Kathrine Frich
Recent polling backs up the frustration.
Voters usually know what to expect when politicians make grand promises.
They watch the policies roll out and decide if the results match the rhetoric.
Now, a passionate group of health activists is waking up to a harsh reality before the midterms.
Promises fall flat
A new report claims the Trump administration has abandoned the Make America Healthy Again movement. The group Protect Our Care shared their findings exclusively with HuffPost.
The analysis points a finger directly at Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. It argues he and President Donald Trump chose corporate donors over clean food.
Recent polling backs up the frustration. Only 37 percent of Americans approve of Kennedy, according to an Associated Press and KFF survey.
Chemicals make a comeback
Anger boiled over when the White House signed an order to boost domestic production of glyphosate. That chemical is the main ingredient in the weed killer Roundup.
Zen Honeycutt leads the advocacy group Moms Across America. She told The New York Times the move was “a betrayal” of their campaign promises.
The administration also rolled back limits on forever chemicals in drinking water. Online health influencer Kelly Ryerson quickly took to X to blast the decision.
“It is not MAHA to rescind limits on harmful forever chemicals in tap water, no matter how the EPA twists the legal logic to the benefit of chemical corp interests,” she wrote.
Money changes hands
The report also highlights major food safety failures. Protect Our Care noted a massive stomach bug outbreak that sickened thousands of people this year.
They link the crisis to a delayed food tracing rule. The group claims this delay followed a massive donation to a Trump political committee.
Brad Woodhouse is the president of Protect Our Care. “There’s not one MAHA promise Trump hasn’t been willing to break once the checks clear from his big chemical, food and tobacco donors,” he told HuffPost.
Looking for new allies
The White House strongly denies the accusations. Spokesperson Allison Schuster told HuffPost the administration remains committed to working with concerned parents and doctors.
Still, Democrats are noticing the cracks. Lawmakers like Senator Cory Booker are adopting the movement’s language to win over frustrated voters.
The strategy might work. Health advocate Claire Dooley explained her shifting stance to Politico. “If a Democrat were to say to me, ‘Hey, we’ve got this plan.’ I would say, ‘Sure, I would vote for you,'” she said.
