RFK Jr. BATHS IN RAW SEWAGE TO OWN THE LIBS
On Sunday, May 11, 2025, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made waves—literally and figuratively—by immersing himself and his grandchildren in Rock Creek, a Washington, D.C. waterway flagged by the National Park Service (NPS) as a public health hazard due to dangerously high levels of bacteria.
Kennedy, 71, shared photos of the stunt on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), featuring images of him submerged in the contaminated creek and holding his young grandchildren, whose feet dangled precariously in the tainted water. “Mother’s Day hike in Dumbarton Oaks Park… and a swim with my grandchildren,” he wrote, alongside smiling family portraits that belied the literal sewage surrounding them.
Rock Creek has long been under a strict ban on swimming and wading due to pollution, including runoff from Washington’s centuries-old sewer infrastructure. According to the National Park Service, “dangerous levels of bacteria” and “infectious pathogens” in the creek pose risks to both humans and pets. The District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority recently reported a 200-foot fracture in a nearby sewer tunnel that exacerbates the contamination risk.
Rather than heed the warnings of his own federal colleagues, Kennedy chose to plunge into the biohazardous stream as part of his Mother’s Day festivities. His defenders claim the moment was symbolic—a gesture of environmental connection. But critics are appalled, calling it a hazardous PR stunt that flouts basic public health messaging.
This isn’t Kennedy’s first dive into dangerous waters—metaphorically or otherwise. As the author of The Real Anthony Fauci, a 2021 conspiracy-laden screed, Kennedy has pushed a long history of pseudoscientific claims. He has falsely stated that the MMR vaccine contains “aborted fetus debris” and most recently proposed allowing bird flu to naturally spread among infected flocks instead of culling them, saying the diseased birds should be allowed to “breed resistance.”
His tenure at HHS has been marred by public distrust and professional dissent. In March 2025, Dr. Peter Marks, a leading FDA vaccine official, publicly resigned, citing Kennedy’s toxic leadership and deliberate spread of misinformation. “Truth and transparency are not desired by the Secretary,” Marks wrote in his resignation letter. “He wishes subservient confirmation of his lies.”
Public health experts warn that Kennedy’s swim sends a dangerous message, especially as climate-related runoff and aging infrastructure continue to exacerbate water quality concerns in urban areas. The Hill recently reported on the infrastructural decay surrounding Rock Creek and other D.C. waterways, citing decades of neglect and underfunding (source).
Kennedy’s family lineage may be political royalty, but critics argue that his actions reflect the arrogance of someone who believes he is immune—not only to germs but to accountability. While he portrays himself as a maverick fighting for “truth,” his behavior repeatedly undermines science, endangers others, and exemplifies a disturbing willingness to perform reckless theater for the camera.
RFK Jr. never fails to out-weird himself.