Nicole Shanahan, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s former vice presidential running mate, criticized Democrats' attacks on Kennedy in an interview on Fox News on Tuesday, saying members of the party have “lost their soul.”
“They've lost their soul, they've lost their direction,” Shanahan told Fox News' Jesse Watters on his primetime show.
“And if you're going to pick a target, you've got to pick a better one. Robert F. Kennedy is one of the kindest human beings I've had the privilege of knowing.”
Shanahan added that Kennedy is “someone who has been attacked from every angle for years now” and that since she joined the campaign he has told her, “Every attack is a sign from God. Be kind.”
Kennedy announced last week that he was ending his presidential bid in favor of former President Trump. After Trump announced he was ending his candidacy, Kennedy attended a rally in Arizona last Friday.
“I'm very pleased to welcome tonight someone who has been an incredible defender of many of the values that we all share and have long held in common,” Trump said in introducing Kennedy.
Kennedy has long promoted anti-vaccine conspiracy theories that he says are false and has spoken out about “Making America Healthy Again” as part of Trump's campaign. Watters asked Shanahan what that meant.
“Making America healthy again means acknowledging the fact that we have the highest rates of chronic disease of any modern nation and we're spending $4.6 trillion on health care, which doesn't seem to produce any results. So we're really asking the hard questions of why our health care system isn't producing healthier people,” she said.
“We know there is massive collusion and corruption in government agencies. We're going to separate that. We're going to separate big pharma from the government agencies that are responsible for delivering healthy outcomes for our people.”
Several members of Mr Kennedy's family, including his five siblings, have attacked him for his support of Mr Trump.
“We want an America full of hope, united in a shared vision of a brighter future,” Kerry Kennedy wrote in a statement alongside her brother's four siblings. “We have confidence in Harris and Waltz. My brother Bobby's decision today to support Trump is a betrayal of the values our father and family hold most dear.”
“This is a sad ending to a sad story,” they added.
Kennedy Interview with TMZ Earlier this week, Trump said his wife, actress Cheryl Hines, was also uncomfortable with his support.
