The Megyn Kelly Show

Episode: Scientific Establishment vs Trump Over CDC, Lisa Cook Fights On, Failing City Schools: AM Update 9/2
Date: September 2, 2025
Host: Megyn Kelly
Platform: SiriusXM

Episode Overview

In this AM update, Megyn Kelly covers major national stories at the intersection of politics, health, and education:

• The escalating conflict between President Trump’s administration and the CDC/scientific establishment over new vaccine guidelines and a dramatic agency shakeup.
• The legal fight of Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook to keep her job amid allegations of mortgage fraud and the constitutional stakes of presidential power.
• A deep dive into Baltimore’s failing public school system, its connection to rising crime, and broader implications for other American cities.

Key Segments & Insights

1. Trump Administration vs. CDC & Scientific Establishment

Segment Start: [00:39]

Main Focus:
Trump’s HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announces sweeping changes: ending COVID vaccine mandates for the general population, restructuring within HHS, and the firing of CDC Director Susan Minarez. The move signals a broader push for scientific “transparency” and a backlash against entrenched public health officials.

Key Developments:

• Restructuring of the CDC/HHS:
  • July: Announced consolidation and elimination of sections in HHS.
  • June: Dismissed Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices for failing to disclose vaccine myocarditis risks in teens.
• Firing of CDC Director Susan Minarez:
  • Ousted after refusing to “rubber stamp unscientific reckless directives” ([03:55])
  • Four top CDC officials resigned in protest, creating a media firestorm ([04:08])
• New Leadership:
  • Vaccine Advisory Committee now headed by Dr. Martin Koldorff (vaccine safety advocate, ousted from Harvard for opposing COVID mandates) and Dr. Jay Bhattacharya (NIH Director, co-author of the Great Barrington Declaration).
• Pushback from Scientific Establishment:
  • Nine former CDC heads write NYT op-ed condemning RFK Jr.’s actions as unprecedented and dangerous ([05:48])
  • Dr. Dimitri Daskalakis (former CDC/AIDS official): “I only see harm coming...they want the undoing of MRNA vaccination...they have a very specific target on Covid. But I do fear that they have other things that they are going to be working on.” [05:22]

Notable Quotes:

• Robert F. Kennedy Jr.:
  • “The CDC is an agency that is very troubled for a very long time...it’s going to require getting rid of some people over the long term in order for us to change the institutional culture.” ([04:26])
• Dr. Dimitri Daskalakis:
  • “They’re really moving in an ideologic direction where they want to see the undoing of vaccination.” ([05:22])
• Megyn Kelly (on ex-CDC head Rochelle Walensky):
  • “Best known for her public crying during the pandemic and her open lamentations about how scared she was about the impending doom...” ([05:48])
• President Trump (Truth Social):
  • “It is very important that the drug companies justify the success of their various Covid drugs...I want the answer and I want it now.” ([06:38])

Theme/Tone:
Open conflict, skepticism of establishment science, calls for institutional overhaul and transparency.

2. Lisa Cook’s Battle to Stay on the Federal Reserve Board

Segment Start: [07:47]

Main Focus:
Lisa Cook, recently fired by President Trump from the Federal Reserve Board amid allegations of mortgage fraud, wages a legal fight to keep her position—raising questions about the limits of presidential authority and the independence of the Fed.

Key Points:

• Allegations:
  • Multiple criminal referrals allege fraudulent mortgage applications (“wrongly classified the purpose of the properties potentially to secure more favorable financial terms”).
• Legal Arguments:
  • Cook’s attorneys argue incidents occurred before her term, hence don’t qualify as “for cause” removal.
  • DOJ contends the president has “broad discretion to remove a governor for cause.” ([11:03])
• Implications:
  • If Trump prevails, agency independence across government could be affected; Supreme Court ruling complicates presidential interference at the Fed.
• Skepticism on Defense:
  • Cook’s arguments characterized as weak—no clear denial, claims incidents were “errors,” not substantive defense.

Notable Quotes:

• Legal Analyst:
  • “The claim that this might be clerical error or just a mistake, that’s not going to fly. Lisa Cook is one of the most established, accomplished financial and economic experts in this country.” ([11:24])
• Megyn Kelly:
  • “A ruling in favor of the Trump administration could reshape the independence of agencies across the executive branch.” ([12:05])

Theme/Tone:
Legal tension, institutional uncertainty, skepticism from analysts.

3. Baltimore’s Collapsing Schools & Rising Crime

Segment Start: [14:10]

Main Focus:
Fox 45 investigative reporter Chris Pabst outlines how data manipulation, grade inflation, and perverse funding incentives in Baltimore’s public schools are fueling the city’s broader crisis of crime and hopelessness.

Key Points:

• Academic Failure on a Massive Scale:
  • At least six schools with zero students proficient in any state testing ([15:00])
  • Grade-changing rampant: thousands of failing marks changed to passing, “one fail policy” prevents holding students back more than once before 9th grade
• Perverse Incentives:
  • Emphasis on enrollment and graduation rates over actual learning; funding increases even as student outcomes decline
  • 2024: $1.7 billion budget for 6,500 fewer students than in 2017, but outcomes worse ([17:38])
• Manipulating Discipline Data:
  • Arrests in schools fell 98% over 10 years—not because of safer schools, but because administration decided to stop arresting students ([18:32])
• Direct Link to Crime:
  • Poor education outcomes leave youths unequipped for employment, directly feeding the crime wave ([19:22])
• Political Stagnation:
  • One-party Democratic rule cited as a barrier to reform; “nobody who is willing to come out publicly and demand that better for the students of Baltimore City...” ([19:39])

Notable Quotes:

• Chris Pabst:
  • “I found that there were six schools in Baltimore City that did not have a single student that was proficient in any state testing...not math, not English.” ([15:00])
  • “The reason that these kids are getting pushed through the school system without getting the education that they need is because of the funding. Student enrollment determines funding for a school...It’s about passing more students so the data looks better.” ([16:25])
  • “You have to raise the bar...In the short term, you’re going to have a lot more kids failing, but in the long run, those kids are going to adapt...” ([21:12])
  • “There is no public official that I’m aware of inside Baltimore City that is screaming for the school system to educate the students better...It is one party rule to the greatest possible extent.” ([19:39])

Proposed Solutions:

• Raise academic expectations—set and enforce higher standards, even if more students initially fail
• Address school violence to make learning possible ([21:12])

Theme/Tone:
Investigative, urgent, critical of systemic failures and political apathy.

Memorable Moments & Quotes

• Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ([04:26]):
  “Anybody who lives through the COVID pandemic saw all of these bizarre recommendations that were not science based, all the misinformation...The CDC is an agency that is very troubled for a very long time...”
• Dr. Dimitri Daskalakis ([05:22]):
  “I only see harm coming. I may be wrong, but…they have a very specific target on Covid.”
• Chris Pabst ([15:00]):
  “Six schools could not produce one student who could pass any state test.”
• Chris Pabst ([16:25]):
  “The money a school gets is based on enrollment and kids passing, not learning.”
• Legal Analyst ([11:24]):
  “The claim that this might be clerical error or just a mistake, that’s not going to fly...”

Notable Timestamps

• CDC upheaval and RFK Jr.'s restructuring: [03:55] – [06:00]
• Scientific community’s pushback: [05:22] – [06:40]
• President Trump’s statement on vaccine transparency: [06:38]
• Lisa Cook legal fight: [07:47] – [12:05]
• Baltimore schools exposé with Chris Pabst: [14:10] – [22:03]

Final Takeaways

This episode of the AM Update spotlights the fraught intersection of politics, public health, and education reform:

• The Trump administration’s conflict with scientific and bureaucratic institutions is escalating, with public health policy at the center.
• Legal and institutional norms are being stress-tested, especially regarding presidential power over independent agencies.
• Baltimore’s school crisis exemplifies broader systemic failures in American public education, where money does not equate to quality or safety, and entrenched politics blocks urgent reform.

For more, listen to the full show or catch Megyn Kelly’s interview with Ben Shapiro later today.