Cheryl Hines talked about her husband Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s presidential run. and how it has affected his career in Hollywood.
The 57-year-old actress shared her thoughts on Kennedy’s bid for the 2024 Democratic presidential nomination in her first interview since the 69-year-old environmental lawyer announced her candidacy in April. Kennedy has been criticized for his stance on the vaccine and controversial statements he made before and after launching his campaign.
In Hines’ interview with the New York Times, he explained his approach to his role in his spouse’s campaign, while in a separate interview with the outlet, Kennedy revealed that he pitched an idea to Hines: announce that the couple had separated to separate his wife. of his controversies.
“I support Bobby and I want to be there for him, and I want him to feel loved and supported by me,” Hines told the New York Times. “And at the same time, I don’t feel the need to go to all the political events, because I do have my own career.”
Cheryl Hines is sharing her thoughts on her husband Robert F. Kennedy’s presidential campaign in her first interview since announcing her candidacy. (Joshua Blanchard/Getty Images for Waterkeeper Alliance)
“I think, ultimately, if I get elected, Cheryl will have played a big part in that,” Kennedy told the outlet. “It’s a huge asset to me, and I don’t think we’ve really unleashed it in its true power yet.”
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He continued: “She has a gift that’s kind of fascinating when she’s on TV and she’s speaking, because she’s very spontaneous and has what I would call a quick-twitch reflex when it comes to conversation.”
In January, Kennedy, who is a long-time anti-vaccine activist, sparked controversy when he gave a speech in which he drew comparisons between Nazi Germany and the US government’s push for Americans to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
During his speech, Kennedy invoked teenage Holocaust victim Anne Frank, who died in a Nazi concentration camp after hiding with her family in a secret annex of an Amsterdam house for two years.
“Even in Hitler’s Germany, you could cross the Alps into Switzerland. You could hide in an attic like Anne Frank did,” Kennedy said at a rally organized by her anti-vaccine nonprofit group Children’s Health Defense.
“I visited, in 1962, East Germany with my father and I met people who had scaled the wall and escaped, so it was possible,” he added. “Many died, it’s true, but it was possible.”
“Today, the mechanisms are being put in place that will ensure that none of us can run, and none of us can hide.”
Kennedy declared his candidacy for the 2024 Democratic nomination in April. (David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
Kennedy later apologized for his comments. Hines then took to Twitter to distance herself from her husband’s comments.
“My husband’s opinions are not a reflection of me,” the “Curb Your Enthusiasm” star wrote. “Although we love each other, we differ on many current issues.”
The next day, Hines tweeted: “My husband’s reference to Anne Frank at a mandate rally in DC was reprehensible and insensitive. The atrocities millions suffered during the Holocaust should never be compared to anyone or anything. Their opinions are not a reflection of my own.”
In the wake of the backlash, Kennedy told the New York Times that he suggested announcing a fake separation. He told the outlet that “it was a difficult time” for them, and he was concerned that his statements would negatively affect Hines personally and professionally.
The environmental lawyer told the New York Times that he suggested announcing a false separation from Hines to protect her from backlash for some of her controversial statements. (Photo by Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)
“I saw how it was affecting his life and I said, ‘We should just announce that we’re separated,’ so you can have some distance from me,” Kennedy said.
He continued: “We wouldn’t actually do anything, we would just do it, I felt so desperate to protect her at a time when my statements and my decisions were affecting her.”
Kennedy told the outlet that she even drafted a press release announcing the split. However, the statement was never sent, and Hines told this outlet that he never considered Kennedy’s proposal an option.
Hines said she never considered her husband’s proposal an option. (Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic)
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However, the two-time Emmy Award nominee told the New York Times that she was “upset” with her husband and thought the way she phrased her comments made it easy for them to misconstrue them.
“It was also frustrating to hear Bobby say things that could so easily be turned into bits that misrepresented his meaning and didn’t represent who he is,” she said.
Kennedy told the outlet that she feels many of Hines’ friends have rallied around her, including “Curb Your Enthusiasm” star and creator Larry David. David introduced the couple at a skiing event in 2011.
“Curb Your Enthusiasm” creator Larry David said that while he has love and support for Kennedy, he does not support his campaign. (Joshua Blanchard/Getty Images for Waterkeeper Alliance)
“I feel so much support and love from most of his friends, including Larry,” Kennedy said.
In a text, David told the New York Times: “Yes love and support, but I’m not ‘putting up’ for him.”
The “I Can See Your Voice” judge also weighed in on the vaccine debate, although she didn’t comment on whether she shared her husband’s views.
“I see both sides of the vaccine situation,” the “A Bad Mom’s Christmas” star said. “There’s a side that feels scared if they don’t get vaccinated, and there’s a side that feels scared if they do get vaccinated, because they’re not sure if the vaccine is safe. And I understand that.”
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He continued: “So if Bobby stands up and says, ‘Well, are we sure that they’re safe and that all the vaccines have been tested properly?’ That doesn’t seem like too much to ask.”
“That seems like the right question to ask,” Hines added.
Hines said she won’t attend all of her husband’s campaign events as she has her own career. (Monica Schipper/WireImage)
Hines told the outlet that school safety and “body autonomy” are important issues to her. She said she believes people should be able to “make decisions about our bodies with a doctor, not a politician.”
In the meantime, Hines said she is focused on her own projects, which include the upcoming season 12 of “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” the third season of “I Can See Your Voice,” the coming-of-age comedy “Popular Theory “, her podcast. with Tig Notaro “Tig and Cheryl: True Story” and Hines+Young, the eco-friendly self-care company she started with her 19-year-old daughter Catherine.
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As for her thoughts on becoming first lady, she said, “I haven’t really spent time in that space, because we’re not there yet.”
When asked how much she has prepared for the campaign, Hines told the New York Times, “I’m learning a lot every day.”
Hines explained that talking about her husband’s campaign “feels different.”
“Every word seems to matter,” he said. “Before that, really, my world was just comedy, so I could do it in the light. But now I understand that people listen in a different way, and I know that’s very important to them.”
Ashley Hume is an entertainment writer for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to ashley.hume@fox.com and on Twitter: @ashleyhume
