Do you accept the fact that a million Americans died from COVID?

I don't know how many died.

You're the Secretary of Health and Human Services.

You don't have any idea how many Americans died from COVID?

Senators grilled health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

That's where we're starting the seven from the Washington Post.

I'm Hannah Jewell.

It's Friday, September 5th.

Let's get you caught up with today's seven stories.

Yesterday was Kennedy's first appearance before lawmakers since the White House fired the director of the CDC.

He got tough questions from both Democrats and Republicans.

You just heard Democratic Senator Mark Warner of Virginia at the top of the show.

And to clarify, CDC data shows that more than 1.2 million Americans died of COVID-19.

Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, also a Democrat, questioned Kennedy about how the decision was made to fire CDC director Susan Menares.

They tell the head of the CDC that if she refused to sign off on your changes to the childhood

vaccine schedule, that she had to resign.

No, I told her that she had to resign because I asked her, are you a trustworthy person?

And she said no.

Just last month, Kennedy had called Minarez an expert in public health and said he was,

quote, confident that she would do everything she can to restore the integrity of the CDC.

But yesterday, he said the CDC shakeups were necessary, and that the agency had failed miserably in the coronavirus

pandemic and in the fight against chronic diseases. We are the sickest country in the world.

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