Robert Kennedy Jr, scion of one of the most influential political families in American history is beginning to upset the applecart and democratic bigwigs are getting nervous. The major media want nothing to stand in the way of Joe Biden’s coronation, least of all an anti-vaxxer and someone who questions the wisdom of involving America in no-win wars. Kennedy’s halting manner of speech, something he blames on a flu vaccine he received over 25 years ago, belies his seriousness as a candidate. Kennedy is to the Democrat Party what Donald Trump was to the G.O.P. in 2015. Kennedy is already receiving the “Trump Treatment “from the Legacy Media. The NYT’s arrows were loosed in its opening sentence: “Kennedy has built his campaign on relitigating Covid 19 shutdowns and shaking Americans’ faith in science.” CBS News claims RFK’s views are “misleading and dangerous.” The LA Times warned its readers: “Kennedy’s views are a “threat to democracy.” Where have we heard that before? NPR in Washington informed its true believers that Kennedy has issued “debunked, false and misleading claims that undermine trust in vaccines.” Let’s hope so.
The 69-year-old son of the former Attorney General and nephew of the 35th President, is Harvard educated, smart, articulate and of course, a Kennedy. Biden is none of those things. It’s hard to imagine in a world in which everything being equal, Biden would have any chance at all of securing the nomination. But here he is, bumbling through what is hopefully the final 18 months of his presidency.
So why is RFK Jr.’s campaign gaining traction? No matter what you may think of his policy stances, most of which align with the Democratic Party platform, he is honest. And that is an attribute in short supply in Permanent Washington.
What was lacking in the 2020 election cycle was a series of robust debates like the ones with which the G.O.P. provided the American people four years prior. They were informative and entertaining, and when they concluded, it was clear who would be the Republican standard bearer. It’s obvious why the Party powerbrokers want to keep Biden off the debate stage. A head-to-head with Kennedy or any serious candidate would be disastrous for Biden.
It’s doubtful Biden could withstand the rigors of another presidential campaign, one in which he would not be able to wage from his basement. Kennedy, by contrast, is fit both mentally and physically and his appeal extends beyond political affiliation. Also, unlike Biden, he has a firm grip on the issues. He opposes U.S. involvement in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Kennedy has said N.A.T.O. should not be trying to include Ukraine into its orbit. A move Russia has claimed is a provocation. According to ABC News, Kennedy has repeatedly referred to the Ukrainian conflict as “a "proxy war" that he claims, as he wrote on Twitter, is being fought "all for the sake of U.S. (imagined) geopolitical interests."
"They wanted war as part of their strategic grand plan to destroy any country such as Russia that resists American imperial expansion," Kennedy tweeted in May, launching into a critique of the Biden administration. "They only pretend to think it was unprovoked. They are lying to us, manufacturing consent for war."
That view is at odds with political leaders on both sides of the aisle as well as many of America’s top military brass.
Kennedy claims he has what it takes to beat Trump in the general election, providing the former President wins the nomination. If Kennedy’s longshot bid to overtake the frontrunner is successful, Joe Biden would be the first president since Franklin Pierce in 1856, not to receive his party’s nomination for a second term. Strap in, this presidential campaign is shaping up to be like no other, while the future of the nation hangs in the balance.