Democratic Colorado governor commends Trump for nominating RFK Jr. as HHS secretary

Democratic Colorado Gov. Jared Polis praised President-elect Trump for nominating Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to be the next secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.

In a lengthy social media post on Thursday, Polis praised Kennedy for helping Colorado “defeat vaccine mandates” in 2019 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“He helped us defeat vaccine mandates in Colorado in 2019 and will help make America healthy again by shaking up HHS and FDA,” he wrote. 

“I hope he leans into personal choice on vaccines rather than bans (which I think are terrible, just like mandates) but what I’m most optimistic about is taking on big pharma and the corporate ag oligopoly to improve our health,” Polis said.

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Colorado Gov. Jared Polis speaks on stage during the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 21, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois.  (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Trump announced his nomination of RFK Jr. for HHS secretary Thursday afternoon, igniting a firestorm of praise and critique.

In his announcement, Trump promised that, with Kennedy leading the HHS, the agency would be restored as the “Gold Standard Scientific Research.”

“For too long, Americans have been crushed by the industrial food complex and drug companies who have engaged in deception, misinformation, and disinformation when it comes to Public Health,” Trump wrote. “Mr. Kennedy will restore these Agencies to the traditions of Gold Standard Scientific Research, and beacons of Transparency, to end the Chronic Disease epidemic, and to Make America Great and Healthy Again!”

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump shakes hands with Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at a campaign rally at the Desert Diamond Arena, Friday, Aug. 23, 2024, in Glendale, Ariz.  (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Kennedy launched his presidential campaign as a Democrat and then eventually endorsed Trump. 

Kennedy also spoke during Trump’s historic Madison Square Garden rally last month, where he unleashed on the current state of the Democratic Party.

“The Democratic Party is the party of war. It’s the party of the CIA. You had Kamala Harris giving a speech at the Democratic convention that was written by neocons. It was belligerent, pugnacious. It talked about domination of the world by the United States through our weapons of war. It’s the party today that wants to divide Americans. It’s a party that is dismantling women’s sports by letting men play women’s sports,” he said. 

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“It’s the party of Wall Street. It’s the party of Bill Gates, who just gave $50 million to Harris. It’s the party, and the Harris campaign is very proud that it received the endorsement of 50 former CIA agents and officers and of John Bolton and of Dick Cheney.”

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced ‘No Spoiler’ pledge for the upcoming elections at a campaign stop. RFK Jr. announced that only he could defeat Donald Trump in the general election in November and demanded that President Joe Biden step aside.  (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)

This isn’t the first time Kennedy was considered for a Cabinet position for a presidential administration. Back in 2008, then President-elect Obama reportedly strongly considered naming Kennedy to lead the Environmental Protection Agency, Politico reported at the time. 

Polis has been critical of a Trump presidency. He recently joined forces with Illinois Gov. J.B Pritzker to co-chair a new coalition called Governors Safeguarding Democracy.

The website names “fast-moving disinformation campaigns” and “cyberthreats” as examples of “threats to our democracy.”

“Donald Trump is going to bring people into his administration who are absolute loyalists to his cult of personality and not necessarily to the law,” Pritzker said, according to the New York Times. “Last time, he didn’t really know where the levers of government were. I think he probably does now. And so I think that the threat remains great.”

Left: Colorado Gov. Jared Polis speaks to members of the media in the spin room following the first vice presidential debate at the CBS Broadcast Center in New York, on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024; Right: Ill. Gov. J. B. Pritzker attends the Clinton Global Initiative 2024 Annual Meeting at New York Hilton Midtown on Sept. 24, 2024 in New York City.  (Left: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images; Right: John Nacion/Getty Images;)

During an appearance on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Polis said of Trump, “we’re gonna work with him and his administration however we can for our state.” 

Polis echoed his sentiments, writing on X that he looks forward to “partnering with him to truly make America healthy again.”

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“He will face strong special interest opposition on these, but I look forward to partnering with him to truly make America healthy again,” Polis added. 

Fox News Digital’s Greg Wehner and Alex Nitzberg contributed to this report.