Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is facing new scrutiny after political journalist Ryan Lizza alleged that Kennedy sent sexually explicit messages to Lizza's former fiancée, Olivia Nuzzi, during what he described as the pair's 2023-2024 "emotional affair." The claims were detailed in a Substack essay Lizza published Saturday, prompting immediate political attention but no public comment from Kennedy or the Department of Health and Human Services.
Lizza, 51, wrote that he discovered the communications in the final months of his relationship with Nuzzi while reviewing her messages. According to his account, the exchanges occurred while she was profiling Kennedy for New York Magazine in 2023. The post included multiple excerpts Lizza attributed to Kennedy, though their authenticity has not been independently verified.
One message read: "Yr open mouth awaiting my harvest." Another passage stated:
"I mean to squeeze your cheeks to force open your mouth. I'll hold your nose as you look up at me to encourage you to swallow. 'Don't spill a drop.'"
Lizza also quoted a third line:
"I am a river. You are my canyon. I mean to flow through you. I mean to subdue and tame you. My Love."
Kennedy has not responded, and Nuzzi has also declined to address the specific allegations. The Department of Health and Human Services did not issue a statement in response to inquiries over the weekend.
Lizza said he chose to remain silent for more than a year but decided to publish his account after Nuzzi re-emerged publicly to promote her upcoming memoir-style book, American Canto. Vanity Fair, where she now serves as West Coast editor, released an excerpt, and The New York Times recently profiled her. Lizza said her new narrative left him feeling "erased," leading him to share his version of events.
Nuzzi, 32, and Lizza had long been viewed as a prominent Washington media couple until the reported affair with Kennedy became widely known in 2024. After news of the relationship surfaced, New York Magazine placed her on leave, and she later separated from the publication.
In his Substack essay, Lizza also alleged that Kennedy was not the only public official with whom Nuzzi became personally involved. He claimed she previously had an improper relationship with former South Carolina governor Mark Sanford while profiling him in 2019. These allegations have not been independently corroborated.
Nuzzi's attorney, Ari Wilkenfeld, rejected the broader claims, stating: "In 'American Canto,' Ms Nuzzi discusses the only instance in her long career as a journalist in which she had an improper relationship with someone she was covering." He said she would "not dignify efforts to impugn her character with any future response."
