What kind of healthcare did American women really want when they deserted Kamala?

Rebekah Bills

November 15, 2024 7 Reactions

The former Democrat turned Trump supporter speaks right to the heart of the issues that crunchy, and even not so crunchy mothers, worry about.

In recent years, several trends call into question the food, medical, and pharmaceutical industries that RFK has vowed to reform. 

First, many polls have shown that vaccine scepticism has increased dramatically since the pandemic. According to a recent Gallup poll, only 40 percent of Americans consider vaccines extremely important to the wellbeing of their children, a dramatic shift from in 2019 when this was true for more than half of Americans.

Even before COVID, RFK was lobbying for mercury to be removed from childhood vaccinations. Kennedy’s vaccine scepticism resonates with Americans who regard vaccines critically, forgo certain vaccines, or avoid them altogether.

Second, RFK’s worry about ultra-processed foods is shared by many mothers. The popularity of organic produce and rejection of processed foods have grown stronger in recent years. “Seed oils,” one of the more highly processed and ubiquitous food ingredients, was a word almost unheard of just a few years ago, and now households are seeking alternatives. The most dramatic example is the recent return of raw milk.

The third factor is distrust of doctors and Big Pharma in the face of a growing mental and chronic health crisis. A studythis August by Northeastern University showed that faith in medical professionals has been declining over the past four years, falling from 71.5 percent in April 2020 to only 40.1 percent in January 2024. Many studies have shown that women feel gaslit and ignored by doctors. Add to this the rising mental health crisis and chronic illness crisis and you have a crisis of confidence in the medical profession.

Fourth, a growing number of women think that holistic, alternative, and nutritional health has been sidestepped in favour of quick-fix drugs. RFK has questioned the motives of the pharmaceutical and medical industry, drawing attention to the fact that the more chronic illness and drug-dependency there is, the more money it makes. He has vowed to root out corruption in the medical profession and Big Pharma.

As a mother myself, I can attest that no one feels these concerns more acutely than we do. Mothers on both sides of the political aisle can join hands on this. We are worried to death.

The Democrats made a huge mistake in defining women’s healthcare as abortion labeled as reproductive healthcare. Most women in the US are mothers, and for most moms their children’s health is paramount. For all the left’s talk about abortion and women’s health, perhaps the female vote was more interested in the health and wellbeing of their children. It’s no wonder RFK’s promise of a healthier America resonated with them.  

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Rebekah Bills served four years as a civilian intelligence officer in the Defense Intelligence Agency, earning 6 Individual Act Awards, DIA’s Science and Technology Mission Enabler Award, and the Director’s Personal Coin. Now—her best assignment to date—she cares for her two young sons, Gabriel and Emmanuel, and her exuberant Great Dane puppy, Beowulf.

Image credit: Kennedy MAHA press kit