The measles outbreak has prompted politicians to speak out on the debate over vaccinations.
On Tuesday’s Rundown, Wisconsin Congressman Sean Duffy shared his perspective on whether parents should vaccinate their children.
“For me, I want that to be my choice as a parent,” the Republican congressman said, “and you know what? I know my kids best. I know what morals and values are right for my children and I think we should not have an oppressive state telling us what to do.”
Duffy added that although measles vaccination should be each a parent’s choice, he understood that the community might have a different choice. “Your community might say that if you don’t vaccinate your children we can’t send them to the public school. That may be the community’s option,” he said.
Duffy joins several high-profile Republican lawmakers who have also spoken out recently on the debate, from Gov. Chris Christie to Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, who said Monday in an interview on CNBC that vaccines should be “voluntary” as they could lead to mental disorders.
On Monday, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton also added her voice to the vaccine debate, tweeting: “The science is clear: The earth is round, the sky is blue, and #vaccineswork. Let’s protect all our kids. #GrandmothersKnowBest”
Watch the full interview with Rep. Sean Duffy in the video player above and share your thoughts on our Facebook page.
Nicole Acevedo
I am a bilingual national reporter specializing in issues affecting Latino communities in the U.S., the Caribbean and Latin America. Experience I have produced hundreds of stories across digital, radio and broadcast platforms throughout my career — reporting on everything from elections, natural disasters and immigration to pop culture trends, social justice issues and breaking news. I'm best known for my coverage of the crises affecting Puerto Rico, including its reconstruction process after Hurricane Maria, the island’s financial crisis and more. After graduating from the Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University with a bachelor's degree in broadcast and digital journalism in 2016, I joined the inaugural cohort of students who helped launch the Spanish-language bilingual journalism master’s program at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY. Awards I was a 2024 finalist for the NAHJ/University of Florida award in investigative journalism for my reporting uncovering the challenges Puerto Rican families face in caring for their elders, given that the island’s population is aging faster than most places on Earth and fragmented by migration. I served as the lead reporter and writer of NBC News' 2022 Hispanic Heritage Month project “Who’s Latino? Amid growing numbers the definition is expanding,” which was awarded an NAHJ Ñ Award for best Latino issues story for print/digital.