Sometimes, one needs reminding that the public debate over the efficacy of COVID vaccines has always pitted faith against reason.

No one, of course — certainly no one who reads The Western Journal — should denigrate faith in general. But the object matters. Faith in what exactly?

In April 2024 — four months before he allied with now-President Donald Trump — now-Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was running as an independent presidential candidate.

He appeared on HBO's "Real Time with Bill Maher" and delivered what any reasonable person would regard as a knockout blow to the host's pro-vaccine argument.

Maher, however, would not concede defeat. After all, as a liberal, his faith in science — particularly COVID vaccine science — amounts to a kind of religion.

Clips of the exchange began circulating again this week on the social media platform X. It became even more relevant on Monday, when Trump used his social media platform Truth Social to demand that "Drug Companies justify the success of their various Covid Drugs."

Moreover, last week, the Trump administration fired Director Susan Monarez from the Centers for Disease Control. This prompted resignations from four other CDC officials.

In short, the debate over COVID vaccines has taken center stage once again. And this time, there isn't a Biden administration around to censor it.

Thus, the Kennedy-Maher exchange reminds us of why this debate remains so maddening to skeptics of coronavirus vaccinations.

In a clip posted to YouTube, Maher began by asking about Kennedy's vice-presidential running mate, Nicole Shanahan. The host noted that Shanahan wanted to recall the Moderna vaccine, which Maher happened to have gotten.