Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his MAHA goons are plotting to unseat a key nemesis, Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, in next week’s Louisiana primary, according to Axios.
Cassidy, who chairs the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, was a pivotal vote in Kennedy’s confirmation. But the pro-vaccine Louisiana senator, who trained as a physician, has since criticized Kennedy’s efforts to overhaul health policy.
Cassidy also helped block two of Kennedy’s preferred nominees for top health department roles: Casey Means for surgeon general, and former Florida GOP Rep. Dave Weldon, Kennedy’s initial pick to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Kennedy and his Make America Healthy Again allies now see Cassidy as a threat, and they’re looking to ensure Cassidy’s defeat in the May 16 primary, where he faces challenges from Rep. Julia Letlow and former Rep. John Fleming.
President Donald Trump also targeted Cassidy after the senator voted to convict him during his second impeachment trial. Letlow was endorsed by Trump and the Kennedy-aligned MAHA PAC in January.
“The gloves are off,” one person familiar with Kennedy’s thinking told Axios.
Tony Lyons, the president of the MAHA PAC, described Cassidy as an “existential threat to every child in America” who “must be stopped.”
A source close to Cassidy’s campaign downplayed the effort, telling Axios: “It’s a totally irrelevant factor. We polled all sorts of MAHA issues and it’s entirely an internet phenomenon.”
The president endorsed Letlow against Cassidy in January, a move that reportedly surprised several Republican senators and Letlow herself.
“I know Julia well, have seen her tested at the highest and most difficult levels, and she is a TOTAL WINNER! A Proud Mother of two children, Julia is a wonderful person, has ALWAYS delivered for Louisiana, and would continue doing so in the United States Senate,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Cassidy responded on X: “I’m proudly running for re-election as a principled conservative who gets things done for the people of Louisiana. If Congresswoman Letlow decides to run I am confident I will win.”
The Daily Beast has reached out to representatives for Cassidy and the Department of Health and Human Services for comment.
