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<\/p>\n
Still, for Trump, holding onto the debunked and dangerous claim appears to be a personal issue. Trump\u2019s health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is an ardent anti-vaccine activist who has long promoted the false link while generally disparaging life-saving immunizations. But even Kennedy has recently shifted from publicly discussing vaccines, given the political peril.<\/p>\n
Recent reporting indicates that the White House\u2019s continued effort to forge a false connection between vaccines and autism is coming from Trump directly. The octogenarian reportedly wants to be remembered as the president who cured autism and believes he can achieve that by scaling back vaccines, according to reporting by The Wall Street Journal.<\/p>\n
Given the push, Trump has reportedly chastised Kennedy on multiple occasions for not doing more on the issue. Kennedy confirmed the Journal\u2019s reporting in a combative August 2 CNN interview. (He otherwise made a barrage of false claims during the interview; a comprehensive fact check can be found here.)<\/p>\n
As Trump and his administration continue to flout the science on vaccines, White House spokesman Kush Desai gave a statement to the Post claiming, once again, the administration would use \u201cgold standard science\u201d to ensure the US has the \u201cbest childhood vaccine schedule in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a Cabinet meeting last week, Trump asked Kennedy about progress on autism research, to which Kennedy replied, \u201cWe will have an answer for you.\u201d<\/p>\n