Beshear asks Trump to remove RFK Jr. as health secretary

In a letter sent Thursday, Kentucky’s governor blames Kennedy for food-borne outbreaks and the return of measles.

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Frankfort, Ky. - Kentucky's governor just asked the president to fire a member of his own cabinet.

In a two-page letter sent Thursday, Gov. Andy Beshear urged President Donald Trump to "immediately remove" Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Secretary of Health and Human Services.

So what does the letter say? Let's walk through it.

Beshear, a Democrat, blames Kennedy for what he calls "a series of preventable foodborne illnesses, recalls, and spikes in infectious diseases." He writes that Kennedy's "failed leadership" has hurt American families and led to "unknown billions in preventable costs."

Beshear writes that "inconsistent and inaccurate public health guidance, funding cuts, and reduction of critical staff, including food inspectors" have made the country less safe. He points to upticks in illnesses involving Salmonella, E. coli, Listeria, Cyclospora and the bacteria that causes botulism.

Then he lists the recalls: infant formula, eye drops, broccoli, prepared pasta meals, cheddar cheese, ricotta cheese, eggs, jalapeños, frozen blueberries and iceberg lettuce.

That last one may sound familiar. This summer's Cyclospora outbreak was traced to iceberg lettuce, and Kentucky was one of the first four states where cases were identified. Beshear's letter says the outbreak sickened more than 12,000 people, hospitalized nearly 600 and led to at least two deaths.

Those numbers line up with the federal count. The CDC's final update on Sept. 11 reported 12,883 illnesses across 21 states, at least 570 hospitalizations and two deaths, both in Michigan. The agency also said the true number of people who got sick was likely higher.

This is where the letter gets sharper. Beshear accuses Kennedy of spreading "dangerous lies and misinformation about vaccines" and ties that directly to the return of diseases most of us thought were behind us.

He writes that the worst measles outbreak in decades "continues to grow, now with over 4,000 cases." The national count may be even higher than the letter says. Kentucky Public Radio reports the CDC now lists more than 5,100 cases, the most since 1991.

Here at home, Kentucky has 211 confirmed measles cases this year, according to Kentucky Public Radio. Fourteen people have been hospitalized. No one in Kentucky has died.

The letter also says whooping cough is on the rise as vaccination rates fall, and that tetanus has recently hit its highest levels in nearly two decades.

The White House is not signaling any change. Spokesperson Allison Schuster told the Kentucky Lantern that both Trump and Kennedy have said vaccination is the best way to prevent measles, and that the administration has encouraged vaccination, coordinated with states and helped get doses out during outbreaks.

What happens now?

Maybe nothing. A governor can ask, but only the president can fire a cabinet secretary. The other route is impeachment, and that's up to Congress.

Beshear's letter asks Trump to pick a replacement who will "strengthen- not weaken- our nation's vital public health infrastructure" and listen to state and local health officials.

He ends it this way: "Kentucky families, and the rest of America, deserve to know their food is safe and our public health institutions are prepared to respond when an outbreak occurs."

You can read the full letter here.

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