Who is Robert F. Kennedy Jr.?

[Zauriel]

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is the third child and second son of the late Senator Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of the President John Kennedy. He grew up in a wealthy and powerful Irish American family. RFK Jr. was 14 years old when his father was assassinated. His world then had changed around him. At 16 years old, RFK Junior and his 16-year old cousin Bobby Shriver were arrested for selling marijuana to an undercover cop in 1970, a year after Chappaquidick incident. The major newspapers don't usually print the juvenile offenders' names unless they are from a famous and influential family. Senator Ted Kennedy suspected that President Nixon leaked the news about his nephews' arrest to the media to hurt his presidential ambitions.

https://www.nytimes.com/1970/08/06/a...na-case-2.html

According to a Kennedy family biography book called "The Kennedy Heirs: John, Caroline, and the New Generation - A Legacy of Tragedy and Triumph" or something else (I can't remember which title), Bobby Shriver's parents Eunice and Sargent Shriver were furious at their son's offense and disciplined him so harshly that he never made the same mistake again. He would later get elected as Mayor of Santa Monica. RFK Jr.'s mother was equally infuriated, but as the biography book narrated, she didn't discipline him as harshly as the Shrivers did to their son. Despite his punishment, RFK Junior, being cautious, would just continue his addiction to drugs but in a very discreet way until he got arrested while being an an Assistant District Attorney in Manhattan.



https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...long-shot.html

I don't usually read DailyMail but they published an interesting story about RFK. Jr. Especially these gossipy details.

At just 14, he began burying his anger and sadness in marijuana and psychedelics, and soon turned to hard drugs, including heroin.

His early schooling in three high-priced boarding schools was a disaster – with him essentially being asked to leave or being booted out because of bad behavior.

But with the Kennedy name and influence, he easily got into Harvard, and later earned a law degree at the University of Virginia.

At home - the Kennedy family's sprawling estate, Hickory Hill, in McLean, Virginia - Bobby's drug-related behavior exploded, friends recalled. He fed the drug LSD to a pet parakeet and allegedly forced his brother, David, to take mescaline, a frightening psychedelic.

Looking wild-eyed at Bobby, David screamed: 'You're dying just like Daddy.'

But it was David who would die of a drug overdose at the tragically young age of 28.

RFK Junior's work on protecting the environment is admirable but his anti-vax views are something different.

Yesterday, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced his run for president Wednesday in Boston, a city he never resided in, but is a city that JFK, RFK and Ted Kennedy have a deep connection with.
https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/...-announcement/


However, since most members of the Kennedy clan have distanced themselves from RFK Junior's antivax propaganda, Bobby Kennedy Junior has a long shot at ever winning any election, let alone the presidency. His own powerful family are unlikely to support his campaign. Many members won't even vote for him. Most of them prefer to vote for President Biden in 2024, so Robert F. Kennedy Jr. can’t count on his own family to support or endorse his presidential campaign.

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/04/16/p...024/index.html

https://www.politico.com/news/2023/0...paign-00092842


Just a very few members of his extended family including his wife Cheryl Hines supports his presidential run.

https://people.com/politics/cheryl-h...sidential-run/

[Iron Maiden]

To tell the truth, I never heard much about RFK jr and it must because the press never covered it due to respect for his family. After reading about him recently and this post I can see why the family keeps their distance from him.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Conspiracy geeks on the left are saying that because RFK Jr was associated with Roger Stone and Steve Bannon, he’s a Republican plant in a scheme to siphon votes away from Biden in the 2024 election. As has already been mentioned, Junior’s chances aren’t all that good because of his being a known anti-vaxxer, plus the fact his own family despises him, being on the outs with the Kennedy brand won’t help him either.

[shooshoomanjoe]

So far, we have Biden, Kennedy and Williamson running on the dem ticket. Marianne Williamson looks like a better choice but I don't know much about her.

[Kirby101]

So far, we have Biden, Kennedy and Williamson running on the dem ticket. Marianne Williamson looks like a better choice but I don't know much about her.

She's an Oprah Winfrey woo spreading loon with no qualifications to run for President.

[MajorHoy]

She's an Oprah Winfrey woo spreading loon with no qualifications to run for President.

Sort of like Donald Trump?

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Sort of like Donald Trump?

I’d say more like Dr. Oz and Dr. Phil, charlatans who earned more time in the spotlight, thanks to exposure on Oprah’s old show than they deserved.

[Kirby101]

Sort of like Donald Trump?

Trump is in a category all his own.

[worstblogever]

Conspiracy geeks on the left are saying that because RFK Jr was associated with Roger Stone and Steve Bannon, he’s a Republican plant in a scheme to siphon votes away from Biden in the 2024 election. As has already been mentioned, Junior’s chances aren’t all that good because of his being a known anti-vaxxer, plus the fact his own family despises him, being on the outs with the Kennedy brand won’t help him either.

Yeah, I'd sum up "WHO IS HE?" with:

He's a right-wing patsy that only more useless idiots would rally behind to the detriment of the country.

[Jimbi]

So he is something of a Lobbyist?

[Zauriel]

To tell the truth, I never heard much about RFK jr and it must because the press never covered it due to respect for his family. After reading about him recently and this post I can see why the family keeps their distance from him.

That explains why I was able to find only one article about RFK Jr. 's arrest at the age 16 on the internet. Regarding his juvenile offense, the marijuana possession case, I couldn't find any other relevant article on the internet. The press really respected the family so much that they never covered extensively about his drug addiction and juvenile criminal record. I didn't even know about it until I read in a Kennedy family book which I mentioned in my opening post. There was also no mention of 16-year old Bobby's marijuana case on Wikipedia, either. If he wins the presidential nomination, you can be sure that Fox News and every other right wing news site will bring up his every felony, misdemeanor and misdeed to the light.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_F._Kennedy_Jr.

[Zauriel]

As has already been mentioned, Junior’s chances aren’t all that good because of his being a known anti-vaxxer, plus the fact his own family despises him, being on the outs with the Kennedy brand won’t help him either.

Yes, at first most Kennedys, including his sister Kerry kept silent about his spread of medical misinformation until he publicly suggested that Anne Frank was safer than the unvaccinated because she could hide in an attic.

But some Kennedys have sharply criticized RFK Jr.'s anti-vaccine crusade in a well-written and informative article. It was written by KATHLEEN KENNEDY TOWNSEND (RFK Jr.'s sister), JOSEPH P. KENNEDY II (RFK Jr.'s brother) and MAEVE KENNEDY MCKEAN (RFK Jr.'s niece)

https://www.politico.com/magazine/st...ccines-226798/

Even the conservative Douglas Harriman Kennedy, a FOX News correspondent has kept his distance from his brother RFK Jr.'s anti-vaccine views.

[Mister Mets]

Well, 14% of Biden voters support him.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/...s/11690888002/

Those numbers are probably not enough to convince anyone serious (IE- someone with significant political experience) to challenge Biden.

[Hypestyle]

I hope he quits. he doesn't add any meaningful discourse to policy. Just hardcore anti-vaccine boilerplate stuff.
he offers nothing about racial justice. he offers nothing about lgbt justice.

[shooshoomanjoe]

I hope the dems find someone to get excited about. Otherwise, what's the point of bothering to vote.