The Guardian view on Robert F Kennedy Jr: from
Camelot to conspiracy-mongering
Editorial
The lawyer trades on his family’s image while
spreading dangerous ideas. No wonder Republicans hype his bid for the
Democratic nomination
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Wed 19 Jul
2023 14.07 EDT
Robert F
Kennedy Jr, campaigning to be the Democratic nominee for the presidency, likes
to call himself a “Kennedy Democrat”. His own siblings disagree. His uncle’s
presidency, like his namesake father’s career and presidential campaign, had an
aura of hope and responsibility as well as glamour. RFK Jr talks vaguely of
overcoming divisions, but in reality trades upon a peculiar blend of “cynicism
and credulity”, as one commentator notes. Most recently he claimed that
“Covid-19 is targeted to attack Caucasians and black people. The people who are
most immune are Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese,” in comments reported by the New
York Post.
However
jarring the remarks – he partially backtracked later – they sit comfortably
with his long history of fomenting conspiracy theories and his nonsensical,
anti-scientific views. He has falsely linked childhood immunisations to autism
and wifi to cancer and “leaky brain”, claimed that HIV does not cause Aids, and
suggested that chemicals in drinking water could make children transgender. One
of his sisters warned that his latest comments put people’s lives in danger.
So much for
the Kennedy legacy. Nor does he look like much of a Democrat. He is being hyped
by billionaires and rightwing broadcasters such as Sean Hannity, and has gained
traction among Republicans rather than Democrats. Some see his campaign
primarily as a vehicle for his ego and brand, which may be less damaging to
President Biden’s chances than a possible third-party bid by Democratic senator
Joe Manchin and Republican former governor Jon Huntsman’s No Labels group. A
poll this month suggested that a “moderate, independent third-party candidate”
could gain about 20% of the vote and result in a second term for Donald Trump.
But talk up Mr Kennedy enough and he might have a marginal effect in denting
President Biden. Others suspect that Mr Kennedy wants the Republican
vice-presidential slot. Steve Bannon and Roger Stone have both floated the idea
of a Trump-Kennedy ticket.
None of
this has prevented him finding up to 20% support among Democrats in polls.
Camelot nostalgia and the celebrity factor have clearly played a large part in
that. Mr Kennedy has never run for any public office, still less held it, but
boasts that he’s “been around” politics since he was a little boy. The lack of
enthusiasm for the sitting president is also potent: most Democrats do not want
him to run again, although they indicate that they would vote for him over Mr
Trump. Voters, including independents, are not giving Mr Biden credit for the
improving the economy or other achievements. That may not be fair. But it’s a
fact.
Mr
Kennedy’s appeal goes deeper, however. He has found a home in the world
described by a new book, Conspirituality, where new age spirituality and the
“wellness” industry overlap with the politics of paranoia, as well as alongside
the Trumpian right. Distrust of institutions, suspicion at the marriage of
state and corporate power, and fear and sadness at the despoliation of the
environment are in themselves reasonable concerns. But the political ambition
that feeds upon and mutates them into more poisonous beliefs is unpalatable.
Mr
Kennedy’s anti-vaccine conspiracy-mongering has caused enough damage. His
latest remarks show how easily conspiracy theories blur into bigotry and
scapegoating. It may be farcical to hear a multimillionaire from the country’s
most famous political dynasty railing against “elites”, but there is nothing
funny about this campaign.
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