Latest news with #HealthandHumanServices
Business Insider
2 hours ago
- Business
- Business Insider
Not just $Trump: Several top administration officials have put their money into crypto
There's something that several top Trump administration officials have in common: They've poured thousands of dollars into cryptocurrency. While much has been made of President Donald Trump's own involvement with crypto, financial disclosures show that several of his top advisors and Cabinet officials also have substantial cryptocurrency investments. That includes Vice President JD Vance, who owns bitcoin worth between $250,000 and $500,000. Officials are generally only required to disclose the range of the value of their assets, so we don't know the exact amount. At the Bitcoin 2025 Conference in Las Vegas last month, Vance described himself as "one only people running for office who actually owned bitcoin" when he ran for Senate in Ohio in 2022. "I still own a fair amount of bitcoin today," he said. Among Cabinet officials, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. may be the largest holder of Bitcoin: he reported owning between $1 million and $5 million in the cryptocurrency in his December disclosure. Others hold at least hundreds of thousands of dollars in crypto. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy reported owning between $502,000 and $1.3 million in various cryptocurrencies, while Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Mehmet Oz reported holding between $500,000 and $1 million in bitcoin. Todd Blanche, a former personal defense attorney for Trump who now serves as Deputy US Attorney General, reported owning between $158,000 and $470,000 in various cryptocurrencies, primarily bitcoin. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also owns between $15,000 and $50,000 in bitcoin. Some Cabinet officials are invested in Bitcoin funds, which track the performance of Bitcoin without involving direct ownership. Among them is Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who disclosed having between $250,000 and $500,000 in such a fund. Oz and Duffy also invested in bitcoin funds in addition to their direct crypto holdings. Other top officials used to own cryptocurrencies but agreed to sell them off. That includes Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who reported owning between $33,000 and $145,000 in various cryptocurrencies, primarily bitcoin, which she sold off on May 13. Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought agreed to divest his holdings of up to $15,000 in bitcoin, while FBI Director Kash Patel agreed to sell off his investments in bitcoin ETFs, which were worth between $51,000 and $115,000. "President Trump, Vice President Vance, and senior White House staff have completed required ethics briefings and financial reporting obligations," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement for this story. "The Trump Administration is committed to transparency and accessibility for the American people." Ultimately, Trump remains the biggest cryptocurrency investor in his administration. His most recent financial disclosure shows he made more than $53 million from cryptocurrency sales last year in connection with World Liberty Financial, a crypto firm that's majority-owned by Trump and his family. Trump launched a meme-coin, $Trump, in the days before his second inauguration in January.
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Health
- Yahoo
‘Bobby Kennedy is going to kill more people than any Cabinet secretary': James Carville warns of RFK Jr's vaccine plan
Veteran Democratic strategist James Carville condemned Robert F Kennedy Jr.'s vaccine strategy, cautioning that the Health and Human Services Secretary's policies could have dire outcomes for the nation, including a body count. In an appearance on The Will Cain Show on Fox News, Carville warned: 'Bobby Kennedy is going to kill more people than any Cabinet secretary, maybe in history, with his idiotic vaccine policy.' He added that vaccines are 'the greatest public health intervention in the history of the world,' blasting Kennedy for what he described as fostering distrust in vaccines. 'He has expressed vaccine skepticism at every point,' Carville continued. 'Every notable public health person thinks that vaccines are the greatest public health innovation in the history of the world.' 'What he's doing is going to kill people,' he said, underlining his point. There has been widespread criticism of Kennedy's decision to purge all 17 members of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's vaccine advisory panel, citing 'historical corruption.' He then replaced them with a hand-picked panel of eight, whom he said were 'committed to evidence-based medicine, gold-standard science, and common sense,' and who wouldn't be 'ideological anti-vaxxers.' In announcing the new panel, Kennedy noted that each of them has committed to 'demanding definitive safety and efficacy data before making any new vaccine recommendations' and that the committee would review safety and efficacy data for the current schedule. However, the moves have been concerning to experts, who noted that several members have been critical of vaccines. The fired panel members have said that their ousting signaled that scientific expertise was 'no longer of use' under Kennedy and that that decision would 'undermine public trust in the vaccine process,' at a time when vaccine hesitancy has led to the spread of measles and other diseases. The new members are set to meet on June 25 to review safety and efficacy data for the current immunization schedule.
The Independent
15 hours ago
- Health
- The Independent
‘Bobby Kennedy is going to kill more people than any Cabinet secretary': James Carville warns of RFK Jr's vaccine plan
Veteran Democratic strategist James Carville condemned Robert F Kennedy Jr.'s vaccine strategy, cautioning that the Health and Human Services Secretary's policies could have dire outcomes for the nation, including a body count. In an appearance on The Will Cain Show on Fox News, Carville warned: 'Bobby Kennedy is going to kill more people than any Cabinet secretary, maybe in history, with his idiotic vaccine policy.' He added that vaccines are 'the greatest public health intervention in the history of the world,' blasting Kennedy for what he described as fostering distrust in vaccines. 'He has expressed vaccine skepticism at every point,' Carville continued. 'Every notable public health person thinks that vaccines are the greatest public health innovation in the history of the world.' 'What he's doing is going to kill people,' he said, underlining his point. There has been widespread criticism of Kennedy's decision to purge all 17 members of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 's vaccine advisory panel, citing 'historical corruption.' He then replaced them with a hand-picked panel of eight, whom he said were 'committed to evidence-based medicine, gold-standard science, and common sense,' and who wouldn't be 'ideological anti-vaxxers.' In announcing the new panel, Kennedy noted that each of them has committed to 'demanding definitive safety and efficacy data before making any new vaccine recommendations' and that the committee would review safety and efficacy data for the current schedule. However, the moves have been concerning to experts, who noted that several members have been critical of vaccines. The fired panel members have said that their ousting signaled that scientific expertise was 'no longer of use' under Kennedy and that that decision would 'undermine public trust in the vaccine process,' at a time when vaccine hesitancy has led to the spread of measles and other diseases. The new members are set to meet on June 25 to review safety and efficacy data for the current immunization schedule.
The Hill
18 hours ago
- Health
- The Hill
Carville: RFK Jr. ‘is going to kill more people than any Cabinet secretary, maybe in history'
Longtime Democratic strategist James Carville criticized Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s vaccine approach, warning the secretary's policies could have fatal consequences for the country. 'Bobby Kennedy is going to kill more people than any Cabinet secretary, maybe in history, with his idiotic vaccine policy,' Carville said Wednesday in an interview on Fox News Channel's 'The Will Cain Show.' Carville added that vaccines are 'the greatest public health intervention in the history of the world,' and blasted Kennedy for what he characterized as sowing distrust in vaccines. 'He has expressed vaccine skepticism at every point,' Carville said. 'Every notable public health person thinks that vaccines are the greatest public health innovation in the history of the world.' 'What he's doing is going to kill people' Carville said of Kennedy. Kennedy has faced criticism for his recent decision to fire all 17 experts on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) vaccine panel and replace them with eight of his own picks. The move marked a significant downsizing for the independent, expert panel that provides guidance on vaccine recommendations. Some new advisers have been accused of spreading misinformation about vaccines, but Kennedy has lauded the new team as capable. 'The slate includes highly credentialed scientists, leading public-health experts, and some of America's most accomplished physicians. All of these individuals are committed to evidence-based medicine, gold-standard science, and common sense,' he wrote in a post on X. The new members are set to meet June 25 to review safety and efficacy data for the current immunization schedule. The Hill has reached out to HHS for comment.
Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Louisiana state lawmaker challenging Cassidy in GOP primary
Louisiana state Sen. Blake Miguez (R) has launched a primary bid challenging Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) ahead of 2026, adding to a growing field of Republicans vying to unseat the two-term senator. Miguez in his launch video on Tuesday declared Cassidy 'sucks' and prominently features footage of the GOP senator saying he voted to convict President Trump in 2021. The state lawmaker casts himself as a more conservative alternative. 'Do you want a senator you know will have Trump's back? A straight shooter who doesn't flinch when it's time to fight?' Miguez says in the ad, picking up a rifle. 'I'm you're guy. We're done being fooled by weak Republicans.' 'Bill Cassidy had his shot. He missed. I won't,' Miguez adds, firing his gun, which sets off an explosion in the ad. Cassidy's campaign shrugged off Miguez's announcement, saying it wouldn't impact the result of the race. 'Anyone can join this race, but it won't change the outcome — Senator Cassidy will win,' said Cassidy campaign spokeswoman Ashley Bosch in a statement. 'He's a proven conservative fighting alongside President Trump to secure our southern border, unleash American energy, and put America First. Senator Cassidy is fighting to protect our values and delivering real results for Louisiana.' A handful of Republicans are looking to beat Cassidy in next year's elections; among the names running, Treasurer John Fleming and Miguez are among the most notable. Both Fleming and Miguez have positioned themselves as the Trump-aligned, hardline conservative candidate and both are hammering the Louisiana senator for his vote to convict Trump following the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack — a vulnerability for the senator in his red state. The president was ultimately acquitted in the Senate. Cassidy, meanwhile, has sought to align himself with Trump, including helping get some of the president's more controversial nominees, like Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., confirmed. He's also aligned himself with Trump's priorities, suggesting, for example, that he's in favor of shutting down the Education Department. Cassidy is also contending with a different primary system this time around, where he'll have to compete in a Republican primary first before the general election; previously Senate elections used an open primary system where all candidates running for an office ran under one ballot. If no one candidate outright received a majority of the vote, the top two vote-getters would head to a run-off. Louisiana still holds some of its elections using the 'jungle' primary system while other offices, including Senate, go through a closed primary process. Multiple hardline candidates, however, could benefit Cassidy, splitting the vote among more conservative voters and offering Cassidy a potentially easier path to winning the GOP primary. Updated: 10:01 a.m. ET Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
