RFK Jr. visibly shaken after getting fact-checked to his face on soaring food costs: ‘Beef prices are up 20%’

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Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was enactment connected the spot during a tense speech aft Sen. Maggie Hassan fact-checked him to his look connected soaring nutrient costs.

The confrontation began erstwhile Hassan pressed Kennedy connected whether precocious market prices marque it harder for families to spend the fresh, steadfast foods helium has encouraged Americans to eat.

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Kennedy responded by saying beef had dropped by 1% successful the past 4th — but Hassan rapidly challenged that claim.

"No. Look, beef prices are up 20%, banana prices are up astir 7% since President Trump took office. Cheese prices are up 6%," she said (1). "So again, erstwhile groceries get much costly — easier oregon harder for families to spend the precise steadfast foods that you privation them to eat?"

Kennedy said Americans tin devour beef, poultry oregon fish, earlier adding that the terms of beef is tied to the size of the cattle herd. "The herd dropped," helium said.

Hassan wasn't satisfied.

"You're not answering," she said.

Kennedy appeared caught disconnected defender arsenic Hassan pressed him repeatedly, pausing earlier replying: "You're blaming President Trump for thing helium didn't do."

The speech comes arsenic nutrient prices stay a large unit constituent for American households — with the emergence successful beef prices particularly striking. The USDA has noted that wholesale beef prices were 19.7% higher successful March 2026 than successful March 2025 (2), and predicts different 7.8% terms summation by the extremity of the year.

Kennedy did person a constituent astir cattle supplies. The USDA has cited a "cyclical contraction of the cattle herd" arsenic 1 origin down choky supplies and higher farm-level cattle prices.

Hassan closed the speech by accusing Kennedy and the Trump medication of being disconnected from what shoppers are seeing astatine the market store checkout.

"Families are facing historical prices astatine the register. You don't request to beryllium a Secretary of Health and Human Services to cognize that," Hassan said. "The radical crossed this state cognize that due to the fact that they spell to market stores today, and the information that you either don't cognize it oregon you don't privation to admit it conscionable shows however retired of interaction you and the Trump medication are."