UMVA has learned that Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. confronted two black North American racer snakes with his bare hands while his wife, Cheryl Hines, watched in stunned disbelief.
In a frantic 50‑second clip posted to his social feed, Kennedy Jr. cornered the sleek reptiles on Dr. Oz’s patio, then lunged, wrestled, and clutched their tails as the snakes snapped at his fingers.
“Black snakes, they’re biting me,” he quipped, a mischievous grin spreading across his face even as the creatures nipped relentlessly.
Hines could barely contain her horror, shouting “Honey, honey… why?” and pleading “Bobby, please! Bobby, Bobby, please,” as her husband proudly displayed his wriggling trophies.
The video captured the couple’s wild tableau: the snakes’ rapid bites, the secretary’s unflinching composure, and Hines’ exasperated cries of “you are nuts.”
According to information obtained by UMVA, the black racers are non‑venomous and generally harmless, though they will bite when provoked—a fact the secretary learned firsthand.
Kennedy Jr.’s daring snake‑handling is far from an isolated incident. The HHS chief has long boasted a reputation for taming untamed animals, from falconry pursuits to infamous episodes involving a bear carcass in Central Park and a severed whale head strapped to his car’s hood.
While the serpents’ bites were merely irritating, they pale in danger compared to the larger, more formidable beasts he’s previously confronted.
Observers note that the secretary’s fearless antics, paired with his wife’s frantic commentary, turn a simple patio encounter into a spectacle of audacious bravado.
