RFK Jr. Samoa letters spur calls for Justice Department inquiry
Democratic senators say newly disclosed Samoa letters conflict with Kennedy’s testimony; HHS denies he misled Congress.
By Maya Lindqvist · Senior Technology Correspondent
3 min read
RFK Jr. Samoa letters disclosed by the Guardian and Associated Press have prompted Democratic lawmakers to seek a Justice Department inquiry and demand that Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. leave office. The records appear to conflict with Kennedy’s 2025 Senate testimony about why he traveled to Samoa in 2019, while the Department of Health and Human Services says the trip was unrelated to vaccines.
Sen. Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, said he would press Republican colleagues who control the Senate to make a criminal referral to the Justice Department, according to the Guardian. That is a request for an investigation; neither the Guardian nor Ars Technica reported that the department has opened one.
What do the RFK Jr. Samoa letters show?
The letters were obtained by the Guardian and AP through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, the Guardian reported. In a January 2019 letter to Samoa’s prime minister, Kennedy proposed that he and a team from Children’s Health Defense investigate the country’s measles, mumps and rubella vaccines. The letter used the terms “vaccine” or “vaccination” eight times, according to both the Guardian and Ars Technica.
At his 2025 confirmation hearings, Kennedy told Wyden and Sen. Edward Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat, that the Samoa trip had nothing to do with vaccines, the outlets reported. Ars Technica said Kennedy also described the purpose as introducing a medical-informatics system. Samoa’s prime minister responded in February 2019 by welcoming an independent assessment of the country’s MMR vaccines, according to Ars Technica.
Wyden characterized the documents as evidence Kennedy had lied on the record and called for a criminal referral. Markey said the records showed a pattern of falsehoods and argued Kennedy should not continue to lead HHS. Their statements are allegations, not a finding that Kennedy committed a crime.
- Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, a Maryland Democrat, said Kennedy should resign or be fired, according to the Guardian and Ars Technica.
- Hawaii Gov. Josh Green also called for Kennedy to resign, the Guardian reported.
- American Oversight, a government-watchdog group, separately asked the Justice Department to investigate whether Kennedy made false statements to Congress, according to the Guardian.
HHS previously said Kennedy’s visit was unrelated to vaccines and called claims that he lied under oath or to Congress false and defamatory, the Guardian reported. Kennedy was not under oath at either confirmation hearing, according to the newspaper.
That distinction does not necessarily resolve the legal question. Georgetown Law professor Josh Chafetz told the Guardian that lying to Congress can be a crime whether or not a witness was sworn in, though any prosecution would require executive-branch action. The Guardian reported that the federal limitations period for lying to Congress is five years.
The dispute concerns a visit made while Kennedy led an anti-vaccine organization. Later in 2019, Samoa suffered a measles outbreak that sickened thousands and killed 83 people, largely children under 5, according to the Guardian. The reports describe vaccine hesitancy as a factor in that outbreak but do not establish that Kennedy’s visit legally caused it.
Attorneys cited by the Guardian said a future Democratic majority after the November elections could pursue hearings or an impeachment inquiry, but that remains contingent on the election outcome and would not itself establish criminal wrongdoing.
This story draws on original reporting from Ars Technica.