THE LOYALISTS: Bring the vapors. Donald Trump has named anti-vaxxer and conspiracy theorist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to be  his Secretary of Health and Human Services.

  Trump said last night at a black tie event at Mar-a-Lago that Kennedy will do “unbelievable things.”

  “The Safety and Health of all Americans is the most important role of any Administration, and HHS will play a big role in helping ensure that everybody will be protected from harmful chemicals, pollutants, pesticides, pharmaceutical products, and food additives that have contributed to the overwhelming Health Crisis in this Country,” Trump said in a post Twitter/X.

  Other than just being a Kennedy, RFK Jr. made his name as an environmental lawyer and has no experience running a giant bureaucracy. Kennedy for years has spread conspiracy theories about the safety and efficacy of vaccines and claimed that the Health Department is in the pocket of pharmaceutical companies. He has said, “There is no vaccine that is safe and effective.”

  Kennedy has called for the removal of fluoride from  public drinking water even though it is credited with drastically reducing dental cavities.

  Trump also named North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum to run the Interior Department, presumably to front Trump’s plans to open federal lands and waters to oil and gas drilling. Burgum has close ties to the oil industry.

  In a slap to the Manhattan District Attorney, Trump yesterday also named his criminal defense lawyer Todd Blanche to be Deputy Attorney General. Blanche is a former prosecutor who was part of the team that lost Trump’s criminal fraud case involving the payoff to porn actress Stormy Daniels.

THE FAMILY BUSINESS: Republicans are floating the idea of naming Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara to fill the Florida Senate seat of Marco Rubio should he become Secretary of State. You heard it here first, Lara Trump, not JD Vance is the future of Trumpism.

  Lara is currently co-chair of the Republican National Committee and the wife of Eric Trump. 

  Florida Sen. Rick Scott, who bows down to the president-elect, said in a post, “Lara Trump would be a GREAT Senator and represent Floridians well.” 

  “If this were something that I’m asked to do,” Lara Trump said on Fox News, “I would seriously consider it.”

WEIGHING IN: Nearly three quarters of American adults are overweight or obese, according to a new study published in the medical journal The Lancet. The health system faces a growing burden of  weight-related ailments and diseases, including diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease, the report says.

  It’s a striking rise in obesity since 1990 when roughly half the population was considered overweight.

  The researchers were alarmed by a steep rise among children, more a third of whom are now overweight or obese. They forecast, that the number of overweight and obese people could reach nearly 260 million by 2050.

OUTBREAK: Cases of measles around the world surged by more than 20% to an estimated 10.3 million last year, the CDC and WHO said yesterday. Around 107,000 people died, most of them young children. Measles is preventable with vaccination. Two doses have proved 97 percent effective. 

INFOSALE: It sounds like something they would publish to skewer a public figure, but the satirical website The Onion has bought the InfoWars  business of right wing conspiracy monger Alex Jones who is losing everything to pay off $1.5 billion in legal judgements.

  The Onion won Infowars at a private auction, giving them control of the website, archive, mailing list, and production equipment, among other assets, ending Jones’s 25 year control of the media company.  They declined to say how much they paid.

  Jones lost defamation lawsuits to the families of victims in the Sandy Hook School massacre, which he claimed was a hoax carried out by crisis actors.

  The Onion said, “What’s next for InfoWars remains a live issue. The excess funds initially allocated for the purchase will be reinvested into our philanthropic efforts that include business school scholarships for promising cult leaders, a charity that donates elections to at-risk third world dictators, and a new pro bono program pairing orphans with stable factory jobs at no cost to the factories.”

THE SPIN RACK: Olympic skier Lindsey Vonn, now 40, says she’s coming back from a five-year retirement to compete again. — Several current and former San Jose State women’s volleyball players as well as an assistant coach are suing in federal court to prevent a trans woman on their team from playing in the upcoming Mountain West tournament. They charge that the school and conference violated the Constitution and Title IX by allowing a transgender athlete to play for a women’s sports team and suppressing free speech rights of those who objected. Their own coach is among the defendants. — Four Los Angeles residents have been arrested and charged with insurance fraud , accused of wearing a bear costume to vandalize their own luxury cars, and filing $140,000 in claims backed up. By their own surveillance video. — The final supermoon of the year comes into view this weekend.

BELOW THE FOLD: The latest rumor is that Donald Trump is considering naming Don Jr.’s girlfriend Kimberly Guilfoyle to be Surgeon General because she’s had the most surgery. 

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