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Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for President 2024
Campaign	2024 Democratic presidential primaries
Candidate	Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Affiliation	Democratic Party
Status	Announced: April 19, 2023
Key people	Dennis Kucinich (campaign manager) John E. Sullivan (treasurer)
Website
www.kennedy24.com

The Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 2024 presidential campaign was formally launched on April 19, 2023, when Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a member of the Kennedy family, environmental lawyer, anti-vaccine activist, and author, announced his candidacy in Boston, Massachusetts. He is challenging incumbent president Joe Biden.

Background

Kennedy is a member of the Kennedy family, four of whom have previously run for the United States presidency. His uncle, John F. Kennedy, was elected president as a Democrat in 1960 after a successful presidential campaign. In subsequent decades, several other family members sought the Democratic Party presidential nomination, but have failed to be nominated. His father and namesake, Robert F. Kennedy, ran a campaign for the nomination in 1968, but he was assassinated before the party's nominating convention. His uncle-by-marriage, Sargent Shriver, ran for the nomination in 1976, but later withdrew from the race. His uncle, Ted Kennedy, ran a campaign for the nomination in 1980, but was defeated in the primaries by incumbent president Jimmy Carter.

Campaign

Announcement

On March 3, 2023, in a speech at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics, Kennedy stated that he was considering a run for president in 2024. YouTube later took down a video of the speech, citing medical misinformation. On April 5, 2023, he filed his candidacy. He formally declared his candidacy at a campaign launch event at the Park Plaza Hotel in Boston on April 19, 2023. He chose Boston for his launch because of his family's deep political roots in the city, and referenced in his speech that he graduated from both high school and college in Massachusetts.

CIA conspiracy theory

In an interview, Joe Rogan raised Kennedy's belief that both his uncle John F. Kennedy and his father Robert F. Kennedy were assassinated by the CIA and asked what would happen to him. Kennedy replied that he knew that he had to be careful, stating "I'm aware of that, I'm aware of that danger. I don't live in fear of it — at all. But I'm not stupid about it and I take precautions."

Political positions

China

During an appearance on Newsmax TV in June 2023, Kennedy claimed without citing any evidence that the United States and China are engaged in an arms race to develop what he described as "ethnic bioweapons" designed to attack and harm people of a specific race. He also claimed without evidence that despite the U.S. being a signatory to the Biological Weapons Convention, the Central Intelligence Agency has continued to undertake banned bioweapons research in secret.

Economy

When launching his campaign, Kennedy said that his priority would be "to end the corrupt merger of state and corporate power that is threatening now to impose a new kind of corporate feudalism in our country". Strongly critical of the contemporary political economy of the United States, he described it as "cushy socialism for the rich and this kind of brutal, merciless capitalism for the poor" that bails out banks and keeps the nation in a state of permanent war, while slashing programs like food stamps and Medicaid.

In an interview with The Hill's "Rising" program, Kennedy stated he would be in favor of "giving some kind of massive debt forgiveness" for student loans in order to "unleash" creative energies and "rebuild the country."

Gun rights and school shootings

Kennedy opposes gun control, stating "I’m not going to take away anybody’s guns." He has explained his position saying "I’m a constitutional absolutist. We can argue about whether the Second Amendment was intended to protect guns. That argument has now been settled by the Supreme Court."

Kennedy has strongly suggested that antidepressants and other psychiatric drugs are to blame for school shootings. According to him "there's a tremendous circumstantial evidence SSRIs and benzos and other drugs are doing this." At the same time he admitted that there are no data to support this claim. He said however that "prior to the introduction of Prozac, we had almost none of these events in our country". Experts say that there is no evidence for a connection between psychiatric drugs and school shootings and point out that only a minority of school shooters were prescribed drugs.

Health care

Kennedy is against a Medicare for All health insurance system as proposed by politicians like Bernie Sanders. Instead, he has stated that "my highest ambition would be to have a single-payer program . . . where people who want to have private programs can go ahead and do that but to have a single program that is available to everybody." He then said that such a system would probably be "politically unrealistic." He also opposes the prospect of nationalizing the pharmaceutical industry or providing a public option for pharmaceuticals, and instead emphasizes the need to prevent regulatory capture.

LGBT issues

Kennedy has stated that he is against transgender women participating in sports with cisgender women. He has also given support to the LGBT chemicals conspiracy theory, asserting that Americans considering themselves to be transgender are doing so as a result of nefarious actions involving chemical pollution that has warped those people's bodies from their true, natural state. He has lamented, in his view, the "sexual dysphoria" existing in America.

Kennedy's assertion that AIDS victims who have died from the disease in the U.S. "were people who were part of a gay lifestyle where they were burning the candle at both ends" has been criticized as dehumanizing by publications such as the Philadelphia Gay News.

Ukraine and Russia

Kennedy has justified the Russian invasion of Ukraine by arguing that disproven agreements between United States and Russian (or Soviet) leaders emphasized that NATO would not expand eastwards, and the illegal invasion occurred because Russian security concerns were ignored by the United States. He has described Russia's conduct as "acting in good faith", although his son, Conor, is fighting in the conflict as a member of the Ukrainian International Legion.

Kennedy has been criticized for repeating Russian propaganda, including: blaming the war on alleged U.S. engineering of the 2014 Revolution of Dignity; wrongfully stating the war has cost the U.S. $8 trillion; blaming the invasion on the U.S., and blaming Ukrainian President Zelensky for "provoking" Russia, claiming Ukraine had "allowed the U.S. to place nuclear-capable Aegis missile launchers along Ukraine’s 1,200-mile border with Russia, and pushing the Ukraine bioweapons conspiracy theory.

In June 2023, Kennedy stated in an interview that on broad terms he believes that U.S. foreign relations should involve significantly reducing the military presence in other nations. He specifically said the country must "start unraveling the Empire" through closing U.S. bases in different locations worldwide.

Kennedy believes that the administration of President Joe Biden in large part caused the 2022 invasion of Ukraine by Russia due to reckless and militant action; he has specifically cited the issue of NATO expansion into Eastern Europe. At the same time, he has clarified that he refuses to connect this criticism with anything considered support of the government of Russia under Putin, particularly given Kennedy's ethical opposition to the regime's beliefs and politics. He has remarked that "Putin is a monster" and also labeled the leader "a thug" as well as "a gangster".

Vaccinations

Kennedy is active in the anti-vaccine movement and has espoused the pseudoscientific claim that vaccines cause autism, contrary to the overwhelming scientific consensus that vaccines are safe and effective. He has previously aligned himself with the studies of Mark Geier, a former physician whose license was revoked for administering chemical castration medications to autism spectrum disorder patients. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he promoted the debunked claim that hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin were effective treatments for the virus.

Before announcing his bid for the presidency, Kennedy compared President Biden's COVID-19 vaccination policies to the Holocaust at a rally in Washington, DC. He asserted that Anne Frank and Jews in Nazi Germany had more freedom than American citizens amid vaccine mandates in churches and schools, and business closures. His Nazi analogy was condemned by both the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum and his wife, Cheryl Hines. He later apologized and claimed his remarks were taken out of context.

Public reception

Early supporters of Kennedy's campaign include author and blogger Max Blumenthal, comedian Russell Brand, author Charles Eisenstein, and Salon.com founder David Talbot. Others who have favorably interviewed him include television personality Piers Morgan, as well as venture capitalists Chamath Palihapitiya, Jason Calacanis, David Friedberg, and David O. Sacks of the All-In Podcast. Sacks later co-endorsed Kennedy and Republican Ron DeSantis.

Time reported in May 2023 that individuals who favor Kennedy span political lines: "A YouGov poll found RFK Jr. enjoying a 48% favorability rating overall and 49% among Republicans; it doesn’t stretch the imagination to assume the Kennedy brand and nostalgia are doing a lot of the work there Biden stands at 47% in that poll overall but lagging with anemic 16% favorability among Republicans."

A later poll conducted by YouGov between June 10 and 13, 2023 among 1500 U.S. citizens, and released by The Economist showed that Kennedy was viewed favorably by 49 percent of respondents, giving him the highest net favorability rating of 19 points. He was viewed unfavorably by 30 percent. In comparison, President Biden and former President Trump each had the second-highest percentage of respondents viewing them favorably, with 44 percent saying so. Biden had a minus-9 net favorability rating, while Trump had a minus-10 net favorability rating.

Support from right-wing politicians and commentators

CBS News reported that former Donald Trump advisor Steve Bannon "had been encouraging Kennedy to run for months", believing he could serve as a "useful chaos agent" and promote opposition to vaccines Kennedy has denied any involvement with Bannon and referred to the accusation as a "baseless lie". Other alt-right and right-wing personalities who have encouraged his campaign include Mike Flynn, Alex Jones, and Roger Stone. Some of them have speculated that he could become Trump's 2024 running mate as part of a unity ticket if he loses the Democratic primary.

Conservative commentators such as Eric Bolling, Charlie Kirk, and Greta Van Susteren have also praised his campaign. After Tucker Carlson was fired from Fox News, Kennedy defended him as "breathtakingly courageous" and blamed his termination on the pharmaceutical industry, believing it was in retaliation for an episode of Tucker Carlson Tonight where he had lauded Kennedy's stance on vaccines. In return, Carlson asserted that "There's never been a candidate for president the media hated more than Robert F. Kennedy Jr." and said that Kennedy is "winning".

Former Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush speechwriter David MacKinnon wrote an opinion piece in the The Hill stating that he believes Kennedy will ultimately be the 2024 Democratic nominee, asserting that Joe Biden will not seek a second term.

Response from the Kennedy family

Several family members have opposed Kennedy's candidacy due to his anti-vaccine views, and have publicly announced their support for Joe Biden's reelection bid. His sister Kerry Kennedy told Business Insider, "I love my brother Bobby, but I do not share or endorse his opinions on many issues, including the COVID pandemic, vaccinations and the role of social media platforms in policing false information."

Biden has been endorsed by Caroline Kennedy, Joe Kennedy III, and Victoria Reggie Kennedy (all of whom serve in his administration as U.S. ambassadors). Other family members, such as Patrick J. Kennedy and Rory Kennedy, have also endorsed Biden.

Notes

1. Shriver was also the last-minute Democratic nominee for vice president in 1972, replacing Thomas Eagleton.

References

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2. ^ Bradner, Eric; Wright, David (April 5, 2023). "Robert F. Kennedy Jr. files paperwork to run for president as a Democrat". CNN. Archived from the original on April 15, 2023.
3. Stolberg, Sheryl Gay (April 17, 2023). "Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Soon to Announce White House Run, Sows Doubts About Vaccines". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
4. Kelly Garrity (April 5, 2023). "Robert F. Kennedy Jr. running for president in 2024". Politico. Archived from the original on April 12, 2023.
5. "Statement of Candidacy". docquery.fec.gov. April 5, 2023. Retrieved April 5, 2023.
6. Browning, Oliver (April 19, 2023). "Watch live as Robert F Kennedy Jr expected to announce presidential run". The Independent.
7. Porter, Steven (March 10, 2023). "Will fringe Democrats dominate NH primary? A visit by RFK Jr. points to uncertain times ahead". Boston Globe.
8. ^ Price, Michelle (April 5, 2023). "Anti-vaccine activist RFK Jr. challenging Biden in 2024". Associated Press.
9. ^ "Anti-vaccine activist RFK Jr. launches presidential campaign". Associated Press News. April 19, 2023. Retrieved May 1, 2023.
10. "Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to formally announce 2024 run for president in Boston". CBS News. Associated Press. April 6, 2023. Archived from the original on April 15, 2023.
11. ^ Bradner, Eric (April 19, 2023). "Anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. launches 2024 presidential bid". CNN.
12. Gabriel, Trip (April 19, 2023). "Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Makes His White House Run Official". The New York Times. The New York Times.
13. Kashinsky, Lisa (April 19, 2023). "The Kennedy campaign the Kennedys don't want to see". Politico.
14. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Announces 2024 Presidential Bid, the presidential announcement speech, Youtube-Chanel NowThis News, April 19, 2023
15. McCann Ramirez, Nikki (June 15, 2023). "RFK Jr. Tells Joe Rogan He's "Aware" of Possibility CIA Could Assassinate Him". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
16. Herrera, Alan (June 21, 2023). "RFK Jr. Claims The U.S. And China Are Developing 'Ethnic Bioweapons' In Unhinged Rant". SecondNexus. Retrieved June 21, 2023.
17. Stanton, Andrew (May 15, 2023). "How Marianne Williamson, RFK Jr. Compare to Biden on 6 Key Issues". Newsweek. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
18. Video on YouTube
19. Baio, Ariana; Marcus, Josh (June 6, 2023). "RFK Jr comes out against gun control and blames school shootings on 'drugs'". The Independent. Retrieved June 11, 2023.
20. Klee, Miles (June 5, 2023). "RFK Jr. Blames Anti-Depressants for School Shootings". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
21. Hudnall, Hannah (May 10, 2023). "Fact check: Post falsely links antidepressant use to school shootings". USA Today. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
22. ^ Burgis, Ben (June 9, 2023). "Populist? RFK, Jr Doesn't Even Support Medicare for All". Jacobin. Retrieved June 10, 2023.
23. Graziosi, Graig (June 20, 2023). "YouTube removes Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. video featuring bizarre claim that polluted water makes children transgender". The Independent. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
24. Kane, Christopher (June 19, 2023). "RFK Jr. claims chemicals in the water are turning boys transgender". The Washington Blade. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
25. ^ Brownworth, Victoria A. (June 21, 2023). "Robert F. Kennedy Jr.: The Shaming of a Legacy". Philadelphia Gay News. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
26. "Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Former President Donald Trump's Answer on Ukraine in the CNN Town Hall". YouTube. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
27. "Bring it Home". Kennedy24. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
28. "Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Says Russia Acted In 'Good Faith' In Ukraine Invasion". Yahoo News. June 22, 2023. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
29. O'Kane, Caitlin (October 21, 2022). "Conor Kennedy, the grandson of Robert F. Kennedy, says he secretly enlisted to fight in Ukraine - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved June 15, 2023.
30. Martynyuk, Leonid (June 15, 2023). "Robert Kennedy Jr. Repeats Russia's False Justification for Ukraine War". POLYGRAPH.info. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
31. Norton, Tom (June 19, 2023). "Fact Check: Did RFK Jr. claim that Ukraine has cost U.S. $8 trillion?". Newsweek. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
32. Swezey, Victor (May 3, 2023). "RFK Jr. Blames Zelensky for Russian Invasion of Ukraine". The Daily Beast. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
33. "Robert Kennedy Jr. Acknowledges US has biolabs in Ukraine". TASS. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
34. ^ Hains, Tim (June 15, 2023). "Robert Kennedy Jr.: "Unravel The Empire" Of U.S. Military Bases Around The World". Real Clear Politics. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
35. Kluger, Jeffrey (May 9, 2019). "A Smackdown in the Kennedy Clan Summons Up the History of Presidents and Vaccines". Time. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
36. ^ Mnookin, Seth (January 11, 2017). "How Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Distorted Vaccine Science". Scientific American. Archived from the original on January 12, 2017.
37. "Vaccine Safety". Vaccines.gov. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Retrieved August 5, 2018.
38. Sánchez, Lily; Robinson, Nathan J. (May 18, 2023). "Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is a Lying Crank Posing as a Progressive Alternative to Biden". Current Affairs (magazine). ISSN 2471-2647. Archived from the original on May 30, 2023. Retrieved June 6, 2023.
39. ^ "Robert Kennedy Jr apologizes for Holocaust remarks at anti-vaxxer rally". Reuters. January 25, 2022. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
40. Stolberg, Sheryl Gay (April 17, 2023). "Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Soon to Announce White House Run, Sows Doubts About Vaccines". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
41. Oshin, Olafimihan (January 23, 2022). "Auschwitz Memorial says RFK Jr. speech at anti-vaccine rally exploits Holocaust tragedy". The Hill. Archived from the original on January 24, 2022. Retrieved January 27, 2022.
42. Lambert, Harper (January 25, 2022). "Cheryl Hines Blasts Husband RFK Jr. for Holocaust Remark". The Wrap. Archived from the original on January 25, 2022. Retrieved January 27, 2022.
43. @RobertKennedyJr (April 22, 2023). "For the record, I never compared the government's Covid mandates to the Holocaust" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
44. "RFK Jr. Throws down the gauntlet". YouTube. April 25, 2023.
45. "Russell & RFK Jr | FAUCI, CIA Secrets & Running for President - #128 - Stay Free with Russell Brand". May 12, 2023.
46. "A Major Life Change". May 15, 2023.
47. "My Thoughts About RFK Jr". April 23, 2023.
48. "LIVE: Jerry Springer Dies and Robert Kennedy Jr | Piers Morgan Uncensored | 27-Apr-23". YouTube. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
49. "E127: Presidential Candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in conversation with the Besties". YouTube. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
50. Trudo, Hanna (June 7, 2023). "RFK Jr.'s rising profile sparks Democratic jitters". The Hill. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
51. "E126: Big Tech blow-out, Powell's recession warning, lab-grown meat, RFK Jr shakes up race & more". Retrieved May 30, 2023 – via www.youtube.com.
52. "How RFK Jr. Could Lose But Still Throw Biden Off His Game". Time. May 1, 2023. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
53. RFK Jr. ranks higher in favorability than other major 2024 candidates: poll; The Hill, June 14, 2023
54. The Economist/YouGov Poll June 10 - 13, 2023 - 1500 U.S. Adult Citizens
55. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Tops Biden And Trump In New Favorability Poll; Forbes, June 14, 2023
56. "Anti-vaxxer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. challenging Biden for presidency in 2024". CBS News. April 5, 2023.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
57. Robert F. Kennedy Jr (April 8, 2023). "Is it a sign of my campaign's strength that the Elite of DC's establishment media simultaneously and shamelessly published an orchestrated and baseless lie to smear me, even before I announce my presidential campaign?" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
58. ^ Seitz-Wald, Alex (April 28, 2023). "Why Steve Bannon and Alex Jones love Robert F. Kennedy Jr". NBC News. Retrieved May 2, 2023.
59. Gilbert, David (April 17, 2023). "The Far Right Really Wants Trump to Pick America's Top Anti-Vaxxer As His VP". Vice News. Retrieved May 3, 2023.
60. Dovere, Edward-Isaac (April 20, 2023). "Why Biden's orbit isn't worried about Robert F. Kennedy's 2024 campaign | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved May 13, 2023.
61. Mordowanec, Nick (April 24, 2023). "Steve Bannon Eyes Democrat for Trump's Vice President". Newsweek. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
62. Lewis, Bobby (May 2, 2023). "Right-wing media are exploiting RFK Jr. as a spoiler candidate against Joe Biden". Media Matters for America. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
63. Dicker, Ron (April 20, 2023). "Tucker Carlson Embraces Anti-Vaxxer Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Campaign For President". HuffPost.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
64. Virginia Chamlee (April 24, 2023). "Democrat RFK Jr. Says Tucker Carlson Is 'Breathtakingly Courageous' in Wake of Fox News Departure". People. Retrieved May 13, 2023.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
65. Das Mahapatra, Tuhin. "'Bobby Kennedy is winning,' Tucker Carlson claims Robert F. Kennedy Jr. more hated by media than trump". Hindustan Times. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
66. MacKinnon, Douglas (May 27, 2023). "Why I believe RFK Jr. will be the 2024 Democratic nominee". The Hill. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
67. Kim, Chloe (April 5, 2023). "Robert F Kennedy Jr to challenge Biden for White House". BBC News. Retrieved May 1, 2023.
68. Kashinsky, Lisa (April 19, 2023). "The Kennedy campaign the Kennedys don't want to see". Politico. Retrieved May 1, 2023.
69. Shoaib, Alia (April 22, 2023). "Members of the Kennedy dynasty explain why they will not support anti-vaxxer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 2024 presidential bid against Biden". Business Insider. Retrieved May 1, 2023.
70. Sabur, Rozina (May 20, 2023). "Robert F Kennedy Jr's surging support unmasks Democrats' disquiet at Joe Biden". The Telegraph.
71. Dovere, Edward-Isaac (April 16, 2023). "Robert F. Kennedy Jr. can't count on family support to take on Biden". CNN.

External links

• Campaign website
• Twitter campaign page
• YouTube campaign page
• "Peace and Diplomacy" campaign speech

v t e Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Founded	Waterkeeper Alliance Children's Health Defense
Writings	The Riverkeepers (1997 book) Crimes Against Nature (2004 book) "Deadly Immunity" (2005 article) The Real Anthony Fauci (2021 book) A Letter to Liberals (2022 book)
Documentary work	Grand Canyon Adventure: River at Risk (2008) Medical Racism: The New Apartheid (2021)
Radio	Ring of Fire
Electoral	2024 presidential campaign
Related	Hickory Hill (boyhood home) Kennedy Compound (boyhood home) The Last Mountain
Kennedy family (family tree)	Mary Richardson Kennedy (second wife) Cheryl Hines (third wife) Ethel Kennedy (mother) Robert F. Kennedy (father) Kathleen Kennedy (sister) Joseph Patrick Kennedy (brother) Michael LeMoyne Kennedy (brother) Kerry Kennedy (sister) Christopher G. Kennedy (brother) Max Kennedy (brother) Douglas Harriman Kennedy (brother) Rory Kennedy (sister) Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. (grandfather) Rose Kennedy (grandmother)

• Politics
• United States

• 2023 establishments in the United States
• 2024 Democratic Party (United States) presidential campaigns
• Robert F. Kennedy Jr.