COLUMBUS, Ga. (WRBL) — In a news conference Thursday, U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff addressed media members and demanded U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s resignation.
Kennedy faced pointed bipartisan questioning during a three-hour Senate committee hearing on Thursday and defended his reasoning on pulling back COVID-19 vaccine recommendations.
Ossoff held an in-person press conference with Congressional colleagues, addressing RFK Jr. and Donald Trump.
"The destruction of the CDC in Georgia, the systematic dismantling of American public health is putting children and families across the country at risk every single day," Ossoff said. "This is chaos. It is out of control. And every day this continues, more and more Americans are put at risk by Mr. Kennedy's radical and incoherent ideology."
U.S. Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock (D-GA), who was among the Senate committee hearing on Thursday, also demanded the resignation of Kennedy and called for President Trump to fire him.
"You are a hazard to the health of the American people. I think that you ought to resign. And if you do not resign, the President of the United States, who put forward Operation Warp Speed, which worked, should fire you," Warnock said to Kennedy in the hearing.
It all comes after Susan Monarez was fired from her role as CDC director.
Kennedy said the fired CDC director was untrustworthy and stood by his past anti-vaccine rhetoric, while disputing reports of people, who are saying that they have had difficulty getting COVID-19 shots.
"I defend the CDC not just because those who work there are my constituents, but because it is the most important disease-fighting agency not just in the country but in the world, with unmatched capabilities and responsibility. And the CDC has been systematically demolished since Mr. Kennedy was sworn in," Ossoff said.
He added, "agency morale is at rock bottom. A quarter of the workforce has been pushed out. It is an agency known for its tenacity and precision and capacity that is now totally in chaos by design. And every day this continues, the damage is compounded. It is time for Mr. Kennedy to resign."
During a line of questioning in the hearing, Warnock pressed Kennedy on his beliefs that he believes are dismantling the nation's public infrastructure.
"Despite your lack of credentials and expertise, clearly, you have an agenda. It is a threat to the public health of the American people. It's clear that you are carrying out your extremist beliefs," Warnock said.
Democrats continue to express hostility toward Kennedy as he continues to push back on the ongoing concerns.
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