Oregon Representative Maxine Dexter, a Democrat who has previously downplayed risks associated with COVID-19 vaccines and has championed so-called “gender-affirming care,” recently accused Robert F. Kennedy Jr. of being one of the biggest threats to public health in the United States.
During a town hall event on Saturday, Dexter called for the dismantling of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and launched an attack on the Department of Health and Human Services and Secretary Kennedy. “RFK Jr. is one of the biggest threats to our community and to the health of this country,” she stated. “When you don’t follow the science, and you just follow your vibes or whatever it is that he’s doing, it is absolutely the truth that you lose trust.” Dexter added she has “every reason to believe we’ll be able to get that man at least delegitimized, hopefully fired.”
Dexter characterized the federal government as a “fascist regime,” advised doctors not to follow HHS directives, and urged patients to seek science-based regimens rather than those influenced by Kennedy or whole milk—which she claimed serves as “white supremacy dog-whistling.” The Make America Healthy Again Commission recently released its Make Our Children Healthy Again Strategy, identifying initiatives to reverse childhood chronic disease epidemics by removing restrictions on whole milk sales in schools and allowing districts to offer full-fat dairy options alongside reduced-fat alternatives.
President Trump ratified the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act last month, modifying school lunch requirements to include both whole and reduced-fat milk. The USDA and Kennedy have shared videos promoting whole milk as a “protein, strength, and a class choice that never goes out of style.”
In response to Dexter’s claims, an account linked to the Republican National Committee stated: “Democrats’ unhinged hatred for President Trump has broken their brains.” Additionally, Arthur Caplan, a professor of bioethics at New York University Grossman School of Medicine, suggested that consumption of whole white milk has played a role in racist and far-right thinking.
