Democrats are increasingly concerned that the profile of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is rising just as President Biden embarks on a challenging campaign to keep the White House out of Republican control.
Kennedy, a vaccine advocate who launched a primary bid against Biden this spring, is doing unexpectedly well in some polls and getting increased media attention as a result. He’s also been on a press tour this week that included a discussion of Twitter Spaces with Elon Musk and the digital town hall with journalist Michael Smerconish.
Kennedy is widely viewed by Democrats as a problematic fringe candidate who freely spreads conspiracy theories. But his relatively decent poll numbers, as well as his media-ready image as the heir to the famed political dynasty, have led some to worry that he could gain traction and become distracted from the task of re-electing Biden in 2024.
“Democrats would be foolish to mock or belittle RFK Jr. Any time we mock those in marginal positions, we lose,” said Michael Ceraso, a Democratic strategist and former campaign aide to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “The Democratic Party, acting cocky, never works.”
Kennedy has stirred some untapped anger within his own party; Democrats have seen him rise by double digits in several recent polls, leading some establishment figures to recognize parts of his message that may resonate with voters.
A recent Fox News the poll placed Kennedy with 16 percent support among registered voters. And a CNN poll published Friday it shows him with 20 percent support among Democratic and Democratic-leaning respondents.
“Take RFK seriously, Biden,” Ceraso said. “If you don’t, we can create a stronger Republican Party that will beat us in 2024. Like Bernie did in 2016, RFK has the potential to turn on fringe anger if we mock them.”
On Monday, the environmental lawyer made a series of unconventional campaign moves that drew media attention. He participated in a SiriusXM streaming interview with Smerconish, where he called himself “an evidence-based person” and doubled down on his maverick views on vaccines while making the case for his candidacy.
“It’s not like the Soviet system where the party would, you know, pick the candidates,” he said of his challenge to Biden, arguing that Americans need to see democracy in action.
After that, he participated in a Twitter Spaces conversation with Musk, where Kennedy spent parts of the discussion openly praising him, including “thank you for your service” in buying the platform.
He even suggested he would take a tougher approach to immigration that would bring him closer to former President Trump, saying he plans to look for ways that will “seal the border permanently.”
At one point in the discussion, former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, who left the Democratic Party to become a Trump-aligned Republican after her own failed 2020 presidential bid, appeared in the online chat.
Most Democrats have dismissed Kennedy’s campaign as a mere distraction. In recent days, however, some have become more annoyed and disdainful of his penchant for advocating theories about politics and science without credible evidence.
“Robert F. Kennedy Jr. it is able to generate media attention and a certain curiosity about its name. Otherwise, it’s a fly and a laughing stock,” said Jim Kessler, executive vice president of policy at Third Way.
Democrats have emphasized the danger of their controversial views on vaccines after Republicans spent much of the pandemic spreading misinformation and contradicting public health officials.
Some have pointed to Kennedy’s controversial views, such as school shootings linked to Big Pharma, and coziness with figures like Musk (Kennedy was also endorsed by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey this week) as more worthy of a republican. .
“He’s in the wrong party to attract votes focused on COVID conspiracy theories, vaccine phobia and Putin worship,” Kessler said. “There’s plenty of room in the inn for those views of the Republican Party. I should go.”
While Kennedy’s profile has risen nationally, there are also conversations in key states that could affect the 2024 race. The initial primary schedule changed this year after Biden urged the Democratic National Committee (DNC) to move Carolina of the South to be the first state, demoting Iowa and New Hampshire.
Many New Hampshire Democrats have been outspoken about the move and criticized Biden for pushing to change the decades-old process. Some progressives, in particular, believe his decision could pave the way for a non-traditional candidate like Kennedy to win an early state victory, despite national Democrats’ general disdain for his candidacy.
“I’m grateful that RFK Jr. is mounting a democratic challenge to the stagnant political establishment,” said Cullen Tiernan, a New Hampshire-based labor activist who has supported Sanders’ presidential bids, adding that the candidate “he has a unique opportunity to take advantage of it.” our collective imagination and the vision that we can do better”.
“Living in New Hampshire,” Tiernan continued, “I’m still processing that our sitting president would rather pretend we don’t exist here than campaign and engage in retail politics and voter town hall-type questions. It doesn’t instill confidence in his ability to campaign in the general elections”.
Tiernan is not alone in this view. Spiritual author and progressive Marianne Williamson, who is also running against Biden for the nomination, has expressed similar sentiments, and Kennedy suggested that Biden’s fifth-place finish in the state during the last election contributed to his apathy this time around.
“He’s never done well in New Hampshire,” Kennedy said. “I don’t think he wanted to compete in New Hampshire.”
There is also the issue of debates. The DNC has refused to green light a live debate between Biden and any primary challenger, including Kennedy, who is just over a decade younger than the president and has yet to be tried in that format.
Biden has struggled to maintain high approval ratings during his first term, and some argue that others should be allowed to participate in debates against a president who has had trouble maintaining voter enthusiasm. Discontent with Biden and Trump is also reflected in some polls showing strong voter appetite for a potential third-party candidate, including a NewsNation/DDHQ poll this week that showed nearly half of voters would consider that candidate.
“I think it would be a disadvantage for him to debate me,” Kennedy said of Biden. “I don’t think the optics are good for the American people.”
Still, many Democrats say Kennedy is causing an unnecessary distraction in the early days of the election cycle. They expected a relatively easy climb for Biden to clinch the nomination, saving their manpower for a much tougher fight against the eventual Republican nominee in November.
“He’s assembled a small, weak coalition of anti-vaxxers, disillusioned Democrats and people who remember his father’s name,” said Sawyer Hackett, a Democratic communications consultant and adviser to former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro .
“His message is largely incoherent and lacks the political force to have any discernible impact on the race beyond being a gnat that the Biden campaign is trying to ignore,” he said.
