Could Robert F. Kennedy Jr. be Donald Trump’s running mate in 2024?
The Trump has had thoughts along these lines. The New York Post reported Saturday that “people close to former President Trump made preliminary overtures to Robert F. Kennedy about the possibility of serving as his running mate.” Someone whom the Post identified as “one person familiar with the matter” said that “Trump operatives expressed an interest in Kennedy early on, but it was all premature,” as it was “right out of the box when Bobby announced” his candidacy for president in April 2023.
At that time, Kennedy peremptorily dismissed such a possibility, stating on May 10, 2023: “Just to quell any speculation, UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES will I join Donald Trump on an electoral ticket. Our positions on certain fundamental issues, our approaches to governance, and our philosophies of leadership could not be further apart.”
Some patriots greeted that announcement with relief. Historian Larry Schweikart responded: “Gee Bobby, what I've been tellin' people. Thanks. Your anti-gun, anti-life positions are out of touch with modern Republican voters. Too bad. A little common sense and you'd be great.”
Yet, since then, Kennedy has more than once displayed a little common sense. In August 2023, he was still attempting to distance himself from Trump while endorsing many of his positions. Kennedy said: “There’s a lot of politicians throughout our history that have talked about the border issue as a way to stir up or incite xenophobia or raise nationalism,” in an apparent swipe at Bad Orange Man. But RFK continued: “I might come to this issue from a different perspective, and it’s a perspective of compassion, of humanitarianism, but also just common sense. A country cannot exist if it can’t secure its border.”
Kennedy added: “I went down to the border feeling that Trump had made a mistake on the wall, but you know, I feel like people need to be able to recalibrate their worldview when they’re confronted with evidence. When I’m president, what I’m going to do is bring in Republicans and Democrats and get the best Republican ideas and the best Democratic ideas and put everything on the table.” Interesting idea. What better way to do that than to run with a Republican?
At the same event, Kennedy said, “I’m a traditional Kennedy Democrat,” but he isn’t even a Democrat anymore. The Democrat establishment is all-in with Old Joe, and hates Kennedy almost as much as the Republican establishment hates Trump, so RFK is now running as an independent. Even in these turbulent times, that’s a non-starter, unless Kennedy is only in the race to throw it to Biden, and so the Kennedy camp might be willing to explore other options. As for a Trump/RFK ticket, the “insider” the Post spoke with says: “Anything’s possible. I wouldn’t write it off by any means.”
There are also a lot of ways in which it makes sense. Trump and RFK are both outsiders who are running against the entrenched establishment, and challenging some of its core claims. They both promise to represent ordinary Americans who have been disenfranchised by the authoritarian political and media elites. They have earned the undying hatred of those elites, which only makes them more appealing to many voters who are appalled at what has been happening to the country over the last few years. And recently they both sided with Texas in its efforts to secure its border as the Biden regime moves to ensure that it stays open.
Related: Here’s How RFK Jr. Is Hurting Donald Trump
They disagree about the notorious COVID vaccines, which Trump introduced and still stands behind, but as most of Trump’s base has seen the dangers of the Fauci jab, this may not be an insurmountable obstacle. Trump and Kennedy certainly wouldn’t be the first ticket that didn’t see eye-to-eye on all the issues. And so talks are — apparently — continuing: a “large donor to both Trump and Kennedy” said that a Trump/Kennedy ticket was “very much behind the scenes at this stage. As we progress you might see it bubble up a little bit more. Bobby can bring new people to the polls.”
Trump says he hasn’t made any decisions yet: "I can't tell you that really, I mean, I know who it's going to be." It’s extraordinarily unlikely that his choice will end up being Kennedy, but if it were, the political and media establishment would be shaken to its core, and these days, that would be a wonderful thing to see.
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