Rich Danker, the chief spokesperson for Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., resigned Wednesday, citing irreconcilable differences over a push to approve e-cigarette flavors that he warns could hook children on nicotine.
Danker stepped down as assistant secretary for public affairs just a day after Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary also left his post over similar concerns. The departures signal deepening internal strife at HHS over vaping policy.
In his resignation letter to President Trump, obtained by the New York Times, Danker wrote that senior HHS officials in the secretary’s immediate office have recently sought FDA marketing approval for cigarette flavors “that would appeal to children and expose them to nicotine addiction, lung damage and higher risk of cancer.” He warned that routine approval of such products would undercut the agency’s own guidance on flavored electronic nicotine delivery systems, issued in March with White House backing.
Danker did not assign blame to Trump, even though the president has actively pushed to preserve vaping options. Last week, the administration authorized the sale of blueberry- and mango-flavored nicotine vaping pods, along with two menthol-flavored products. It marked the first time fruit-flavored electronic cigarettes received market approval. The products are manufactured by Glas Inc., which says it will block minors using age verification methods, including government-issued IDs and smartphone Bluetooth connections.
This is the second high-profile resignation from Kennedy’s communications team over policy. In March 2025, top spokesperson Tom Corry quit over Kennedy’s handling of the measles outbreak in Texas.
The resignations come amid broader turmoil at HHS and the FDA. Makary’s exit followed clashes over e-cigarette regulation, and the agency is now under acting leadership. Makary’s departure underscored the administration’s conflicting impulses between public health warnings and Trump’s pro-vaping stance.
Critics argue that approving sweet, fruit-flavored vapes directly contradicts the FDA’s own youth risk guidelines, which aim to curb teen nicotine use. Public health advocates have long warned that flavored products are a gateway for young people. The Trump administration has defended the approvals as a harm-reduction measure for adult smokers trying to quit traditional cigarettes.
HHS did not respond to a request for comment on Danker’s resignation. The episode adds to a pattern of internal dissent at the department, where top officials have publicly broken with Kennedy over key health policies.
