Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced Wednesday that he’ll “address the nation” Friday from Phoenix, Arizona. The nation, which has barely noticed that Kennedy is running for president, will probably ignore that too, despite the fact that it appears he’ll be ending his campaign.
ABC News and The Washington Post both report that sources close to Kennedy say he’ll not only drop his campaign but endorse Donald Trump. The Post reports that there have been “advanced discussions” between the two teams, including “multiple phone conversations and at least one in-person meeting” between Trump and Kennedy.
The timing and location of Kennedy’s announcement seems hardly a coincidence. Just a few hours after the address, Trump will hold a rally in nearby Glendale, Arizona. Maybe Trump thinks he can pull off a big surprise by having Kennedy show up at his rally, to compete with Vice President Kamala Harris’ surprise appearances at the Democratic National Convention on Monday and Tuesday. A man can dream, I suppose.
Earlier this week, Kennedy’s running mate, Nicole Shanahan, sort of spilled the beans, saying on a podcast that the campaign was deciding between pushing on (and losing) or shutting down and probably joining Trump.
“There’s two options that we're looking at, and one is staying in, forming that new party, but we run the risk of a Kamala Harris and Walz presidency because we draw votes from Trump,” Shanahan said on the podcast “Impact Theory.” “Or we walk away right now and join forces with Donald Trump and, you know, we walk away from that and we explain to our base why we're making this decision.”
Why is Kennedy making this decision? Besides his lack of a real campaign, that is. Probably, it’s his ploy to get a job in a potential Trump administration.
According to CNN, his campaign made overtures to the Harris campaign “to arrange a meeting about a possible role in her administration if he drops out of the race and endorses her.” The Harris campaign was not interested.
“I think it is a strategic mistake for them. That’s my perspective,” Kennedy told the Post. “I think they ought to be looking at every opportunity. I think it is going to be a very close race.”
Bless his little heart, he thinks his endorsement will seal the deal.
Trump apparently buys that idea, or at least, he’s willing to indulge Kennedy. “I like him, and I respect him,” Trump told CNN Tuesday when asked if he would consider giving Kennedy a Cabinet appointment.
“He’s a brilliant guy. He’s a very smart guy. I’ve known him for a very long time,” Trump continued. “I didn’t know he was thinking about getting out, but if he is thinking about getting out, certainly I’d be open to it.”
Trump can have him. They deserve each other.
Donate to Kamala Harris’ campaign today.
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