Cheryl Hines has publicly condemned a statement made by her husband Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at a rally on Sunday, in which the environmental lawyer and conspiracy theorist likened COVID regulations to the Holocaust.
Speaking at an anti-vaccine rally in Washington, D.C. hosted by his organization Children’s Health Defense, RFK Jr. said, “Even in Hitler’s Germany, you could cross the Alps to Switzerland, you can hide in an attic, like Anne Frank did.”
On Tuesday morning, RFK Jr. walked back his comments with an apology posted to Twitter. “I apologize for my reference to Anne Frank, especially to families that suffered the Holocaust horrors,” he wrote. “My intention was to use examples of past barbarism to show the perils from new technologies of control. To the extent my remarks caused hurt, I am truly and deeply sorry.”
Shortly after, Hines addressed her husband’s claims with a tweet calling the comparison “reprehensible and insensitive”:
“My husband’s reference to Anne Frank at a mandate rally in D.C. was reprehensible and insensitive,” wrote the “Curb Your Enthusiasm” actress. “The atrocities that millions endured during the Holocaust should never be compared to anyone or anything. His opinions are not a reflection of my own.”
This isn’t the first time Hines has voiced opposition to her husband’s views. As reactions poured in over the weekend, she replied to a number of tweets asking where she stood on COVID policy and his speech in particular.
When asked if she stands with her husband, Hines said that she does not share his opinions. “While we love each other, we differ on many current issues,” she tweeted on Jan. 24 tweet.
Unsatisfied with the vague wording of that response, another user attempted to pin down her views. “How about this? ‘No one should compare anything to the horrors of the Holocaust. My husband was wrong to do so,’” the user wrote.
To which Hines replied: “Yes, I agree with you.”
Other prominent figures in media and entertainment joined Hines in voicing their disapproval.
On Monday morning’s episode of “The View,” the show’s hosts branded RFK Jr. the “idiot” of the Kennedy family, calling his statements “incredibly offensive.”
Host Joy Behar pointed out that RFK Jr. is a longtime advocate for the anti-vaccine movement, among various public health campaigns. “He’s one of the people back in the day, who said that the measles vaccine caused autism,” she said.
CNN anchor Jake Tapper called RFK Jr. “an ignorant lying menace.” The official account of the Auschwitz Museum added that “Exploiting of the tragedy of people who suffered, were humiliated, tortured & murdered by the totalitarian regime of Nazi Germany – including children like Anne Frank – in a debate about vaccines & limitations during global pandemic is a sad symptom of moral & intellectual decay.”
Ahead of the rally, Graham Nash of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young announced that he would be “taking steps” to prevent future use of his song “Chicago” after the organization included it in a video promoting the event.
