RFK Jr. bashes Harris after reports he tried to ask for a Cabinet post
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Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. gives a keynote speech during the Bitcoin 2024 conference on July 26 in Nashville, Tenn. Photo: Jon Cherry/Getty Images
Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. slammed Vice President Kamala Harris online after several outlets reported he sought a meeting to discuss a potential administration post, writing, "VP Harris's Democratic Party would be unrecognizable to my father and uncle."
Why it matters: Kennedy was once viewed as a potential spoiler in the Biden-Trump race, but recent polling shows the third-party candidate losing footing in the Harris-Trump contest.
Driving the news: Kennedy reportedly sought a discussion through intermediaries about endorsing Harris in exchange for a role in the administration, but Harris and her advisers did not offer a meeting time or express interest, the Washington Post wrote.
- "I think it is a strategic mistake for them. That's my perspective," Kennedy said in a Wednesday interview with the Post. "I think they ought to be looking at every opportunity. I think it is going to be a very close race."
What they're saying: After several outlets reported the outreach Wednesday, Kennedy insisted Thursday he is staying in the race, writing in an X post, "I have no plans to endorse Kamala Harris for President. I do have a plan to defeat her."
- In the post, he lambasted Harris' vision of the Democratic party as one he sees as far different from his father's and uncle's.
- "The Democratic Party of RFK and JFK was the party of civil liberties and free speech. VP Harris's is the party of censorship, lockdowns, and medical coercion," Kennedy, an anti-vaccine activist, wrote. He slammed the party under Harris for being "riddled with neocon warmongers," characterizing modern Democrats as the "Party of Big Tech, Big Pharma and Wall Street."
- Several members of the Kennedy family endorsed Biden before he departed the race, appearing en masse at a campaign event in April.
Catch up quick: The reported outreach follows a Milwaukee meeting between Kennedy and former President Trump last month in which the pair reportedly discussed the independent candidate endorsing the GOP nominee.
- In a leaked phone call between the candidates, Trump can be heard telling Kennedy he would "love" for him to "do something" with the GOP campaign.
- "It would be so good for you and so big for you," Trump told Kennedy, who later apologized for the leaked conversation, writing, "I am mortified that this was posted."
By the numbers: While some polls showed Kennedy in the double digits earlier this year, recent numbers have demonstrated his dwindling support.
- Harris' explosion onto the trail and the spike in enthusiasm that followed has cut away at the "double hater" base that could have bolstered Kennedy's bid.
- A Pew Research Center survey conducted Aug. 5–11 found that Harris' 6-point bump from Biden's July standings largely came from those who had previously said they supported or leaned toward Kennedy.
- 7% of registered voters surveyed said they would vote for Kennedy or were leaning toward him, according to Pew's August data. In July, Pew reported 15% of registered voters were behind or leaning toward Kennedy.
- RFK Jr. held onto 39% of those who backed him in July, Pew data showed — but the rest of those voters have moved to Harris (39%) and Trump (20%).
The bottom line: Kennedy's presence in the race — or his endorsement of a candidate — could still sway a close matchup between the two major party candidates.
Go deeper: RFK Jr. admits to leaving dead bear cub in Central Park before New Yorker profile
