An otherwise routine bill signing at the White House turned awkward when President Donald Trump appeared to snub Health and Human Services Secretary RFK Jr.’s attempt at a handshake.
Donald Trump appears to ignore RFK Jr.’s handshake
The president and his HHS secretary were gathered at the Oval Office with other officials and dairy farmers for the signing of the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act of 2025. The bipartisan legislation overturns Obama-era limits, allowing schools to once again offer whole and 2 percent milk to students alongside lower-fat options (via The Daily Beast).
Before giving a speech, RFK Jr. seemed to approach Donald Trump for what appeared to be a handshake, but the latter seemingly ignored it and encouraged him to go ahead with what he had to say. The secretary then spent more than 10 minutes praising Donald Trump and the policy.
“I want to echo what Brooke said about finally having a president that sees the alignment between farm prosperity, good food policy, and the health of our children,” Kennedy stated. He added, “These are common sense associations… we finally have a president that is implementing these policies and getting real food to our children.”
As Kennedy finished speaking, he again extended his hand toward Trump, and finally, both held hands for a brief moment. The president started talking about a large bottle of milk sitting on his desk and joked that the milk had been there for five days, and suggested offering it to journalists in the room.
For those curious, the bill signing, aka the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act of 2025, came less than a week after the Trump administration introduced revised nutritional guidelines that emphasize protein, vegetables, and healthy fats while encouraging limits on processed foods.
RFK Jr. has also spoken publicly about Donald Trump’s personal eating habits. On a Katie Miller Podcast episode, he said, “The interesting thing about the president is that he eats really bad food, which is McDonald’s, and, you know, candy and Diet Coke. But he drinks Diet Coke at all times. He has the constitution of a deity. I don’t know how he’s alive, but he is.”
