Trump has not ruled out a ban on vaccines if he becomes president

Former President Donald Trump said Robert F. Kennedy Jr. would play a “major role in government” if he wins on Tuesday. He told NBC News in a telephone interview that he is open to some of his more controversial ideas.

Kennedy, who ran for president this year as an independent before dropping his bid and endorsing Trump, has long spread conspiracies and falsehoods about vaccines and other public health issues. For example, he has often claimed that vaccines are linked to autism, even though studies have debunked this theory for decades.

When asked on Sunday whether banning certain vaccines would be an option during a second term, Trump did not rule it out.

“Well, I’m going to talk to Kennedy and talk to other people and I’ll make a decision, but he’s a very talented man and has strong opinions,” Trump said.

Trump declined to talk about specific roles Kennedy could play in a second administration, but in recent public appearances he has made clear he envisions a prominent role.

“He can do anything he wants,” Trump said at an event in Arizona on Thursday.

He said Kennedy was “going to work on women’s health and health,” and two sources close to the Trump campaign have told NBC News that he could potentially play a prominent role in the fight against “chronic childhood diseases.”

On Friday, Kennedy tweeted that a Trump administration would push for a ban on fluoride in water on its first day in office, claiming it is “industrial waste” that leads to problems like cancer and other diseases.

“Well, I haven’t talked to him about it yet, but it seems OK to me,” Trump said on Sunday when asked about that plan. “You know, it’s possible.”

Major public health groups support water fluoridation, and health groups also emphasize that the practice is safe.

The Trump team has embraced Kennedy and some of his fringe views in recent days.

Last week, Howard Lutnick, co-chair of the Trump transition team, praised Kennedy and questioned whether vaccines were “good.”

On an episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience” last week, Ohio Senator JD Vance, Trump’s running mate, also spoke about his experience with the Covid vaccine and expressed skepticism about it.