A mother brings her happy and talking 2-year-old into a pediatrician’s office—for a ‘wellness visit’, the baby receives some shots, and bang, the baby can no longer talk. The mother knows it was the vaccines. That’s all the ‘science’ we need. Full stop. Period.

The question we all need to be asking ourselves—in the days, months, and years to come, is,… at what cost—to us—as citizens, and to Kennedy himself—his integrity as a leader?

How the testimony actually went down in these hearings—over the past two days, on the record… My reaction to it all is—distilling the feeling down—it’s akin to the wedding reception scene in The Deer Hunter movie—where the bride and groom are drinking red wine out of the ornate silver double-cup, and a drop of red wine falls onto the bride’s white wedding gown, boding ‘bad luck’… (clip)

Read the following closing-remark statement from Bill Cassidy (R-LA). My analysis follows after it.

The Senate Health Committee Chair (and former medical doctor) Bill Cassidy’s (R-LA) closing remarks—addressing Kennedy directly—at the Senate Health Committee hearing, on Thurday, Jan 30th, 2025: (source of this transcript (closed-caption generated text)—via this Children’s Health Defense ‘hearing’ landing page, here):

[…] [A]s a doctor, I saw endings [that were] not so happy.

I just had a friend text me. Two children [have] died in an intensive care unit in a Baton Rouge [Louisiana] hospital from vaccine preventable diseases this past month.

So my concern is [should you be appointed as HHS Secretary] that if there’s [then] any false note [given by you (Kennedy)], any undermining of a mama’s trust in vaccines [given by you], [then] another person will die from a vaccine preventable disease.

Now you’ve got a megaphone [a bully pulpit] [You’re clearly an influencer]. Maybe you and Bernie [Sanders] [both do]. [note: slight laughter in the audience] Bobby and Bernie—[out] of everybody in this room, the two of you. [You] [h]ave the biggest followings, tremendous credibility. And with that influence, comes a great responsibility.

Now, my responsibility [as a senator and as the Chair of this committee] is to learn. [To] [t]ry and determine if you [Kennedy] can be trusted to support the best public health.

A worthy movement—called MAHA—[whose goal is] to improve the health of Americans… Or, [is it] to undermine it—[in their] always asking for more evidence. And, [in their] never accepting the evidence that is there.

I looked at the article [scientific paper] [study] from Dr. Mawson [you (Kennedy) shared with me] and it seems to have some issues, [and, so] I’ll just put that to the side. [note: the link to Mawson’s study is provided below in the comments by Edmond Pare, with Edmond’s thoughts about it.]

And that is why I’ve been struggling with your nomination. There are issues where,… man,... ultra-processed food, obesity… We are,… we are sympatico. We’re completely aligned [note: here, Cassidy makes ‘mano a mano’ hand gestures to Kennedy]…

And, as someone [as a former practicing medical doctor] who has discussed immunizations with thousands of people, I understand that mothers want reassurance that the vaccine their child is receiving is necessary, safe, and effective. We agree on that point—the two of us. But we’ve approached it differently; and I think I can say that. I’ve approached it using the ‘preponderance of evidence’ [method] to reassure [mothers]. And you have approached [it] using [the] ‘selected evidence’ method to cast doubt [in the minds of mothers].

Now, put differently, we’re about the same age… [And so, I ask myself], “Does a 70 year old man / 71 year old man [Kennedy]—who [has] spent decades criticizing vaccines—and who’s financially vested in finding fault with vaccines,... can he [Kennedy] change his attitudes and approach[es] now? [In] [t]hat he’ll have the most important position—[that of the position of HHS Secretary], influencing vaccine policy in the United States,… [Will] you [Kennedy] continue [in] what you have been [doing], or will you overturn a new leaf—at age 70?”

I recognize,... Man, if you[’d] [just] come out unequivocally, [and say,] ‘Vaccines are safe. [Vaccines do] not cause autism’, that would have an incredible impact [on my voting in the affirmative for you (Kennedy)].

That’s your power.

So, what’s it going to be?

Will it be using [your] credibility to support lots of articles [saying that vaccines are safe]—[by using the ‘preponderance of evidence’ method], or will it be [the] using [of your] credibility to undermine—[by using the ‘selected evidence’ method—thereby sowing doubt]?

And I[’ve] [now] got to [go] figure that out, for my vote.

You have the power to help rebuild, to help public health institutions re-earn the trust of the American people.

Now, let’s [get] political.

I’m a Republican. I represent the amazing state of Louisiana. And as a patriotic American, I want President Trump’s policies to succeed in making America and Americans more secure, more prosperous, [and] healthier.

But, if there’s someone that is not vaccinated—because of policies or attitudes you [Kennedy] [will] bring to the department…. And, [as a result] there’s another 18 year old who dies of a vaccine preventable disease—[and has to be] helicoptered away [for live-saving emergency care]—[and then], God forbid, [nevertheless] dies [note: here, Cassidy is referencing an incident he cited earlier and read into the record (in that incident, the patient survived)]... It [that] [will] be blown up in the press… [And] [t]he greatest tragedy [would] be [his]/her death…

But, [in this example I’m using as an illustration], [what] I can also tell you [is that] an associated tragedy [will follow in the wake of it]... Well, that [this example] will cast a shadow over President Trump’s legacy—which, [by the way], I want to be the absolute best legacy. [And] it—[President Trump’s legacy] can be [the best legacy].

So, that’s my dilemma, man.

And you may be hear[ing] [from] me over the weekend. You may be hearing from me over the weekend.

I once again, thank you for your time. And I [now] yield [my time] to my ranking member [Senator Bernie Sanders]…

My analysis and prediction:

This is where Trump—in his role as big daddy mob boss (note: I mean this in a loving way), will work it—for the HHS Secretary appointment procedure for Bobby Kennedy:

Trump will talk to the Finance Chair and the Health Chair—Senators Mike Crapo (R-ID) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA), respectively—saying, effectively, “As you saw from he’s-not-so-radical-as-you-think-Bobby’s testimony on both days of hearings, he’s not going to touch the vaccines. So, advance Bobby out of both committees.”

Each chair will then salute and go and get all the R’s in-line, in each committee, to do just that.

Note: the composition of the Finance committee is 14 R, 13 D; the composition of the Health committee is 12 R, 11 D.

From the tone and delicate wording, and slight emotional twang of Cassidy’s closing-remark statement—and his hand gestures, Cassidy—I predict, will obey Trump, and successfully advance Kennedy out of his committee. Crapo also does same.

Was Cassidy—I must say, in a finely acted-out last scene—playing the hostage, sending a carefully-crafted message to the Big Harma lobbyists? “I did my part. I did the required due diligence. Trump says Bobby’s OK, can be trusted. You’ve got nothing to worry about.”

And, as the curious sort I am, I do also wonder—being that Cassidy’s a former medical doctor and all, does he really, really believe all that crap about vaccines being ‘safe and effective’? Did he, at any time during this hearing, personally take it as an afront, that Bobby portrayed himself as the ‘open-minded skeptic’?

When it comes to the formal floor vote, Susan Collins (R-ME), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Mitch McConnell (R-KY) (who experienced ‘polio’ as a child and who hates Trump) will vote ‘No’—causing JD Vance to cast the tie-breaker—provided, of course, that no other Republicans defect.

As a side note, John Fetterman (D-PA), it’s being reported, was spooked by what he saw in Kennedy’s day-1 performance, so a ‘Yes-to-confirm’ vote from him on the floor is probably now a ‘no go’ (source: The Hill). ‘Would love to see Trump, here, lovingly twist Fetterman’s arm…

For now, I’ll close with this:

From listening to all the testimony and back-and-forth which took place in these two hearings—and, given that, apriori, any discussions about taking poison-injections and toxic drugs off the market, was, off the table of discussion from the start,… I still come away with a “falling out of an airplane without a parachute” feeling.

There’s so much “cleaning out the cancer” work that Bobby can do while he’s in there; it boggles the mind, really; pick anywhere to start… while the medical poisons and toxins continue to still flow, like a river, into citizens’ muscles, veins, and stomachs…

In his closing remarks, the Senate Health Committee Chair (and former medical doctor) Bill Cassidy (R-LA), lets his guard down—through voice, tone, and body language, revealing the procedural plan

“Top Republican [—Senate Health Committee Chair (and former medical doctor) Bill Cassidy (R-LA)] ‘struggling’ with RFK Jr.’s nomination over Kennedy’s vaccine views; Kennedy refused to say vaccines don’t cause autism during his hearings.” (ABC News)