Kiera Butler

RFK Jr. wants you to know he’s personally responsible for anti-vax misinformation on CDC website He told the New York Times there’s no proof that vaccines don’t cause autism, which is a lie.

In case this wasn't.... matchlessly clear... RFK Jr. told the New York Times he's personally responsible for the new CDC website page claiming that vaccines may cause autism. This is a lie and Kennedy employed tortured logic to try to justify it to the paper. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

“Embarrassing” and “horrifying”: CDC workers describe the new vaccines and autism page "The best way I can put it is it feels like we're on a hijacked airplane."

New from me: I talked to CDC staffers about the new vaccines and autism page. They said things like:

“The best way I can put it is it feels like we’re on a hijacked airplane.”

“I think people are starting to see that we can’t fulfill our mission here.”

How right-wing superstar Riley Gaines built an anti-trans empire The swimmer tied a trans woman for fifth. The MAGA industrial complex took care of the rest.

An incident in a locker room has always been key to Riley Gaines’ anti-trans fame.

But @msjpauly.bsky.social spoke to swimmers who were present at the same 2022 meet. They shared a very different narrative.

The CDC’s new autism page reads like an anti-vax blog RFK Jr. promised to change vaccine policy. This new website shows he has.

Not a drill, folks. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Um

The anti-vax movement's wildest claim yet: Polio wasn't so bad Add this to vaccines make you magnetic, cause AIDS, and measles is not a big deal.

New from me: We have entered an age of polio denialism. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

But wait, there's more

The right can’t decide if it's okay to hate Jews The fallout from Nick Fuentes's appearance on Tucker Carlson continues.

Two of the far-right's favorite pseudo-intellectuals have a new show, and they appear to be trying to beat Nick Fuentes at his own game. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

It's not like he's some random anon, either. 63K followers.

Meanwhile, on X

Totally normal thing for a state surgeon general to post

The many problems with the FDA’s big menopause announcement No, it doesn't kill women or cause divorce.

Great piece on the FDA and menopause hormone therapy in @motherjones.com it is the most medically accurate coverage I have read from the press! www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

The many problems with the FDA’s big menopause announcement No, it doesn't kill women or cause divorce.

The great @kieraevebutler.bsky.social and I took a look at the many problems with the FDA’s big menopause announcement today... including the claims that menopause causes divorce + death, & that the FDA is leading the charge against the "male-dominated medical profession" 🫠

For @motherjones.com:

The many problems with the FDA’s big menopause announcement No, it doesn't kill women or cause divorce.

No, HHS, menopause does not in fact cause divorce and death, but tell us more about how great you are at women's health. @juliannemcshane.bsky.social and I wrote about how they somehow managed to mess up what should have been good news on HRT with weird claims. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Meanwhile, on X

God's "blank check": Christian Zionists are pouring billions of dollars into Israeli extremism Evangelicals have become Israel's most important American allies.

This is a giant yet poorly understood part of the current MAGA infighting. A (very large) faction of the pro-Israel, allegedly pro-Jewish evangelicals believe that the Jews must return to Israel to bring about Jesus' return. (And it doesn't end well for Jews.) www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Dems won. Cue the far-right crash-out. "New York City is now a third-world metropolis wearing the Big Apple as a skin suit.”

I wrote about the far-right temper tantrums over Dems' wins. "This is worse than NYC electing a tranny," one guy wailed. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Food allergy rates are falling. That’s a problem for RFK Jr.’s aluminum vaccine theory. Remember when doctors said keep babies away from peanuts?

My favorite part of reporting this piece was finding out that RFK Jr. once reportedly chaired a fundraiser gala to find a cure for food allergies in the form of...wait for it...a vaccine. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Tucker Carlson’s lovefest with a white nationalist just blew up the Christian right A conversation with Nick Fuentes about Christian Zionism got many MAGA notables upset.

During his interview with Nick Fuentes, Tucker said of Christian Zionists, "I dislike them more than anybody."

“Wasn’t aware that Tucker despises me," tweeted Mike Huckabee. "I do get that a lot from people not familiar with the Bible or history. Somehow, I will survive the animosity.”

Food allergy rates are falling. That’s a problem for RFK Jr.’s aluminum vaccine theory. Remember when doctors said keep babies away from peanuts?

I've been allergic to peanuts, cashews, and pistachios for my whole life. It's a real pain in the butt, so I was thrilled about the news that early exposure to allergens led to food allergy rates plummeting. But RFK Jr. continues to blame allergies on vaccines. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

The bonkers wellness myths that fueled Trump’s autism announcement Tylenol, folate deficiency, and other still-undetermined “environmental factors” were all to blame.

Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson, the maker of Tylenol, over Trump's unfounded autism claims.

To see just how we got here, check out @annamerlan.bsky.social and @kieraevebutler.bsky.social's piece breaking down the origins of this buckwild wellness myth.

Took a look at the new so-called Pentagon "journalists" w/ @annamerlan.bsky.social for @motherjones.com. Here's how they've covered their new overlord and the agency they're tasked w/ reporting on:

www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Scoop: Staffers fear a southern Planned Parenthood faces a “dangerous threat from within” One new leader called herself “pro-life” and another asked about partnering with anti-abortion groups.

To be clear, this story is NOT about another crisis pregnancy center. These exec level people—one said she was pro-life, another asked about partnering with an anti-abortion group—are now leading an actual PLANNED PARENTHOOD chapter. With @byninamartin.bsky.social www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Scoop: Staffers fear a southern Planned Parenthood faces a “dangerous threat from within” One new leader called herself “pro-life” and another asked about partnering with anti-abortion groups.

WTF has been going on at the Planned Parenthood affiliate that serves Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi???? And how is this crisis affecting repro justice work in the region? My latest w/the great @kieraevebutler.bsky.social @motherjones.com
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Scoop: Staffers fear a southern Planned Parenthood faces a “dangerous threat from within” One new leader called herself “pro-life” and another asked about partnering with anti-abortion groups.

One new leader asked a colleague in an email if Planned Parenthood Southeast had ever worked with Students for Life, one of the country's largest anti-abortion groups. (As one activist noted, “That’s like asking if the ACLU has ever partnered with the KKK.”) www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

RFK Should Grill the Pill Though the perceived benefits of birth control are loudly and publicly celebrated, its costs need to be fully exposed.

The American Mind, a Claremont publication, is coming for birth control, declaring in a new article by Scott Yenor that the birth control pill has had “grave consequences for our society...” 10/20/25… 1/ americanmind.org/salvo/rfk-sh...

Scoop: Staffers fear a southern Planned Parenthood faces a “dangerous threat from within” One new leader called herself “pro-life” and another asked about partnering with anti-abortion groups.

One of the new leaders of Planned Parenthood Southeast said she was pro-life. Another complained that the group was focusing on abortion. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Scoop: Staffers fear a southern Planned Parenthood faces a “dangerous threat from within” One new leader called herself “pro-life” and another asked about partnering with anti-abortion groups.

NEW: With the great Nina Martin, I wrote about bombshell allegations about a Planned Parenthood chapter in the South that has been taken over by new leaders with conservative connections. One new leader has even described herself as "pro-life." www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

The surveillance empire that tracked world leaders, a Vatican enemy, and maybe you We uncovered a massive data trove. It revealed the hidden world of First Wap, whose untraceable tech has targeted politicians, journalists, celebrities, and activists around the globe.

18 months

14 newsrooms

70 journalists

1 groundbreaking investigation into a global surveillance empire whose phone-tracking software has targeted world leaders, corporate executes, journalists, activists, celebrities…and maybe even you ow.ly/2LUF50Xb7KE #surveillancesecrets

On the Front Line of the Fluoride Wars, Debate Over Drinking Water Treatment Turns Raucous After decades of fluoridating drinking water to improve public health, some communities are wavering on the practice. In one Michigan county, the medical director is mirroring Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s ...

After decades of fluoridating drinking water to improve public health, some communities are wavering on the practice. In one Michigan county, the medical director is mirroring Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s efforts against fluoridation. @annaleighclark.bsky.social