Kennedy's new podcast might satisfy MAHA, but it won't save 'Republican bacon' |
Kennedy’s new podcast might satisfy MAHA, but it won’t save ‘Republican bacon’
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s new podcast stands to gratify his “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) base after recent letdowns, though whether it will be able to energize this voting bloc ahead of the midterms remains dubious.
This latest project from Kennedy comes as his place within the Trump administration has become less than ironclad. Reports have surfaced recently of the White House being done with Kennedy’s vaccine agenda, which has been temporarily blocked by a federal ruling.
The first episode of “The Secretary Kennedy Podcast,” released on Wednesday, seemed to confirm the administration is backing off vaccine rhetoric, with the show focused on the U.S. food system in a conversation with celebrity chef Robert Irvine.
Food reform policies, such as reducing artificial dyes and promoting whole foods over ultraprocessed foods, have proven to be one of the sole areas of bipartisan support. Recent polling has found that support for vaccinations remains relatively strong, with 69 percent in a recent survey by 314 Action saying they trust “vaccines in general.”
Forty percent said they trusted Kennedy.
Kennedy is no stranger to the podcast landscape, regularly appearing on top shows like “The Joe Rogan Experience,” “This Past Weekend w/ Theo Von” and “Club Random with Bill Maher.”
HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon said the podcast “will provide a direct platform to engage with the public on the health issues that matter most to American families, from chronic disease and nutrition to food quality and health care costs, while bringing radical transparency to the conversations shaping those issues.”
Frank Sesno, professor at the School of Media and Public Affairs at George Washington University, noted Kennedy is taking a page out of Trump’s handbook by launching a podcast, mirroring when the president started his social media platform.
“What everybody in government has discovered is that they don’t need traditional media anymore. They can do their own media, and they are doing their own media. It’s why [Zohran] Mamdani is mayor of New York, and it’s what Donald Trump does every morning,” Sesno said. “Nobody edits them, and their stream becomes pickup material for those who still are in the legacy media.”
Proving he can energize an audience could be crucial to Kennedy’s continued influence within the White House.
President Trump has demonstrated in recent weeks that no member of his Cabinet is safe, with the prompt terminations of former Attorney General Pam Bondi and former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
But unlike Bondi or Noem, Kennedy has the ear of a voting bloc, one that is shaping up to be something of a wild card for the GOP ahead of the midterms. And Trump appears to be aware of the value in MAHA’s support, briefly meeting with activists at the White House in a closed-door meeting last week.
While MAHA supporters have signaled a strong adherence to Kennedy, the relatively loose movement embraces a plethora of issues that members want action on.
When Trump signed an executive order boosting access to glyphosate-based herbicides and Kennedy defended this move, it drew swift disappointment from MAHA activists, including Vani Hari, author of the “The Food Babe” vlog.
When Trump signed his executive order, Hari called it a “mass poisoning of Americans.” But she was receptive to Kennedy’s podcast.
“Long-form conversation lets someone like Kennedy and his guest explain complex or controversial positions in a way short interviews can’t — that’s a good thing,” Hari told The Hill in a statement.
Other prominent voices similarly welcomed the move as a potential means of reconnecting with the MAHA base.
“The MAHA grassroots base will welcome a podcast directly from Secretary Kennedy. It is a format that worked to rally grassroots during his independent run and will be a refreshing reboot to hear the truth about so many of the issues MAHA cares deeply about,” said Kelly Ryerson, a prominent voice in the MAHA community who goes by “Glyphosate Girl” online.
“It is helpful to have the secretary reengage directly, as this will remind the grassroots why they supported this administration and confirm that Kennedy is still working on our behalf. Kennedy’s bravery in confronting captured agencies drove millions of votes,” she added.
The secretary’s most ardent critics worry the show will only serve as a greater amplifier of misinformation.
“I’m aghast. I mean, this is just another vehicle for Kennedy and MAHA to promote their pseudoscience, disinformation agenda,” said Peter Hotez, co-director of the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development.
“That’s what MAHA is all about. It’s all to benefit the health and wellness — very corrupt health and wellness influencer,” Hotez added. “So, this gives them a more attractive format, especially for young people, to push their pseudoscience agenda, and it’s very destructive.”
Whether it energizes Kennedy’s base or not, Sesno opined that a podcast will do little for the Trump administration in the grand scheme of things.
“This is fundamentally, I think, now becoming personal. You drive by the gas pump, you pay for gas, you go to the doctor or the hospital, and you see your bill, you book an airline ticket, you buy groceries. You know your prices are going up,” Sesno said.
“If they’re a one-issue MAHA voter, and that’s where Trump aims, and that’s where Kennedy aims, that’s one thing,” he added. “But one-issue MAHA voters are not going to save the Republican bacon in the fall if the numbers continue to move the way they are.”
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