By Peter A. McCullough, MD, MPH
Recently I told the guys at Live from Studio 6B that the recent CDC shakeup was over vaccine ideology. We poingnlytly expose the religious beliefs about vaccines deeply held by public health officials.
The CDC dismissals were reported by Axios on August 29, 2025:
Dozens of staff members and leaders at the CDC staged a walkout Thursday in response to the internal shake-up of top federal health officials.
Why it matters: The CDC has been grappling with internal turmoil that escalated Wednesday, when its director was ousted and other officials exited in a wave of resignations.
Driving the news: Staff began their "clap out" protest — where staffers march, hold signs and clap — Thursday just outside the CDC's Atlanta headquarters to support staff who had resigned, according to one staff member at the protest who asked to remain anonymous due to fear of repercussions.
Top officials who resigned were escorted out of the CDC's offices Thursday morning around 10am, the staffer and multiple outlets said.
Flashback: The clap out protest comes as new policies announced by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. appear to be driving out senior officials.
On Wednesday, Susan Monarez was ousted as CDC director just weeks after being sworn in. Her lawyers immediately disputed a claim that she had left the post. The White House confirmed she was terminated.
Demetre Daskalakis, who was director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said recent policy changes surrounding the COVID vaccine threatened lives and there had been an "intentional eroding of trust in low-risk vaccines."
Other departing officials include CDC chief medical officer Debra Houry and Daniel Jernigan, director of the CDC's National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Axios reported.
Why didn’t this happen in January? In part, the CDC staff were waiting for the new director to be confirmed. Dr. Monarez who was a long-time public health insider appeared relatively quiet and reasonable, however, she was deeply committed to the ideology of vaccination. In her mind vaccine acceptance=good and vaccine hesitancy=bad. This false religion has gone so far as to position vaccine hesitancy as its own disease. Jim O’Neill, a senior Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) official with deep ties to President Trump donor Peter Thiel, who is the former CEO of PayPal founder of Palantir Technologies, will take over the agency amid an exodus of its leadership and panic across the public health world. O’Neill is not known to be a maverick or someone who has medical authority. His main interests along with Thiel are to use their influence secure large government contracts for information technology development. Don’t expect his interim assignment to last long because he has to get back to the business of getting rich.
As we enter a new era that will shine the light on vaccine safety, expect more emotional outbursts and angst among many public health officials, health care personnel, and the Bio-Pharmaceutical Complex as they face the flaws of their zealous faith in vaccines. Vaccine confidence will be shaken.
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Peter A. McCullough, MD, MPH
President, McCullough Foundation
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