President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary. Kennedy, an environmental attorney and former presidential candidate, has promised to overhaul HHS staff, eliminate liability protections for drug companies, and remove fluoride from water. He endorses conspiracy theories, including one that routine vaccines can cause children to develop autism.He's also suggested barring drugmakers from TV advertising and redirecting the public health focus from infectious diseases to chronic diseases including obesity, diabetes, and mental illness.Scientists and medical professionals have criticized the nomination."I think this is an extraordinarily bad choice," former Biden White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha said in an interview. "Let the scientists in those agencies make those determinations. RFK Jr. has given us all the signals that he does not plan to do that."Following through on a campaign promise, Trump directed praise and remarks to Kennedy during Mar-a-Lago gala on Thursday."We want you to come up with things and ideas and what you've been talking about for a long time," Trump said. "I think you're going to do some unbelievable things. Nobody's gonna be able to do it like you."Trump has made similar comments before, openly suggesting appointing Kennedy to the position.In an election-eve rally in November, Trump said he would allow Kennedy to "go wild" on public health. Both have campaigned together on the slogan "Make American Healthy Again.""Bobby's pretty much going to do what he wants," Trump said. "I want him to do something really important for our country that makes people healthier." Others, including Republican lawmakers and known Trump loyalists, have praised the nomination."He's uniting the country and he's carrying out the agenda that the American people elected him to do," Senator-elect Jim Banks, (R) Indiana said.Kennedy reacted to his appointment online, writing about his commitment to "clean up corruption" and "return health agencies to the tradition of gold-standard, evidence-based science."