Democrats unite against RFK Jr.

Democrats, eager to re-elect President Biden, are calling for a more coordinated use of force against Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

After the Independence Party tapped patent attorney and investor Nicole Shanahan to be its vice president this week, Biden allies and liberals are worried about his new cash flow and November voting access. They escalated their efforts against him, fearing the consequences would be dire.

With a wealthy vice presidential candidate on Kennedy’s side, Democrats say they should do more to reduce his chances, spotlighting his controversial positions and electing him. He argues that we need to do whatever we can to put it on the back burner.

“Democrats should use every means available to expose the truth about Kennedy and Shanahan,” Democratic operative Doug Gordon said.

“Expose that they have no path to winning the 270 electoral votes they need to win,” Gordon said.

“Expose the fact that both Kennedy and Shanahan have been spreading conspiracy theories for years. Expose the fact that their running is helping them. [former President Trump] Go back to the White House,” he added.

Some suggested that Green Party candidate Jill Stein stole votes from Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election, contributing to the Democratic candidate’s defeat.

“They need to look at what happened in 2016 and take it very seriously,” said one Democratic strategist involved in the campaign. “Not only should they call out Donald Trump, they should do the same for RFK Jr. He should never be considered a viable option.”

This week, after Kennedy announced Shanahan as his running mate, Trump said Kennedy would be “great for MAGA” because he would “steal votes” from Biden, and that “it would be a great service to America.”

“He is a crooked political opponent of Joe Biden, not my opponent,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “I love it when he runs!”

For months, Biden has largely ignored Kennedy personally and focused solely on Trump. And those close to him say they don’t expect that to change.

But that doesn’t mean outside Democrats are pretending he doesn’t exist. They still consider Kennedy a joke, but are trying to plan further attacks accordingly.

Advocacy groups aligned with the Democratic National Committee (DNC) have set up a war room-like operation for Mr. Kennedy, with the goal of gathering as much information as possible that could damage him. ing. The Democratic National Committee and Biden advocacy groups had planned to focus on Trump as he neared the Republican nomination, but are now treating Kennedy as a rival worthy of a jab.

Earlier this year, the DNC began quietly ramping up its response to Kennedy and other potential third-party candidates, dedicating a full communications team and investigative efforts to potential spoilers.

The team also includes lawyers such as Dana Remus, who served as Biden’s White House adviser, to help Kennedy understand which states are on the ballot. So far, his campaign has said he will appear in New Hampshire, Hawaii and Utah.

“We learned the lessons of 2000 and 2016,” said Rhys Smith, a prominent Democratic strategist who was brought in to help with the public relations effort.

Minutes after Kennedy’s vice presidential event on Tuesday, the Democratic team held a press conference seeking pushback. In February, President Kennedy launched a billboard campaign in Michigan as he began his tour of battleground states.

“We’re definitely going to compete against him wherever he goes,” Smith said.

And the DNC’s efforts won’t be accomplished in isolation. Other established political parties are also supporting anti-spoilers efforts, aiming to protect themselves from the threat of latecomers.

“The broader Democratic establishment is ramping up joint efforts to define the threat of a third-party bid like Kennedy,” said Joel Payne, a Democratic strategist.

At the same time, Payne added, “I think the president’s campaign probably wants to avoid elevating Kennedy unnecessarily, and that’s probably a wise strategy at this point.”

Democrats’ attack strategies vary in strength, but most focus on educating voters about his policy positions, particularly his vaccine skepticism and restrictions on some areas of women’s reproductive health, where he leans to the right. We agree that this should be a priority.

“The more voters learn about RFK Jr. and his campaign, the more it becomes clear that he is using his famous last name to play the spoiler role that sends Trump back to the White House,” American Airlines’ presidential campaign said.・Communications Director Brandon Weathersby said. Bridge 21st Century, Democratic PAC.

“When voters learn about Trump’s strong ties to allies, outlandish conspiracy theories, and right-wing positions on important issues, they typically develop a dislike for RFK Jr.,” Weathersby said. .

President Kennedy’s supporters say they are open to the challenge. They see the concerns of Biden supporters as evidence of environmental lawyers’ ability to resonate with people who don’t want a Biden-Trump reelection.

“They’re actually taking this issue seriously,” said one Kennedy supporter familiar with the campaign’s strategy. “They won’t admit it and won’t be public about it. They’ll badmouth and insult Bobby and then invite his family to the White House to troll him,” the source said. “But the fact is, they know Bobby is a factor.”

Kennedy’s polls are often in the low double digits, trailing only Biden and Trump, but his supporters believe that cross-partisan efforts to damage Kennedy’s reputation are This is a sign that Trump may think he can win more state votes.

“They’re putting all kinds of resources into promoting this narrative that they call him the ‘stalking horse,’ and they’re directing that talking point to every sailor in the media, every operative, and the lower levels of the DNC. Fact. , that tells me they’re trying to make something stick,” the source said.

Kennedy’s challenge for now is that he is not yet on the ballot in many states, including most of the battleground states where the election will ultimately be won.

There are various reasons for this. To qualify for about half of those spots, he had to declare a running mate, which he hadn’t done until this week. He also had far less money than Biden and Trump, according to Federal Election Commission filings. And while he has a high profile as Kennedy, he doesn’t have the same level of profile as current or former presidents. Some people close to Kennedy admit that some members of the public are unaware that Kennedy is running.

More money could change the direction of a campaign that has been sparsely advertised except for one big $7 million ad during the Super Bowl that Mr. Shanahan helped finance.

Those close to Kennedy’s campaign argue that the more states he qualifies on the ballot, the more he becomes a “real force, a real factor” in the general election.

“It can’t be ignored by Joe Biden or anyone around him,” the source added.