We were told it would happen but I refused to believe RFK Jr. would drop out until he actually did so. Well, today he did. Sort of. While he announced he was suspending his campaign he still seems to want to muddy the waters. Technically there’s a difference between terminating a campaign and suspending it but most times it’s effectively the same thing. Leave it to RFK Jr. to go and make things, well weird!
Allow me to backtrack for a second. RFK Jr. long ago realized that for all his happy talk about being able to win 270 electoral votes he knew he wouldn’t carry a single state. So he went hat in hand to Team Trump offering his dropping out and endorsing Trump in exchange for a position in the Trump administration. There were actual discussions but in the end no deal was made. Trump was likely thinking RFK Jr. would hurt Democrats more than him, at least at the time. So after an interlude RFK Jr. tried to get in touch with the Harris campaign. THAT never got so much as a meeting (which he at least got with Trump) and to add insult to his injury it was lower level staffers that flat-out rejected his entreaties! Major butt-hurt I’m sure.
So where are we? RFK Jr. has wound up in a place where the best he might do is play spoiler and even that’s a maybe in some swing states although if things are close as we saw in both 2016 and 2020 (not to mention Palm Beach County in Florida in 2000) even 1k votes in the right (or wrong depending on one’s perspective) can make all the difference. That brings me to this article by CBS News. It’s worth the time to read because it breaks down how instead of simply dropping out RFK Jr. is still trying to keep his junk near enough to the punchbowl to piss in it.
The article notes that during an event in Arizona, in a filing today Kennedy says because he’s endorsing Trump he’s withdrawing his petition to be on Pennsylvania’s ballot. He admitted he no longer believes he has a path to electoral victory. He even went on to say it would be unfair to his volunteers and donors to keep going. That’s the kind of rhetoric one would typically expect. It hits the right notes. Thank everyone for their support/efforts, and in this case also endorse someone else. For Kennedy Trump is the guy now. Remember how I said he made things weird? It turns out he’s only partially suspending his campaign:
But RFK Jr. also said he wasn’t “terminating” his campaign, merely suspending it, and he would remain on the ballot in many states. But he also said, “In about 10 battleground states where my presence would be a spoiler, I’m going to remove my name, and I’ve already started the process.” He said voters in red states and blue states could vote vote for him “without harming or helping President Trump or or Vice President Harris.”
This is one of those ‘the Devil is in the details’ situations. Despite his insistence he doesn’t want to play “spoiler” RFK Jr. seems to be being coy about where he’s already got ballot access and intends to leave his name in place. For example he was speaking in Arizona, which is likely to be close again this year. Hmmmm. Then there’s Georgia which is red but has shown signs in recent years of being closer to pink. In North Carolina where I live he waged (with GOP help) a fierce battle to get on the ballot. This state has been close in Presidential elections for multiple cycles and it’s definitely in play this year too.
Pardon me mister Kennedy if I seem doubtful of the sincerity of your ‘I don’t want to play spoiler’ comments. Oh screw it. I think you are an egotistical a-hole who wants revenge on the Democratic Party. For NOT in effect saying ‘OMFG, not just a Kennedy but RFK’s son wants to be our nominee. All hail RFK(Jr.) and bow down before him!’ Talk is cheap you asshat – and yes, now that you’ve endorsed Trump that means you get your very own MAGA hat. (the tinfoil lining you’ll have to put in yourself) Talk is cheap. If you mean what you say about not playing spoiler you’d file paperwork to have your name removed from the ballot in EVERY state where you’ve qualified! Do it while there’s still time and I’ll be less harsh, as in just trying to forget about you so I don’t get wound up and write about you.
Anyway, Kennedy now says he’s endorsing Trump. He wasn’t able to wrangle a job in a second Trump administration but there was no J.D. Vance back then. Ever since Trump tapped Vance as his VP things have been shall we say problematic for Team Trump. Then our own VP nominee Tim Walz came out with the “weird” thing and it wound up being extended to Trump too. It’s really gotten under both their skins. RFK Jr. could be just the guy they need to distract folks. Talk about WEIRD. We’re talking about a guy who talked about a parasitic brain worm that ate part of his freaking brain. Then there was him telling a looooong story about his stunt with a bear cub ten years ago. Throwing it in the back of his van, then with pals dumping it in central park. Making it look like the bear had been killed in a bicycle accident (har har!) and even posing for pics of being “bitten” by it.
Kennedy could be “Secretary of Making Trump/Vance NOT Look Weird.” Let’s face it, this is one category where Trump might be happy to not be #1. He sure as hell needs someone to distract journalists and voters from his and Vance’s repeated gaffes. RFK Jr. is a walking, talking WEIRD MAGNET. My title for him now that he’s Team Trump could be improved upon. I’d love to see what others might come up with so have at it folks.
And Trump? No reaction yet but one of his few skills/assets is savvy and he’s got to be wondering whether Kennedy’s endorsement will wind up being a good thing in the long run. Time will tell.
His promises carry as much weight as his marriage vows, when he reportedly carried on 40 something affairs, also reportedly factoring in on his wife’s suicide. Either there was money involved, a bunch of stupid women, or the allure of sleeping with a Kennedy. Clearly he looks like an old catcher’s mitt left in the rain, and his voice is as pleasant as fingernails on a chalkboard. Character? Intelligence? Principles? Nah. I used to watch Bobby campaign especially after he toured Appalachia and saw the abject poverty. Kamala reminds me of that dark time after John was shot, Dr. King shot, Medgar Evars shot…Bobby seemed not only experienced in government, but HE CARED, and planned to right wrongs…then he was shot. 1968 was a dark dark year. The summer of love seemed like a dream that had morphed into a nightmare…then Nixon came along with his war on drugs, i.e., cannabis, which continues to this day with 700,000 arrest each phucking year, focused on poor folks especially black folks. This pissant is a traitor to his father’s legacy. FACT. Anything he does is not surprising.
The ‘worm ate his brain’ story does seem to be strongly supported by his speeches, policies and behavior.