RFK Jr. Video Ignites Speculation That He Popped a Nicotine Pouch During Confirmation Hearing

Mar. 15, 2025

In his second of two confirmation hearings, PresidentDonald Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Services — who built a recent cult following as an outspoken critic of harmful chemicals — appeared to pop a nicotine pouch while Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell was questioning him.

Infootage of the hearingthat circulated on social media, Kennedy is seen pulling something out of his inside jacket pocket and holding onto it while Cantwell is speaking. Minutes later, between his responses, he appears to remove something that was resting under his left lower lip and then slip another item into his mouth, using his tongue to position it in front of his gum.

RFK Jr. during his second confirmation hearing, appearing to place a nicotine pouch in his mouth.C-SPAN (2)

C-SPAN (2)

The placement of the items was similar to how someone would use nicotine pouches, which are not able to be swallowed — though the video does not show what exactly the nominee put in his mouth.

In the past he has been photographed carrying Zyn-brand nicotine pouches, which quickly fueled the internet’s speculation.

PEOPLE reached out to his spokesperson for comment.

RFK Jr. folded his nontraditional health message into Trump’s political platform when the twojoined forces in August 2024, branding it the “Make America Healthy Again” movement — a spin-off of Trump’s MAGA slogan.

Some of hisfringe proposalsfor achieving a new era of health, though, are at odds with scientific data, which was a repeated concern from senators that arose in his confirmation hearings.

Zyn nicotine pouches.Michael M. Santiago/Getty

Michael M. Santiago/Getty

Zyn nicotine pouches — which have become a popular alternative to smoking cigarettes or vaping, due to their lack of smoke or scent — have been found to contain ammonia, chromium, formaldehyde and nickel, according to a 2023 study fromBMC Chemistry.

Though nicotine pouches are seen as a less destructive alternative to cigarettes, the American Lung Association stated that nicotine — a highly addictive chemical — isharmful in any form.

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The HHS secretary nominee has ahistory of drug use and substance abuse, he shared in a resurfaced interview from July 2024.

In the interview, he admitted he used narcotics to bolster his academic performance, but eventually got sober when he was arrested for heroin possession in 1983.

source: people.com