'Horrible': 'Idiot' Donald Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Mocked for Suggesting Autism Could Be Caused by 'a Shot'

President Donald Trump was ridiculed for falsely suggesting that autism may be caused by a "shot" alongside his health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

During a recent Cabinet meeting, the president discussed an increase in the rate of autism diagnoses, but used fabricated statistics to make the issue sound even more dire.

"It was one in 10,000 children had autism, and now it’s one in 31. Not 31,000, 31," Trump said.

"That is horrible — that’s a horrible statistic, isn’t it? And there’s gotta be something artificial out there that’s doing it," he continued, turning to Kennedy. "So you think you’re gonna have a pretty good idea, huh?"

"We will know by September," the health and human resources secretary replied.

"There will be no bigger news conference than that, so that’s it. If you can come up with that answer: where you stop taking something, you stop eating something, or maybe it’s a shot. But something’s causing it," the GOP leader told the press.

One user on X shared a clip of the president's comments and wrote: "No... absolutely wrong. Autism is, for the most part, an inherited disorder: scientists estimate that up to 80 percent of a child's risk of developing it is determined by DNA. Scientists believe it is caused by both genetic and environmental factors. Vaccines do not cause autism!"

Another X user commented: "Autism isn’t a condition to 'blame something' for. Trump talking like it’s caused by food, shots, or mystery dust is just fearmongering dressed up as concern."

A third person said: "So disgusting watching the bobble heads in agreement when they are really thinking… 'what an idiot.'"

Kennedy claimed for years that childhood vaccines were linked to autism. The claims have been thoroughly debunked by science, and the HHS head avoided linking the two during his confirmation process.

Trump’s newest comment comes months after a leaked phone call with Kennedy in July, where the president could be heard tying vaccines to autism.

RFK Jr. did not mention vaccines in relation to autism on Thursday, April 10, but told President Trump he was close to putting the issue in the rearview mirror.

"We have, as you, we have now the autism rates have gone from our most recent numbers, we think are going to be about one in thirty-one," he told the GOP leader. "So, they’re going up again."

Experts have attributed some of the rise in autism diagnoses to a widening definition of autism spectrum disorder, which includes a broader range of symptoms, as well as people becoming more aware of the disorder and willing to get diagnostic testing.