Trump nominates biotech insider Susan Monares to lead the CDC

President Donald Trump has appointed Dr. Susan Monares, now acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), for the CDC director. This decision comes after the withdrawal of his first candidate, Dr. David Weldon. Weldon's nomination was reportedly withdrawn due to lack of support in the Senate. になったんです。 English: The first thing you can do is to find the best one to do.

Monares' nomination raised concerns among those who believe that the CDC has wandered out of the stated mission. Critics argue that her extensive background, focusing on federal health bureaucracy and technology-driven biosecurity, suggests a continuation of the status quo, rather than years of reform.

announcement

Trump announced Dr. Susan Monares as his candidate to lead the CDC, describing her as an experienced public health expert who earned her PhD. Postdoctoral training at Stanford University at the University of Wisconsin. The president emphasized her role as a civil servant and mother, and framing her as someone who understands the interests of American family and community.

Trump has admitted that Americans have lost confidence in the CDC and blamed “political bias and tragic mismanagement.” He positioned Monares' nomination as an amendment step. This brings innovation, transparency and higher standards back to agents. He said he will work closely with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., now at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to focus the CDC on disease prevention and accountability. The announcement said they are tasked with dealing with the chronic disease crisis.

background

According to her LinkedIn profile, Dr. Monarez has nearly 20 years of experience in senior roles at federal health and national security agencies. Since 2022, she has been Associate Director of the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA-H) and oversees a $2 billion portfolio focusing on high-risk health technology projects.

Previously, Monares led the Planning, Analysis and Evaluation Bureau at HHS Health Resources and Services Management (HRSA). There, she founded the Innovation Center and managed $20 billion in medical funds, including CARES Act Relief and Telehealth Expansion.

From 2016 to 2018, she served as deputy director of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), oversaw a $70 billion budget, oversees Biodfence's key efforts, and advised the National Security Council on Emerging Diseases.

At the White House (2014-2016), Monares developed a strategy for responding to the pandemic, including the Ebola crisis.

Previously, from 2006 to 2009, she shaped the project Bioshield at the HHS Advanced Research and Development Agency (BARDA). The study aims to develop countermeasures against chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) threats. She also served as a science and technology policy fellow at the American Association for Science and Progressives (AAAS), focusing on Biodfence's drug planning.

arpa-h

The most important criticism of Monares stems from the leadership role at ARPA-H. The agency itself was born as the Health Advanced Research Projects Agency (HAPRA), a health-centric spin of the Military Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The idea came to light during Trump's first term and was defended by Trump's advisor and daughter Ivanka Trump.

Harpa's early conceptions were face-valued as a bold leap in biomedical innovation aimed at preventing mass shootings. Most notably, the proposed SAFE Home project used consumer devices. These devices monitor behavioral health signals. The goal was to provide early warnings of mental illness and violent tendencies. Critics saw it as a blueprint for domestic surveillance rather than a public health innovation.

When the Biden administration officially launched ARPA-H in December 2022 with Congressional approval, the branding changed, but only slightly changed. They didn't even care about the new name, simply moved the “H” to the back. The agency was billed as a pivotal component of Biden's “Cancer Moonshot” initiative. However, the core model remained intact. Offensive and government-funded R&D in areas that appear to be speculative or dangerous to traditional pharmaceuticals. The agency focuses on artificial intelligence (AI), bioinformatics, vaccines, wearable technologies and real-time health data systems. The mission is to change. A fast, scalable, technology-driven solution.

Transhumanism

Monares joined the Associate Director in October 2022. She helped shape that strategic direction and overseeing a multi-billion dollar program has launched a launch rooted in computational biology and AI. To her supporters, she brought forward leadership. But for critics, she shows a deeper drift into a centralized biosecurity state.

ARPA-H's portfolio under Monares began an adventure into a territorial critic known as the Transhumanists. This focused on neural technology, biosensors and implantable devices. Designed to monitor health, they open the door to continuous tracking of behavior, cognition and physiology. For example, agents' aggressive health initiatives aim to analyze biometric data and provide behavioral or drug recommendations in real time. Defenders see it as the early architecture of the “Body Internet.” This is a system in which health optimization becomes indistinguishable from algorithmic control.

These concerns are amplified by ARPA-H's collaboration with companies like Palantir. Co-founded by Trump Megadonor Peter Thiel, the company is a leading information and defense contractor that enables large-scale surveillance and predictive analytics.

The convergence of AI, behavioral modeling, and the vast health dataset reflects the governance model driven by the World Economic Forum (WEF). This creates fear of government-run automated health scoring, predictive profiling, and loss of autonomy.

apecx

Another feature of the future of transhumanists promoted by ARPA-H under Monales is its focus on next-generation vaccines. The main example is APECX. The $204 million initiative launched in September 2024 uses artificial intelligence to design antigens across the Virnidae. These include herpes viruses, flaviviruses (such as Zika and dengue fever), and alphaviruses (such as Chikungunia and Eastern horse encephalitis).

ARPA-H claims that these viruses pose a serious threat to global health and “causing” pandemics, cancer and chronic diseases. They argue that current vaccine methods are slow, expensive and too narrow, and do not redd the broader viral family, often focusing on a single virus.

Monales has strong support for APECX and promotes it at major events such as Barda Industry Day.

In particular, despite recent HHS layoffs, the ARPA-H program has not been cancelled. The same applies to Barda's $4.7 billion project Nextgen. The conservation of these initiatives suggests a continuing commitment to a vaccine-centric approach.

Is that a Maha?

Monares' establishment qualification ensures that her confirmation hearing will be merely a form. The Senate, which is deeply connected to the pharmaceutical industry, will refrain from challenging her stance. Personal autonomy and privacy concerns in the age of advanced biodata technology are expected to be untested.

It's only time to know how her nasty vision unfolds. However, Monales' expertise suggests that she will lead the CDC into a future dominated by data-driven health management. Institutions that are not envisaged by the Constitution will likely focus on AI, predictive analytics, and vaccines.