Kennedy family to endorse Biden in show of force against RFK Jr.

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Axios

1 hour ago


President Biden poses with dozens of Kennedy family members on St. Patrick's Day. Photo via Kerry Kennedy/X


Members of the Kennedy family will appear en masse and in force to endorse President Biden at a campaign event in Philadelphia on Thursday.

Why it matters: It's a public display of support that reveals a weakness Democrats privately acknowledge: Biden is likely more at risk from Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s third-party challenge than former President Trump is.

With a substantial number of voters telling pollsters they are dissatisfied with both Biden and Trump, Democrats are increasingly petrified that a Kennedy name on the ballot will throw the election to Trump.

A similar fear pervaded over the potential No Labels unity ticket. But with those plans scuttled, Biden is turning his focus on the scion of the storied Kennedy family.

Driving the news: RFK Jr.'s sister, Kerry Kennedy, will invoke the legacy of her slain father, former Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, as well as that of her uncles: former President John F. Kennedy and Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.).

"I can only imagine how Donald Trump's outrageous lies and behavior would have horrified my father," she will say, according to prepared remarks shared with Axios.

"President Biden has been a champion for all the rights and freedoms that my father and uncles stood for," she will say, joined by more than a dozen members of the Kennedy clan.

Biden will be introduced by Joe Kennedy III, a former member of Congress who currently serves as the president's special envoy to Northern Ireland.

After Biden's remarks, Kennedy family members will knock on doors and make calls on behalf of the Biden campaign.

Zoom out: From inflation to abortion, the Biden campaign is seizing every opportunity to make 2024 a choice between two candidates — and two competing visions for America.

Read more: https://www.axios.com/2024/04/18/kennedy-family-biden-endorsement-rfk-jr

[no_hypocrisy]

1. That show of force will dull the shine of the Kennedy legacy that RFK Jr.

has tried to co-opt.

If Ethel weren't infirmed, her denouncing her son would be the only piece missing.

[Rhiannon12866]

2. Wow! That's quite a crowd! Kudos for all of them! I recognize quite a few of them, including Patrick, Teddy's son

[red dog 1]

10. Which one is Patrick?

I thought I recognized Joseph P. Kennedy lll, because he has red hair, but I'm not sure.

His father, Joseph P. Kennedy ll might be at the right end of the 2nd row., and Joseph lll might be standing next to him.

[brer cat]

3. Good. I hope it impresses the voters leaning toward Kennedy.

We do not need a spoiler in the race.

[ms liberty]

4. Sensational wording alert "...democrats are increasingly petrified..."

"Concerned" would have been a much more responsible choice. I am a bit concerned, but I am not petrified. And it's March. If it was September, I'd begin to feel really concerned.

There are a couple of others I would rephrase, but that's the worst in this snippet, IMO.

[Aristus]

6. A show of unity makes it hard for the right-wing stenographers passing themselves off as journalists

to use the term 'disarray'. So, 'petrified' will have to do.

[twodogsbarking]

5. I can't name them but they look like Kennedys..

[FakeNoose]

7. Almost the entire Kennedy family have put out press releases endorsing Biden

Very few of them have anything to do with Bob, they think he's an embarrassment and "no longer a Democrat."

What else is there to say? The Kennedys support Joe Biden, bye-bye Bob.

[DinahMoeHum]

8. Rumor has it that matriarch Ethel instigated this move

. . .against her son.

Ethel, widow of RFK, observed her 96th birthday just several days ago, btw.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13241033/Ethel-Kennedy-RFK-St-Patricks-Joe-Biden-White-House.html

RFK Jr.'s mother Ethel, 95, was behind Kennedy clan's humiliating endorsement of Joe Biden - as her combative history with her presidential candidate son is exposed

Ethel Kennedy is 'the force behind the family's decision' to support Joe Biden for a second term over her son RFK Jr.'s presidential bid, sources tell DailyMail.com

Kennedy family insiders claim the clan's St. Patrick's Day photo-op at the White House was another snub against RFK Jr., 'based on Ethel's wishes'

'There's no doubt the Kennedy-centered St. Patty's Day scenario on the steps of the White House Rose Garden was a big middle finger to Bobby,' the source said

The author of the article is Jerry Oppenheimer, who has penned numerous "unauthorized biographies" of public figures, including Ethel Skakel Kennedy in The Other Mrs. Kennedy: An Intimate and Revealing Look at the Hidden Life of Ethel Skakel Kennedy and RFK Jr. in RFK Jr.: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the Dark Side of the Dream
He is a frequent contributor to DailyMail.com.

Another photo, from inside the White House (note the bust of RFK prominently displayed)

[BumRushDaShow]

9. The "official" deed happened here in Philly about an hour or so ago

(heard mention on the radio here)

My mother always talked about Ethel!