A new wave of attacks from conservatives is further threatening President Donald Trump’s pick for surgeon general — and testing the power of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Make America Healthy Again campaign to tackle chronic disease.
Casey Means’ nomination had already been blocked in the Senate over concerns that she was insufficiently supportive of vaccines, and now Republican factions ranging from anti-abortion activists to anti-drug warriors have begun to rally.
The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, the policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention, the largest and most influential Protestant denomination, senate health committeebut urged senators","Add":{"Target": :"New","Property":(),"url": :"https://erlc.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/ERLC-Urges-Opposition-to-Dr.-Casey-Means-Nomination.pdf","_Identification": :"0000019d-b17f-d2fb-a39d-b17f1ed00002","_Type": :"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_Identification": :"0000019d-b17f-d2fb-a39d-b17f1ed00003","_Type": :"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>Urged senators on Senate health committee The vote against Means was due to comments he made about the abortion drug mifepristone during his confirmation hearing earlier this month.
When pressed about whether mifepristone prescriptions should require in-person doctor visits—one of the top federal policy demands of abortion opponents—it largely sidestepped, saying the question was “outside the scope of the Office of the Surgeon General.”
Southern Baptists also took issue with Means’ embrace of psychedelics, calling him an “open flaunting of formerly illegal drug use.” Means’ book, “Good Energy”, has encouraged the “intentional, directed” use of psilocybin – the active compound in magic mushrooms – as a tool to improve mental health, and he has spoken about his positive personal experiences with the substance, which is illegal to possess or possess under federal law.
As MHA advocates push top white house","Add":{"Target": :"New","Property":(),"url": :"https://subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2026/04/the-white-house-makes-amends-with-maha-00866476","_Identification": :"0000019d-b17f-d2fb-a39d-b17f1ed00004","_Type": :"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_Identification": :"0000019d-b17f-d2fb-a39d-b17f1ed00005","_Type": :"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>push the white house over the top Officials sought to solidify his nomination, and Kennedy used his marathon run of congressional hearings to give Means an enthusiastic endorsement, fearing his rejection would raise questions about the movement’s influence within the Republican Party. The fight over who should serve as the nation’s top doctor also highlights tensions within the coalition that Trump believes will lead to a GOP victory in 2024, pitting new MHA arrivals against social conservatives who have long been pillars of the GOP.
Americans United for Life spokesman Gavin Oxley told Politico, “If Dr. Means has any chance to save her nomination, she must come out against mail-order abortion and show congressional leaders and the American public that she is willing to take the office seriously.”
Another anti-abortion leader, who granted anonymity to discuss private conversations, said an anti-Means lobbying campaign is going on under the radar on Capitol Hill, with activists telling senators in private meetings that Means is too soft on their policy priorities. Yet, given the increasingly strained relations, activists have not approached the White House with their concerns.","Add":{"Target": :"New","Property":(),"url": :"https://www.politico.com/news/2026/01/15/abortion-opponents-revamp-their-midterms-plans-as-rift-with-trump-videns-00729224","_Identification": :"0000019d-b17f-d2fb-a39d-b17f1ed00006","_Type": :"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_Identification": :"0000019d-b17f-d2fb-a39d-b17f1ed00007","_Type": :"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>increasingly strained relationships Between abortion opponents and the Trump administration.
“There is certainly resentment and hesitation about someone’s background, beliefs, and lack of commitment to the values that the pro-life movement holds as important,” the leader said. “But the complicating factor is that some vigorous groups, including the Heritage Foundation and Students for Life, have tried to cooperate with the MHA in various ways and so they are concerned about burning that newly-built bridge.”
Means’s views on drugs have also sparked outrage.
He and several other Republicans besides Kennedy have touted psychedelics as a promising mental health treatment and called for making access to them easier, drawing a sharp reaction from the law-and-order wing of the party. Trump signed an executive order on Saturday directing federal agencies to expedite research and FDA approval of certain psychedelic drugs like ibogaine.
Advancing American Freedom, founded by former Vice President Mike Pence, has spent several months seeking to sink Means’ nomination in part because of his use of psychedelics.
“Even in the age of medical experimentation, this should give senators pause,” Mark Short, chairman of the Pence group and former director of legislative affairs during Trump’s first term, wrote in an op-ed. Washington PostOp-ed in","Add":{"Target": :"New","Property":(),"url": :"https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2026/03/20/surgeon-general-casey-means-nomination/","_Identification": :"0000019d-b17f-d2fb-a39d-b17f1ed00008","_Type": :"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_Identification": :"0000019d-b17f-d2fb-a39d-b17f1ed00009","_Type": :"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>Op-ed in Washington Post Last month. “Many Americans still look to the Surgeon General for serious, evidence-based guidance on everything from opioid abuse to mental health.”
Her brother and Kennedy adviser Kelly Means, speaking at the Politico Health Summit on Tuesday, said he thinks Republicans will “do the right thing” for his nomination. But the GOP’s pro- and anti-Casey Means factions are currently at an impasse.
The three Republican senators on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee are handling Means’ nomination – bill cassidy of louisiana, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Maine susan collins – He has refused to say whether he will support Means since his confirmation hearing. And committee Chairman Cassidy has not scheduled a vote to advance them to the full Senate.
Murkowski said she was concerned by the evasive responses given during the hearing about promoting vaccinations. Collins questioned him sharply about his use of psychedelics. Cassidy declined to comment.
Yet a Republican Senate aide, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations, said Means’ problems extend far beyond those three members. While Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) has publicly said he is leaning against Means, the aide said, adding that many others are similarly opposed, but sees no reason to risk the wrath of the administration or MHA by speaking out while the nomination is in limbo.
“If Republicans had the votes they would have already voted,” the aide said. “The reason the Assistance Committee has not yet taken action is because Means lacks the votes in the House.”
When rep. julia letlowCassidy’s primary opponent, raised the fight over Means at a House hearing last week, with Kennedy calling the Surgeon General nominee “the most articulate, eloquent and erudite propagandist of the MAHA movement.”
Kennedy said, “She’s going to help our country, and the only thing that can stop it is the lack of integrity, the lack of courage and the tribalism that is polarizing and destroying our country.”
Letlow has also repeatedly cited Cassidy’s refusal to schedule a vote on Means as she campaigns against him ahead of the May 16 primary.
Meanwhile, as the Senate deadlock continues, the Trump administration is sending mixed signals about its dedication to pursuing Means’ nomination.
Last month, President appeared open to","Add":{"Target": :"New","Property":(),"url": :"https://subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2026/03/trump-noncommittal-on-surgeon-general-pick-amid-stalled-nomination-00849923","_Identification": :"0000019d-b17f-d2fb-a39d-b17f1ed10000","_Type": :"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_Identification": :"0000019d-b17f-d2fb-a39d-b17f1ed10001","_Type": :"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>appeared open to He withdrew his nomination, saying that there were several other “great candidates” for the position. Yet the White House walked back that statement a few days later and invited several MAHA leaders to the White House in April.
Influencer Kelly Ryerson, known online as “Glyphosate Girl,” said she made it clear at that gathering that failure to confirm Means would be “not good for MAHA morale,” at a time when the movement was already angry with Republicans.","Add":{"Target": :"New","Property":(),"url": :"https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/20/maha-unleashes-on-white-house-after-trump-backs-pestIDE-00790187","_Identification": :"0000019d-b17f-d2fb-a39d-b17f1ed10002","_Type": :"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_Identification": :"0000019d-b17f-d2fb-a39d-b17f1ed10003","_Type": :"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>already angry with republicans.
MAHA advocacy groups have asked their followers to call senators and pressure them to confirm Means. But GOP Senate aides said the wave has not yet materialized.
“The number of those calls far exceeds the number of calls from people concerned about other issues, primarily the war in Iran,” the employee said.
