New records challenge RFK Jr.'s claim that Samoa trip wasn't about vaccines

New documents obtained by the AP and The Guardian raise questions about Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s testimony during his confirmation as Health Secretary, showing a 2019 letter to Samoa’s prime minister discussed studying Samoa’s MMR vaccines and potential vaccine issues before his visit. Kennedy had repeatedly said the Samoa trip was unrelated to vaccines, but the letters suggest a vaccine-related purpose and contributed to scrutiny of whether he lied to Congress. The DHHS maintains the trip was not vaccine-related, even as the broader episode ties into the measles outbreak in Samoa and Kennedy’s anti‑vaccine past, fueling calls for accountability as the political stakes of his confirmation linger.