Report: Trump Has Eye on Mehmet Oz as Possible RFK Jr. Successor
Key Takeaways
- •The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump believes Kennedy is not doing his job and may be nearing the end of his tenure.
- •Dr. Mehmet Oz, who leads the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, is being viewed inside the White House as a possible successor to Kennedy.
- •The report said Oz regularly speaks with Trump on health-policy issues and has helped advise him on matters including marijuana restrictions.
- •Kennedy has faced a management review at HHS, with two senior leaders reassigned and his advisory team restructured.
- •The report said Kennedy hopes to remain secretary and potentially stay on into the next presidential administration.
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. may be out of a job sooner rather than later, with President Donald Trump reportedly already having selected a possible successor.
According to a Wall Street Journal report on Trump’s pressure on the controversial Cabinet member to intensify studies linking childhood vaccines to autism, the president believes Kennedy is not "doing his job" and may be nearing the end of his tenure.
The Journal reported that Trump has begun grooming Dr. Mehmet Oz, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services administrator, as a potential replacement for Kennedy. White House insiders and HHS staff privately speculate that Oz could eventually take over, possibly after the midterm elections, which the report described as a "traditional time" for cabinet reshuffles.
"The president often calls or texts Oz on health policy matters that have nothing to do with his agency, people familiar with the matter said, and Oz takes responsibility for ensuring the president gets what he wants," the report said. It added, "Oz advised the president on marijuana ahead of an executive order in December to loosen restrictions on the drug, some of the people said. Oz, an adept surrogate for the administration on TV and in the halls of Congress, is also a favorite of the White House staff."
Kennedy has faced scrutiny for months. Last winter, White House aides launched a "top-to-bottom review" of his department management amid infighting between HHS and the FDA, underscoring how the department’s internal tensions have continued to draw attention beyond any single policy fight. Two top leaders were reassigned, and Kennedy’s advisory team was restructured.
This summer, the MAHA movement was thrown into confusion after rumors spread across social media that Kennedy was about to leave his post. Dr. Robert Malone, a Kennedy associate, posted on X that Kennedy would depart after July 4 and that Oz was leading a transition team.
Oz later appeared at an exclusive gathering near the White House to say the story was false, the Journal reported.
Kennedy’s son, Robert F. Kennedy III, was also said to have told attendees, "My dad's not a quitter!"
The report said Kennedy wants to "survive" and "even to stay on as secretary into the next president’s administration, according to people familiar with his thinking."