Cheryl Hines Discusses RFK Jr.'s Role As HHS Secretary In Trump Administration | The View

Cheryl Hines spent 12 seasons of Curb Your Enthusiasm as the wife-turned-ex-wife of a guy who was always getting into controversy, played by Larry David. But now, in her new memoir, Unscripted, she reflects on her real-life journey from Hollywood to DC as the wife of one of the most controversial men in American politics, Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Please welcome Cheryl Hines. All right, ladies. Sorry. Cheryl, you just walked out to the Curb Your Enthusiasm theme, which I love. Yes. So for so many years, you played the long-suffering wife and then the ex-wife of the brilliant and our book friend, Larry David, and alongside my BFF, Susie S. I know, I love Susie. I mean, I love Larry. I love all of them, everybody from Curb Your Enthusiasm. And basically, that part for you changed the trajectory of your career. Really did. So tell us why you think that show resonates with so many people. It is politically incorrect a lot. Yes, which people like. They love. Now, people want it back a little bit. Yeah, I know, I know. I think, you know, Larry does that thing that you wish you could do. I was in his office once when someone called. She was on speaker and asked if he wanted to go to lunch with her. And he said, I don't think so. Sounds like you, Joy. It was very similar. And he said, but if you want to talk about something, just tell me now. She said, no, I thought we could get together and, you know. He's like, I don't think so. When he'd be on stage at Catererizing Star, he'd be doing a set. And if somebody in the audience looked at them, what are you looking at the watch for? What have you been coming here for today? And then he would like stop the set. One time, he walked off when he didn't like what they looked. He would look at it and went, I don't think so. He left. So he gets to act on his impulses that we would, even if you saw somebody checking their watch, you'd be like, oh, that's bad. But you know, you take it, and then you move on. But he's like, what are you doing checking your watch? But the character, he's not quite like that in real life. No, no. It's an exaggeration. Except when you're wanting to go to lunch with them. Right. He doesn't want to go to lunch with you. But I appreciate that honesty. I like, this is, you know, tell it like it is. It makes it easier. Yeah. It makes it easier. Well, it was Larry David in 2005 who introduced you to your husband, Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert Kennedy Jr. And the two of you have been married for 11 years. So when he proposed to you without a ring, I think there was some Spanish moss involved. Yes. Is this the life you imagined? What's been the hardest part about navigating Washington and the political spotlight? Is this the life you imagined? That's why I call my book Unscripted. I could not have written this story ahead of time. No, it's not the life that I imagined. And I never imagined that I would, you know, meet Bobby Kennedy, this, um. Where did you meet him? I met him at a fundraiser for Waterkey with Larry. But it was not at all like, whoa, you two. It was just like. Hilariant for you. Yeah. So no, I could not have imagined it. And even when I met Bobby, I mean, he was living in New York. I was living in LA. I had just been in this entertainment sort of bubble. And then I meet him and he's an environmental attorney and was just, he's fascinating and he's interesting and he's smart and he's funny and completely different from anyone I ever met in my life. That's for sure. I know you ladies. I know you love to talk about him. We do talk about him. So I'm going to ask you some questions about him. So during the last election cycle, he threw his hat in the ring to become the president of the United States. But then 16 months later, when it became clear that there was really no viable pathway forward, he throws his support behind now President Trump because he said they aligned on many key issues, which was sort of surprising to many, certainly surprising to me because previous to the endorsement, neither of them had anything good to say about the other. And I- By the way, that happens in a political campaign. Yes, it does. All the time. It does, but this was striking given the Kennedy name and Kennedy legend of with the Democratic Party. And you write in your book that friends called voicing concern saying, you can't let Bobby do this. He's going to get Trump elected. You've got to stop him. Obviously that didn't happen. How did you feel about his decision to suspend his campaign and support Trump? And did you share any concerns that you may have had about that? Well, I always share all of my concerns with my husband. I'm not, I have not been a political person. I haven't posted anything on social media other than go out and vote. I never told people who they should vote for. I just said, this is important. You should vote. So with Bobby, that was a very difficult decision to make with President Trump. It was a crazy year and a half with Bobby running. And at the end of the day, President Trump and Bobby sat down and talked. And yes, they did have a lot of common goals. For instance, President Trump just passed, what's it called, a favored nation. So the drugs. So we've been paying, I don't know, twice as much, 10 times as much for pharmaceutical drugs in America than other countries have been paying. So it was very important for President Trump and for Bobby to work together. And say, we're no longer doing that. We are not gonna, Americans are not gonna pay more than other countries for our drugs. What about access to vaccines, though? They both want access to vaccines. Okay. This has been, this is also part of the discussion. Well, Trump just got his COVID shot the other day. Blue shot. He actually got the coronavirus vaccine through Operation Warp Speed, one of the things I'm most proud of. Well, right. So yes, a lot of, I think a lot of people really wanted the COVID vaccine and they were excited that it came out so quickly. Now- So you were supportive of his decision to support Trump? I was at the beginning, what's the word? I was guarded about it. It was complicated, right? Because that is, it's a big change politically. He starts out as a Democrat. I started out, when I first registered to vote, I registered as an Independent. Through the years, I changed to a Democrat and now I'm back to Independent. So for Bobby to, in the course of a year and a half, two years, go from a Democrat to now working with President Trump, that's a long, that's a leap. But also it's a leap of faith because Bobby has a lot of supporters. He has a lot of supporters that are Republicans, Independents, Democrats. You know, Cheryl, it's not fair to really put you on the spot about him. Thank you. Because you're his wife, I know that. But when you say that they are pro a vaccine, it seems as though Bobby and Trump are casting doubt on the efficacy of the vaccine, which makes Americans very nervous. So that's the problem that we're having. Okay, I understand. I understand that. And it's interesting because, I don't know if you saw, 60 Minutes just did a piece about the vaccine injury compensation program. So people that have had vaccine injuries can be compensated if they can prove it. And they have paid out $5.4 billion for vaccine injuries. So my question is, can we do better? Do we- Is that all vaccines or just the COVID vaccine? It's all vaccines. As far as I know. Okay, okay. But so the question is, yes to vaccines. Yes, they are important and they are an important part of our healthcare. Can we do better? Can we make them safer? Can we make them, can we listen to parents who say, my child got the vaccine and changed and stopped hitting markers, stopped developing the way they were developing. Can we listen to people when they say that instead of saying, you're crazy. I agree with that. But you want to listen to scientists, right? And Cheryl, if I could ask you, and you are lovely for being here. I, as you know, I'm pregnant. You're a mom. You've had children. She's pregnant? I just wanted an opportunity to talk about it. So your husband, when he announced basically that he believed he found some causal links between autism and Tylenol, it created a lot of panic in women who were being told by their OBGYNs who look at them that Tylenol, if necessary to treat pain during pregnancy is safe. What would you say, and I know you're not a medical professional, but to women who now feel anxious and nervous because their doctor's telling them one thing, but the top public health professionals telling them something very different? Well, they said, consult your doctor before taking it. That was the, that's what they were saying. And that holds. So I agree. Listen, I've been pregnant. I understand. It's stressful being pregnant, I found, because you're so concerned with everything. I didn't drink caffeine when I was pregnant. So to say, hey, you know, consult your doctor before you take this. I agree with that, and I think that's okay for moms to hear. Cheryl? Yeah, go ahead. All right. I am, this is not your fight, really, to be fighting. This is your husband's fight. Thank you for acknowledging that, but go ahead. But I just want to say, I just, I do want to say, you know he's not a doctor, and he's not a professional. Yes. And oftentimes when he's talking, oftentimes when he's speaking, he is speaking not with the best information that we can get, because, you know, yeah, we could do a lot better with health stuff. And there's a lot of stuff he can do. And some of the things he's suggested, take it out of the hands of my doctor and me, and my OBGYN and me. And I wonder, does it give you pause, and are you able to say, you know, that might not actually be so, because I've got my experience, and I've lived with this, and I'm still here. So are you able to have those conversations with him? I am able to have those conversations. And just to be clear, 90% of secretaries of HHS have not been doctors. But they've had a science background. There have been three. Yeah. No, to be honest, one of Obama's secretaries of HHS was an economist. But most, the majority of them that haven't had medical backgrounds have had a science background. Wait, don't do anything else. Don't say anything else yet. Because I do want to. Because we have to take a break. I want to respond to both of these coming at me. Yes, yes. You will have another segment. We'll be right back with more with Sheryl Hines.