In The Politics of Autism, I analyze the myth that vaccines cause autism. This bogus idea can hurt people by allowing diseases to spread. Examples include measles, COVID, flu, and polio.
A number of posts discussed Trump's support for the discredited notion.
Another leading anti-vaxxer is Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. He has repeatedly compared vaccine mandates to the Holocaust. Rolling Stone and Salon retracted an RFK article linking vaccines to autism. He is part of the "Disinformation Dozen." He helped cause a deadly 2019 measles outbreak in Samoa.
Katie Suleta at the American Council on Science and Health:
In April 2025, RFK Jr. held a press conference during which he made several unsubstantiated claims. Most relevant to the new Autism Data Science Initiative: “We know it’s an environmental exposure. It has to be. Genes do not cause epidemics.”
He also called studying genetic causes a “dead end.” These statements certainly imply that RFK Jr. believes he knows the causes of ASD, which leads to the second point regarding the motivation behind this initiative. The projects seem to have a theme. See if you can spot it.“Research supported by NIH and others has shown a strong genetic component to autism risk. However, nongenetic factors—such as environmental exposures and maternal health conditions—are less well understood. Projects will investigate a wide range of influences, including environmental contaminants such as pesticides and air pollutants, maternal nutrition and diet, perinatal complications, psychosocial stress, and immune responses during pregnancy and early development.”While the press release pays lip service to genetic components in ASD, the projects are very much geared towards environmental factors, RFK Jr.’s belief. To be clear, I'm not saying that we shouldn't study the environmental contributions to ASD further. The problem is that most researchers believe the cause is largely genetic, with some environmental factors contributing to it. However, for RFK Jr., this nuance appears to be absent.
- NIH Press Release on Autism Data Science Initiative
I do not wish to discredit the scientists working on the thirteen funded projects. Quite the opposite. Thankfully, they are largely respected career scientists in the field of ASD research. They come from reputable institutions. These are the people who are better suited than most to quickly pivot to the administration's changing whims and expectations, ensuring that their work can continue. If anyone is up to the challenge, it’s them. My gripe is with the underlying motivations and understandings of the initiative.
