Robert F. Kennedy Jr. floundered when Bernie Sanders pressed the prospective health secretary on whether the COVID vaccine saved lives. All he could say was, “I don’t know.” Although Kennedy has aimed to convince senators that he is not anti-vaccine during his two days of confirmation hearings,

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination to be the nation’s top health official is uncertain after a key Republican joined Democrats to raise persistent concerns over the nominee’s deep skepticism of routine childhood vaccinations that prevent deadly diseases.

Sen. John Fetterman (D., Pa.), who had said he was open to hearing out Robert F. Kennedy Jr., expressed more doubts about the Health and Human Services nominee after his first confirmation hearing Wednesday before the Senate Finance Committee.