Summer is still a ways off in the United States, but nationwide, Democrats are starting to sweat. The source of their discomfiture is, of course, that scion of one of the United State's oldest political families, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and his independent run for the White House.
Democrats aren't wrong to be concerned. RFK Jr. presents a significant challenge, threatening to siphon votes away from incumbent Joe Biden's re-election efforts.
Democrats are taking extraordinary steps to prevent Robert F. Kennedy Jr. from hindering their efforts to keep the White House in November.
From rallying Kennedy’s family around President Biden, to dumping opposition research and holding press briefings about how he helps former President Trump, Democrats watching Kennedy qualify for more state ballots are pulling out all the stops to prevent him from hurting Biden in the fall.
“There’s no education in the second kick of the mule,” said Antjuan Seawright, a Democratic strategist who has advised Biden’s presidential campaigns. “In 2016, we saw the impact that third-party candidates had on the election. And we also saw potentially a fault line of not educating enough [about] what votes for those candidates could mean long term for the country.”
Kudos to Seawright for the folksy aphorism that I may use myself in the future, but he makes an important point. (Although I differ with the term "educating" the voters; "propagandizing" would be a much more appropriate term.) Also, while there were third-party candidates in the 2016 election - there always are - they didn't have the impact that Kennedy's higher-profile candidacy is likely to have in 2024. He may well siphon away more votes from the major party candidates than anyone since Ross Perot, and in all candor, I'd say that if this makes the major parties a little uncomfortable, well, they've got it coming.
What's interesting about all this is the reaction from Team Trump.
Trump, for his part, is playing his own hand with Kennedy. He’s been more outwardly complimentary of the independent, giving him credit for running and cheering on his bid. The former president said this week he “knows him very well” and previously said he believes Kennedy will hurt Biden in the upcoming rematch.
If I were in former President Trump's highly-polished shoes, I'd be praising RFK Jr. to the skies at every opportunity. Oh, a strong RFK Jr. bid will siphon some votes from both sides, but certainly more from the Democrats. He may very well be 2024's Ross Perot or Ralph Nader (and if I were Ralph Nader, I still wouldn't be showing my face in Florida). The Trump campaign, unlike national Democrats, have little to lose from Kennedy's efforts, and everything to gain.
Previously on RedState: Biden Demonstrates Just How Scared He Is of RFK Jr With Latest Post
Here's the problem national Democrats face: It isn't RFK Jr.; it's the incumbent.
Here are five straight minutes that show exactly why the special counsel noted Biden's diminished mental fitness pic.twitter.com/u1ToosAKyz
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) February 11, 2024
Biden just wrapped up a "swing" through Pennsylvania — and it was a total and complete disaster filled with shuffles, slurs, and A LOT of lying.
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) April 19, 2024
In just a few brief stops, Biden…
— Falsely claimed (twice) his "Uncle Bosie" was eaten alive by cannibals in New Guinea.
— Tried…
It's not Robert F. Kennedy Jr. that national Democrats need to be worried about. It's Joe Biden - he of the stumbles and mumbles, he of the barely coherent, rambling verbal spews, the serial dissembler, the corrupt old man who hasn't been fit for office for years. This, not RFK Jr., is the Democrats' weakness.
Let's hope they never figure that out.
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