Because, of course, he did Donald Trump has declared that autism isn’t a naturally occurring condition but something “artificially induced,” blaming everything from vaccines to food dyes to, who knows, maybe wind turbines next.
The former president made the eyebrow-raising claim at a Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission event this week, sparking backlash from scientists, medical experts, and anyone who has ever read a peer-reviewed study.
“There’s no way this stuff just happens”
Aspie Unscripted: No Trump, Autism is not artificially induced. #aspie #unscripted #asd #autism #disability #actuallyautistic #autismawareness pic.twitter.com/vCeRoBJv16
— Nathan Young(@nvyoung) May 23, 2025
“There’s no way this stuff just happens. It’s being caused. Artificially induced,” Trump claimed, as though solving autism was akin to spotting a fake handbag. In classic Trump fashion, the comment was bombastic, evidence-free, and delivered with absolute confidence.
Meanwhile, RFK Jr. can’t stick to his own deadline
Standing awkwardly nearby was Trump’s handpicked Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr.), who previously promised he’d uncover the root cause of autism by September. Like, this September. As in, just a few months from now.
But in a recent CNN interview, Kennedy appeared to pull the emergency brake on that bold timeline. Now, he says he’s pushing the actual discovery phase back “at least six months.” So much for lightning-fast science.
Instead of original research, Kennedy now wants to “replicate” older studies first—a move many researchers would consider table stakes, but which RFK Jr. is treating like a moon landing.
Let’s not forget: RFK Jr. is still anti-vax
Yes, this is the same RFK Jr. who has spent years cozying up to the fringe anti-vaccine crowd and citing long-debunked research. During his Senate confirmation hearings, he refused to state outright that vaccines don’t cause autism, despite overwhelming scientific consensus to the contrary. Spoiler alert: they don’t.
So, if you’re wondering what the MAHA Commission is up to besides pushing pseudoscience, the answer is: targeting corporations. In a recent report, the commission blasted everyone from Bayer to Facebook to “Big Food” for supposedly poisoning America’s kids and fueling a surge in chronic illness, including autism.
Autistic people: still not lab experiments
Lost in this medical melodrama is the actual autistic community, which has been trying—loudly—to remind people that autism is a spectrum, not a tragedy. Will Palmucci, a 21-year-old who was diagnosed with autism as a child, recently shared his experience to push back on the harmful rhetoric. He’s a poet, musician, and film student who calls RFK Jr.’s comments “out of touch.” He added, “They don’t represent me or my reality,” effectively saying what many people on the spectrum are thinking.
Unfortunately, this isn’t just bluster. Trump and Kennedy have already taken a hammer to public health infrastructure, firing thousands of federal health workers who didn’t toe the administration line.
