It was a Senate hearing that turned into a political bloodbath. On Thursday, Senator Ron Wyden blasted Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in front of the packed Senate Finance Committee, hammering him over his past ties to Jeffrey Epstein and accusing him of endangering children under his watch.
Wyden wasted no time in tearing into Kennedy, who was set to testify amid mounting controversy over his leadership. “Mr. Kennedy calls himself a ‘protector of children,’” Wyden said with razor-sharp sarcasm. “Some kind of rich claim from somebody who’s flown on Jeffrey Epstein’s private jet on multiple occasions!”
.@RonWyden to @SecKennedy: “Mr. Kennedy calls himself a protector of children, some kind of rich claim from somebody who’s flown on Jeffrey Epstein’s private jet on multiple occasions. I don’t think Robert Kennedy should be within a million miles of this job.” pic.twitter.com/QLjARhJRAC
— CSPAN (@cspan) September 4, 2025
The jab landed like a thunderclap. Kennedy has previously admitted to flying on Epstein’s plane, nicknamed the “Lolita Express,” at least twice in the 1990s. He has long denied wrongdoing or awareness of Epstein’s predatory behavior, but Wyden made it clear he wasn’t buying the defense. “It’s about credibility,” the senator sneered. “And right now, the credibility of this agency is in tatters.”
Though Epstein wasn’t convicted of sex crimes until 2008, rumors about his troubling proclivities swirled years earlier. In a 2002 interview with New York magazine, then-businessman Donald Trump even remarked on Epstein’s taste in women, noting “many were on the younger side.” Against that backdrop, Wyden argued that Kennedy’s past choices undercut his ability to serve as the nation’s top guardian of vulnerable children.
RFK Jr. just went NUCLEAR on Senator Ron Wyden for sitting silent while childhood disease rates exploded.
“Senator, you’ve sat in that chair for how long…. 20-25 years?”
“While the chronic disease in our children went up to 76%.”
“And you said nothing!”
“You never asked the… pic.twitter.com/yvhb7Fkdjf
— End Tribalism in Politics (@EndTribalism) September 4, 2025
But Wyden didn’t stop at Epstein. He hammered Kennedy on a recent fiasco that nearly saw hundreds of migrant children wrongfully deported. According to Wyden, over 600 kids in the care of the Office of Refugee Resettlement, an HHS division, were quietly loaded onto planes bound for Guatemala under Kennedy’s watch. The plan only collapsed after an emergency federal court order blocked the removal.
“This weekend, under the cover of darkness, Robert Kennedy attempted to disappear hundreds of children under his care,” Wyden thundered. “These children, here without parents or family, were rounded up in the middle of the night and put on planes to Guatemala. Lawyers on the ground described unthinkable scenes.”
The senator’s words painted a damning picture: terrified children being hustled onto flights, with no families, no due process, and no idea what awaited them. For Wyden, this incident was the final straw. “I don’t think Robert Kennedy should be within a million miles of this job,” he declared, before calling on Trump to fire him immediately—or for Kennedy to resign on his own.
The fireworks capped a chaotic week for Kennedy, who has faced growing scrutiny since taking the reins at HHS. His critics argue his tenure has been defined by turmoil, botched oversight, and scandalous associations that have undermined public trust. His defenders, meanwhile, insist the controversies are being inflated by political enemies eager to kneecap him.
But after Wyden’s blistering attack, even some Republicans in the room looked uneasy. Kennedy sat stiffly at the witness table, visibly grimacing as the Epstein comments echoed through the chamber. The scene underscored the precariousness of his position—and the possibility that bipartisan momentum could soon build against him.
For now, Kennedy remains in office. But Thursday’s clash leaves him facing louder calls than ever for his ouster. In Washington, the question is no longer whether Kennedy will face consequences, but how long he can hold on before the pressure breaks him.
