From New York, this is Democracy Now.

Two hours ago, colleagues, I asked Mr. Kennedy to reconcile his many anti-vaccine statements

with his handful of pro-vaccine statements. Instead, he gave us a word salad and ducked the issue.

During a confirmation hearing Wednesday, Senate Democrats grilled Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Trump's pick to head the Department of Health and Human Services.

We'll speak to Oregon Senator Ron Wyden, the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee about Kennedy.

Also, today's confirmation hearing for Tulsi Gabbard,

Trump's picked to be Director of National Intelligence,

as well as the Trump administration's shocking reversal under enormous pressure

to freeze all federal grants and loans.

Plus, we get the latest from Washington after American Airlines enormous pressure to freeze all federal grants and loans.

Plus, we get the latest from Washington after an American airline carrying 64 people collided with an army helicopter near Reagan National Airport.

No one is believed to have survived.

Then to Gaza, where Hamas has released eight more hostages.

All that and more coming up.

Welcome to Democracy Now.

Democracy Now.org, the Warren Peace Report.

I'm Amy Goodman.

Rescue workers in Washington, D.C., have launched a massive search operation in the Potomac after an American Airlines flight and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter collided midair late Wednesday with both aircrafts crashing into the river.

So far, no survivors have been found. At least 30 bodies

have been pulled from the river. American Airlines Flight 53-42 had 60 passengers and four

crew members on board and was en route to the D.C. area, Reagan National Airport from

Wichita, Kansas. Several passengers were members of U.S. figure skating who are heading

...