Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has said he "isn't afraid of germs" because he "snorted cocaine out of toilet bowls." The U.S. health secretary made the admission to Theo Vaughan during an episode of his show "This Past Weekend," Sky News reports.
The admission came as the two discussed their shared history of drug abuse and their attendance at support meetings before they were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"I'm not afraid of germs. I used to snort cocaine out of toilet bowls. I know this disease will kill me. Like, if I don't do it, if I don't treat her, which means I'm going to have meetings every day. It's just bad for my life," Kennedy Jr. said.
Protect Our Care, a nonprofit organization fighting for affordable health care in the United States, called on Kennedy to resign.
The admission by the man in charge of government health policy received even greater response on social media.
Malcolm Kenyatta, a Democratic representative from Pennsylvania, wrote on the social network X that he did not trust Robert Kennedy Jr. when it came to public health. Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, highlighted the double standard for drug addicts. He recalled that the Trump administration has called immigrants who have fallen into drug addiction "the worst of the worst" criminals".
Kennedy Jr. has spoken openly about his drug addiction, which began after the assassination of his father, Robert Kennedy, in June 1968 in Los Angeles, California. He has been arrested twice for drug-related offenses; for possession of cannabis in 1970 and for possession of heroin in 1983.
Robert Kennedy Jr. has made a name for himself as a vaccine skeptic during the coronavirus pandemic. He has a history of repeating debunked claims, including linking vaccines to autism in children.