Alsobrooks Calls for Kennedy's Resignation

Maryland Sen. Angela Alsobrooks says the HHS secretary must resign or be fired, as her campaign has drawn pharma-linked donations.

Updated on Nov. 7, 2026 in Healthcare

Bold flat-color editorial illustration of a plain federal government building facade with a single motionless flag under overcast sky, in deep red, cream, and slate. — Maryland Sen. Angela Alsobrooks called on Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to resign or be fired, as her campaign has received donations from over a dozen pharmaceutical-linked PACs. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Maryland Democratic Sen. Angela Alsobrooks posted on X on Wednesday that Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. must resign or be fired. Her campaign has received contributions from more than a dozen pharmaceutical-linked political action committees.

Why it matters

The call comes as health and pharmaceutical sources account for a notable share of the senator's campaign money, raising questions about the intersection of industry donations and federal health oversight. The dispute reflects broader scrutiny of how drug-industry contributions relate to lawmakers who oversee health policy.

Health and pharmaceutical sources supplied 21% of the $1.4 million in Alsobrooks's 2026 campaign donations, according to FEC records. The largest single listed contributor was a Pfizer employee PAC giving $10,000, followed by $5,500 from the Johnson and Johnson PAC and $5,000 each from AstraZeneca and AbbVie.

The players

Angela Alsobrooks

Maryland's junior Democratic senator, who has questioned federal health leadership and whose campaign received substantial pharmaceutical-linked donations.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

The U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, whose vaccine policies and agency leadership have drawn sustained congressional and public scrutiny.

The details

Alsobrooks made the call in a post on X, days after she questioned Kennedy at a May 2025 hearing on reproductive technology. The post followed Kennedy's October opening of a vaccine injury research clinic at the National Institutes of Health in the Washington, D.C. area.

May 2025: Alsobrooks questioned Kennedy at a hearing on reproductive technology.
Oct. 5: Kennedy opened a vaccine injury research clinic at NIH.
Nov. 6: Alsobrooks posted on X calling for Kennedy's resignation or firing.

Industry Dynamics

Campaign finance disclosures filed with the Federal Election Commission make it possible to trace pharmaceutical PAC giving to individual senators who oversee health agencies. This case places a senator's donation profile directly alongside her call for the removal of the federal official who regulates the drug industry.

Pharmaceutical industry donations to lawmakers who oversee drug regulation are disclosed publicly through FEC filings that voters can review. Readers can check their own representatives' campaign finance reports to see how much health-sector money has been contributed.

The takeaway

Campaign finance records give voters a direct way to see which industries fund the lawmakers who shape health policy. Reviewing those disclosures can help readers judge the context behind public statements from elected officials.