The Trouble with the CDC Pick
Now we have a new candidate in the person of Dr. Erica Schwartz, who has a long and well-documented record of not only carrying out Covid orders as part of the military but even pushing jab mandates.
BY BROWNSTONE INSTITUTE
Most people had heard little from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention until six years ago, when it suddenly emerged as the leading voice to facilitate the near-destruction of the country.
Does it matter who heads it now? Certainly it does, even if only symbolically. It matters for the future of freedom itself.
The Trump administration has had real frustrations finding a director. There was a good choice early on, Dr. Dave Weldon, but he could not make it through a pharma-captured Senate for confirmation so he wasn’t even put to a vote. Next up was an internal promotion who was confirmed and then promptly fired for insubordination. Now there is a temporary head with a second job as head of NIH.
Now we have a new candidate in the person of Dr. Erica Schwartz, who has a long and well-documented record of not only carrying out Covid orders as part of the military but even pushing jab mandates where they do not make sense. She is also a well-practiced user of the revolving door between agencies and private providers who depend on pharmaceutical profits.
She might be the nicest person ever, and a better choice than most, but it seems inconceivable that a medical freedom movement would ever rise to her defense. It seems too much like a changing of the guard, same uniform, same mission.
At some point, there needs to be a principled stand against what was done to the nation, some actual truth telling that results in genuine change. That doesn’t seem to be happening yet.
That said, the public demand for health and medical rights against the government-industrial hegemon has never been higher. The Brownstone/HFDC poll – with actual fair questions – documents supermajorities in full revolt, a fact which has been since confirmed by polls structured to show the opposite.
The establishment is hanging on for dear life but the public is not having it. Something is going to give at some point in this tug-of-war. We’ll know more next month as several crucial primaries pit pharma tools against genuine dissidents. It’s not looking good for hangers-on. It will be fascinating to watch unfold.
This makes our work more important than ever. Brownstone truly needs your support right now if we are to step up and deal with these new pressures. We invite your support. The cause of freedom itself – deeply rooted in the culture as such – needs your commitment today.
The Brownstone Show is going well. Tune in to these episodes, including the latest one this week with Brian Blase, who talks through the major reforms in medical insurance that we desperately need right now. Go to the Brownstone Show.
These are the sorts of topics we talk about at Brownstone Supper Clubs, now coast to coast. Pick one and go!
Puget Sound: On Tuesday, April 21st, the Puget Sound Supper Club welcomes Corey DeAngelis. Get tickets.
Pittsboro, NC: On Tuesday, April 21st, the Pittsboro, NC Supper Club welcomes Drs. Patricia Robitaille and Coleen Rickabaugh. Get tickets.
Charlotte, NC: On Tuesday, April 21st, the Charlotte, NC Supper Club welcomes Andrew Byrd. Get tickets.
West Hartford, CT: On Wednesday, April 22nd, the West Hartford, CT Supper Club welcomes Walter Kirn. Get tickets.
Austin, TX: On Wednesday, April 22nd, the Austin Supper Club welcomes Jenna McCarthy. Get tickets.
Pittsburgh, PA: On Wednesday, April 22nd, the Pittsburgh Supper Club welcomes Mike Costarell. Get tickets.
Chattanooga, TN: On Tuesday, May 5th, the Chattanooga Supper Club welcomes Michele Reneau. Get tickets.
Greater Boston, MA: On Tuesday, May 5th, the Greater Boston Supper Club welcomes Professor Thomas Seyfried. Get tickets.
Chicago, IL: On Thursday, May 7th, the Chicago Supper Club welcomes Tom Sosnoff. Get tickets.
Manhattan, NY: On Monday, May 11th, the Manhattan Supper Club welcomes Mary Holland. Get tickets.
Pittsboro, NC: On Tuesday, May 19th, the Pittsboro Supper Club welcomes Dianna Lightfoot. Get tickets.
Charlotte, NC: On Tuesday, May 26th, the Charlotte Supper Club welcomes Tracy Hollister. Get tickets.
Polyface Farm: On Friday and Saturday, August 28th and 29th, Brownstone will host our annual Polyface Retreat at Polyface Farm in Swoope, Virginia. REGISTER NOW. NOTE: Tickets for the VIP dinner August 28 are now available. TICKETS.
Chattanooga: On Friday and Saturday, November 6th and 7th, Brownstone will host our 6th Annual Conference and Gala. Save the dates.
If you are interested in being a supper club host in your area, please visit our Supper Club information page here.
Here is some content since our last email.
General Health Checks Are Harmful By Peter C Gotzsche. Mammography screening is harmful and general health checks are also harmful. Like breast screening, they detect many things that should not have been treated because they are either insignificant or will disappear again.
Health Freedom: The Smoking Gun By Adam Garrie. There are important parallels between the fight for health freedom and the success that advocates of the Second Amendment have achieved. By learning from the success of 2A advocates, supporters of health freedom can change the culture and legal precedent.
Marty Makary: The FDA’s Quiet Blockade on Safer Nicotine By Roger Bate. There are moments in public health when the path forward is unusually clear, when the evidence aligns with behavior, and when policy has a genuine opportunity to reduce harm at scale. This should be one of those moments.
What (and How) Should Our Students Be Taught Today? By Bert Olivier. There are many – too many – intellectual sources, contemporary as well as throughout the history of the world, from which I could draw to answer it in a very provisional manner, so I’ll have to be selective, but here goes.
Cocooning by Way of the Tdap Vaccine By Robert Malone. Current guidelines (e.g., CDC as of 2025) de-emphasize cocooning as a primary strategy due to implementation challenges and limited evidence supporting standalone effectiveness. Maternal Tdap vaccination during pregnancy is now prioritized for direct antibody transfer to the infant.
To Win at All Costs By Meryl Nass. I was not a close observer of the case, but the win seemed to hinge on documents obtained during discovery that revealed Monsanto knew a great deal about the injuries its product caused but deliberately hid those findings.
The Hardships That People Mask By Ann Bauer. You never let go. You never abandon your child, no matter what. You keep trying and loving them and that is what I see in the story we’re reading in the news about Nick Reiner’s parents. True love.
What If the FDA Were Eliminated? By Jeffrey Tucker. Reform efforts have been met with frustration. The entire machinery is set up to resist the influence of a politically hostile takeover. For example, Moderna has been given the green light to further develop the technology for a flu shot.
Jury Trials Are Vital to the Constitutional Order By David Thunder. The Labour-led British government is attempting to hollow out an ancient pillar of English constitutionalism, trial by jury. Under their reforms, trial by jury would survive in England and Wales for certain types of crimes, but its use would be curtailed.
When War Teaches Medicine By Joseph Varon. War is likely to persist. Medicine, however, must remain steadfast, anchored in principles that transcend conflict, ideology, and time. It should not become a weapon but must remain a profession dedicated to the care of each individual, regardless of circumstance.
Medicalization of Our Spiritual Life By Elisabeth Bennink. Human cultures across time have recognized that certain plants can facilitate contact with the spiritual world—serving as a kind of spiritual nourishment. And yet, more than what we eat, it is our spiritual life that shapes who we truly are.
Don’t Use Antidepressants During Pregnancy or for Children By Peter C. Gotzsche. Official statements that antidepressants are safe to take during pregnancy should be distrusted. No drug is safe. If drugs were safe, they would not be the leading cause of death, ahead of cardiovascular diseases and cancer.
The Story of the Victorian-Era Anti-Mandate Movement By Jeffrey Tucker. All rhetoric and seeming extremism aside, all these movements have ever wanted – from the 1790s to today – is for this product to be subject to normal market discipline of supply and demand, without any interventions designed to back the industry.