On the day after remarks by Sen. Rand Paul and Gov. Chris Christie seemed to raise questions about whether children should be vaccinated, other potential contenders for the presidency lined up to make clear their support for vaccines and the science behind them.
“Children, of course, should be vaccinated,” said Sen. Ted Cruz, the Texas Republican, according to USA Today. “This issue is largely silliness stirred up by the media … Nobody reasonably thinks Chris Christie is opposed to vaccinating kids, other than a bunch of reporters who want to write headlines.”
During a trip to the United Kingdom on Monday, Christie provoked significant political backlash when he seemed to suggest that parents should have a choice in whether to vaccinate their children.
“But I also understand that parents need to have some measure of choice in things as well, so that’s the balance that the government has to decide,” Christie said after affirming his personal support for vaccines.
His spokesman Kevin Roberts later clarified the governor’s remarks: “To be clear: The governor believes vaccines are an important public health protection, and with a disease like measles, there is no question kids should be vaccinated. At the same time, different states require different degrees of vaccination, which is why he was calling for balance in which ones government should mandate.”
Christie’s comments took on new life, however, when Sen. Rand Paul, the Kentucky Republican, in a CNBC interview later Monday cited “tragic cases of walking, talking normal children who wound up with profound mental disorders after vaccines” — a link that has no scientific backing.
In the hours since, many other likely 2016 contenders on both sides of the aisle have sought to avoid controversy and affirm their support for vaccines.
“The science is clear: The earth is round, the sky is blue, and #vaccineswork,” Democrat Hillary Clinton tweeted late Monday. “Let’s protect all our kids. #GrandmothersKnowBest”
“Absolutely, all children in America should be vaccinated,” Sen. Marco Rubio, the Florida Republican, said Tuesday, according to NBC News. “… There is absolutely no medical science or data whatsoever that links those vaccinations to onset of autism or anything of that nature.”
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, a Republican who served formerly as the head of his state’s health department, said in a statement Tuesday that he has “no reservations about whether or not it is a good idea and desirable for all children to be vaccinated.
“There is a lot of fear-mongering out there on this,” Jindal continued. “I think it is irresponsible for leaders to undermine the public’s confidence in vaccinations that have been tested and proven to protect public health. Science supports them, and they keep our children safe from potentially deadly but preventable diseases. Personally, I would not send my kids to a school that did not require vaccinations. Vaccinations are important. I urge every parent to get them. Every one.”
And Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, also a Republican, noted that his state’s laws already mandate “all children be protected from vaccine-preventable diseases like the measles by getting vaccinated.
“Vaccines protect all our children from illnesses, and our administration strongly urges Hoosier families to have their children vaccinated,” Pence added.
Christie, for his part, stayed silent on Tuesday: During his last day in the U.K., he canceled scheduled media availabilities, according to reports.
