Incoming: A Hippy Surgeon General | The American Spectator

Dr. Casey Means didn’t find love until she was in her mid-30s.

That, of course, is rather understandable — after all, she was a bit busy obtaining her medical degree at Stanford, participating in biomedical research at such prestigious places as the National Institutes of Health, Stanford University School of Medicine, and New York University, and launching a holistic health and functional medicine business in Oregon. She’s been working on the “largest known study on glucose patterns in non-diabetic individuals,” has co-written a New York Times–bestselling book with her brother, and has appeared on hundreds of podcasts.

Is there time for romance in that schedule? Not really.

Normally, one shouldn’t be too concerned with how public officials find love. That said, Means detailed the whole process in a newsletter she published last October, and her approach might very well have something to do with the job the Trump administration wants her for.

Apparently, somewhat desperate for love, Means did everything from the mildly superstitious (read: wishing on heads-up pennies and the stars) to the very superstitious, like invoking her ancestors’ assistance via a small meditation shrine, working with “a spiritual medium” to connect to her “spirit guides,” participating in “full moon ceremonies with grounded, powerful women where we called in abundance,” and doing “plant medicine experiences with trusted guides.”

Look, the modern dating scene is something of a hellscape when you’re in it, but it seems a little strange to recommend to your 199,000 followers that they “Embrace the ‘Woo Woo’” some 15 days before you try to convince Congress you’re qualified to be “America’s doctor.”

Of course, none of this really came up when Means finally faced the Senate a week ago for that delayed confirmation hearing.

Senators were a bit more concerned with Means’ past statements on hot-button issues like vaccines and birth control. Means told Tucker Carlson in 2024 that she believes the pill reflects a “disrespect of life” (something she was quite right to note) and questioned the need to inoculate newborns against hepatitis B (generally a sexually transmitted disease). From a pro-life perspective, it’s worth noting that Means didn’t quite hold the line last week on birth control or the abortion pill.

“I absolutely think that oral contraception should be widely accessible, just as I said with mifepristone,” she assured Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.). (READ MORE: We Could Be Doing Something About Our Birth Rate Problem. But We Aren’t.)

We’re getting away from the point, though.

The Left already considers MAHA anti-science. Means, despite her credentials, has certainly been lumped under that label. The New York Times failed to detail her credentials in an article on her confirmation hearing; Cornell University claimed that Means’ nomination was a “prescription for ‘pseudoscience,’” and Peter Lurie, a physician and the president of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, insisted that Means is unqualified and nothing more than a wellness influencer and lifestyle blogger.

That kind of criticism is unjustified. It ignores that Means has plenty of medical experience, has written for a host of medical journals, and possesses a current and unexpired medical license (she isn’t actively seeing patients, and has voluntarily shifted her status to “inactive.” Articles at places like the Atlantic and the Hill have failed to note the distinction).

Most of those criticisms are easy to combat; the “Woo Woo” one isn’t. If Means were merely engaging in “full moon ceremonies” — which sounds an awful lot like witchcraft — and connecting with “spirit guides” privately, we could continue to consider it a private issue and ignore it on the political stage. But she’s not. She’s publicly encouraged her internet followers to dive into whatever “Woo Woo” practices appeal to them.

The Left already considers MAHA anti-science, and confirming a woman who publicly urges her audience to “Embrace the ‘Woo Woo’” makes that a much more salient argument. Keep in mind that the job of a surgeon general is to provide public health recommendations. Public doctors don’t get to publicly embrace psychedelic mysticism without taking a hit to their credibility and the credibility of the movement they represent.

Sure, Means probably won’t make that recommendation as a surgeon general, but the fact that she has told tens of thousands of people that doing so is just part of tapping “into the ‘mystical’ side” of their journey towards romance will make it a lot easier to undermine any recommendations she does make. That isn’t a good thing for those of us who want the MAHA movement to make a difference for Americans’ health.

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