# Is Bannon's support of RFK jr.'s POTUS candidacy all you need to know? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [May 1, 2023, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423 "2023-05-01T16:28:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2023, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/21 "2023-05-02T04:08:09Z")
> [@survinga](#): > > Then, I saw him again during the pandemic, and he was spreading lies about vaccines. So, he must have undergone a horrible change. I don’t think he was a conspiracy theorist type years ago. ISTR him peddling antivax nonsense on the Daily Show 20-some years ago. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2023, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/22 "2023-05-02T06:40:52Z")
> [@JohnGalt](#): > > Boy State (a mock government sponsored by the American Legion). No Girl State? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2023, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/23 "2023-05-02T06:44:19Z")
> [@PatrickLondon](#): > > No Girl State? There is, indeed, a Girls State, sponsored by the American Legion Auxiliary (a separate organization, made up of female relatives of war veterans). > **[Boys/Girls State](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boys/Girls_State)** > > The American Legion Boys State and American Legion Auxiliary Girls State are summer leadership and citizenship programs for high school juniors, which focus on exploring the mechanics of American government and politics. The programs are sponsored by the American Legion (AL) and the American Legion Auxiliary (ALA) respectively. Boys and girls are usually nominated by their high school during their junior year. Boys and Girls State programs both began in 1937 and are held in each of the U.S. state... ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2023, 8:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/24 "2023-05-02T08:56:17Z")
Thanks. Enlightening (sorry if off-topic) ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2023, 11:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/25 "2023-05-02T11:04:24Z")
I take comfort thinking that whatever support he has now, if it continues all the way through the primary, will shift to the Dem candidate during the general. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2023, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/26 "2023-05-02T12:38:13Z")
Bannon is a turd and a worthless troll, no matter what he excretes from his face-hole. He’s hoping this move will cause division among Democratic voters, because anything to rile-up the libs he thinks will be good news for the fractured and divided Republicans. Fail. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2023, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/27 "2023-05-02T12:58:53Z")
The Kennedy name…big deal. Right now we have a US senator named John Kennedy who’s the biggest dick shit I’ve ever seen. Check him out: [senator kennedy - Google Search](https://www.google.com/search?sxsrf=APwXEdfuLY-iGodrd1mvbvxm_3ljR4Jjqg:1683032158751&q=senator+kennedy&tbm=vid&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjK5t6v19b-AhXrjokEHQaQCUgQ0pQJegQIDBAB&biw=1163&bih=560&dpr=1.65#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:39c56c6e,vid:FOCGcFo-kMc) ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2023, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/28 "2023-05-02T16:48:09Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > The Kennedy name…big deal. Right now we have a US senator named John Kennedy who’s the biggest dick shit I’ve ever seen. I think that most people who feel that the Kennedy name carries a cachet are specifically thinking about the Kennedy _family_ (JFK, RFK, their siblings and children, etc.), and not just any person who happens to have that surname. That said, I would not be at all surprised if some low-information voters think that the [Senator from Louisiana](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Kennedy_(Louisiana_politician)) is related to the better-known Kennedys (as far as I can tell, if he is related to them at all, it’s only distantly). ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2023, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/29 "2023-05-02T17:05:22Z")
I could recognize the Robert Kennedys, Jr. and Sr. But I was babysitting some kids while their parents were at RFK’s rally at the Ambassador the night he was assasinated. Surreally bad evening. ---
**Author:** ![Mallard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Mallard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mallard)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2023, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/30 "2023-05-05T21:35:20Z")
In another thread I joked a bit about the Republicans “buying off” RFK jr to get him to run as an independent. Now I’m thinking that may not be much of a joke. If he’s identified as a “kinda sorta” Democrat that could really screw up Biden’s reelection chances, much like Ralph Nader did to Al Gore. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2023, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/31 "2023-05-09T19:51:12Z")
> [@Mallard](#): > > If he’s identified as a “kinda sorta” Democrat that could really screw up Biden’s reelection chances, Do you expect a groundswell of support for RFK Jr.? Does anybody care about this guy one way or the other? ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2023, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/32 "2023-05-09T21:06:20Z")
I expect he’s going to make about as big of an impact as Bill Bradley did in 2000. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2023, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/33 "2023-05-09T21:57:49Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > ISTR him peddling antivax nonsense on the Daily Show 20-some years ago Yeah, he was an old-school pre-Covid antivaxxer. As far as I can tell he has long been on board the “_ **anything** from or related to the ‘corporate establishment’ must be presumed bad”_ train ---
**Author:** ![Mallard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Mallard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mallard)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2023, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/34 "2023-05-10T01:59:08Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > > [@Mallard](#): > > > > If he’s identified as a “kinda sorta” Democrat that could really screw up Biden’s reelection chances, > > Do you expect a groundswell of support for RFK Jr.? Does anybody care about this guy one way or the other? It wouldn’t take much vote splitting with a dem spin-off independent to let the Republican candidate “steal” (pun intended) the election. Al gore is likely elected president in 2000 but for Ralph Nader. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2023, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/35 "2023-05-10T02:19:51Z")
What kind of Democrat would welcome, or even acknowledge, Bannon’s support? ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Hedonia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ann_hedonia/32/319_2.png) [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2023, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/36 "2023-05-10T12:59:31Z")
> [@Mallard](#): > > > [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > > > > [@Mallard](#): > > > > > > If he’s identified as a “kinda sorta” Democrat that could really screw up Biden’s reelection chances, > > > > Do you expect a groundswell of support for RFK Jr.? Does anybody care about this guy one way or the other? > > It wouldn’t take much vote splitting with a dem spin-off independent to let the Republican candidate “steal” (pun intended) the election. Al gore is likely elected president in 2000 but for Ralph Nader. But, OTOH, he might take a certain number of Republican QANON/antivax voters away from the Republicans. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2023, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/37 "2023-05-10T13:46:35Z")
> [@Napier](#): > > I’m not sure RFK Jr’s deal is racist or not, but it’s certainly antiscience, and that’s enough. RFK Jr.'s “Children’s Health Defense” has produced an antivaccine film targeting black Americans, invoking a 1930s eugenics meme to argue that vaccination is a form of medical racism (other antivaxers have similarly tried to exploit racial divisions). A number of news organizations reported on RFK Jr. speaking at a far-right rally in Berlin in 2020 attended by neo-Nazis protesting pandemic restrictions. RFK Jr. chose to sue one of them, the Daily Kos to try and out an affilated blogger who described the rally. “[Robert F. Kennedy Jr.] spoke at an August 29 rally convened by the German far right to protest government restrictions aimed at corralling the COVID pandemic. Kennedy was, apparently, the third choice speaker, after [appeals from a rightwing group](https://www.thedailybeast.com/rfk-jrs-latest-anti-vaxx-stunt-backed-by-weird-pro-qanon-german-group-querdenken-711)called [Querdenken](https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2021/7/27/2041771/-RFK-Jr-s-Querdenken-Credulity) to Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin went unheeded. But when this group learned that Kennedy was coming to Germany for other reasons, it issued a public invitation and he responded. The German right [waxed rhapsodic](https://www.thedailybeast.com/rfk-jrs-latest-anti-vaxx-stunt-backed-by-weird-pro-qanon-german-group-querdenken-711) about the way in which Kennedy’s presence was lending legitimacy to their activity.” “The rally and his speech were widely covered in the mainstream media, which reported that his rally was [heavily attended](https://www.wsj.com/articles/tens-of-thousands-converge-on-berlin-to-denounce-coronavirus-restrictions-11598719108) [by neo-Nazis](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/31/world/europe/reichstag-germany-neonazi-coronavirus.html) and that a [variety of antisemitic and neo-Nazi factions](https://www.cbsnews.com/news/berlin-police-break-up-anti-coronavirus-protest-after-18000-gather-with-no-masks-or-social-distancing/) had been involved in organizing the event.” > **[RFK Jr. Sues to Identify Blogger Critic](https://reason.com/volokh/2021/10/28/rfk-jr-sues-to-identify-blogger-critic/)** > > Paul Alan Levy (Public Citizen) has the details: Last summer, \[Robert F. Kennedy Jr.\] spoke at an August 29 rally... Remember that this is a guy who has repeatedly compared vaccination to the Holocaust. RFK Jr.'s base of support seems to include, in addition to those for whom the Kennedy name still has some gloss, those who think his aging environmental credentials have value, ignore his ludicrously extreme and offensive views on vaccination and 5G and think they’re validly protesting a second Biden run for the Presidency. ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2023, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/38 "2023-05-10T14:22:14Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > RFK Jr.'s “Children’s Health Defense” has produced an antivaccine film targeting black Americans, invoking a 1930s eugenics meme to argue that vaccination is a form of medical racism (other antivaxers have similarly tried to exploit racial divisions). Wow. Thanks for that important post. I don’t know if he believes what he says and is trying to protect people from injury, including those who are black, or, if he intends this as harm to them. So I don’t know how to tell if the intent was racist. But obviously the impact is, so his deal is racist. Intent isn’t the only criterion. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2023, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/39 "2023-05-10T14:26:47Z")
More on RFK Jr.'s propaganda film: > **[An Anti-Vaccine Film Targeted To Black Americans Spreads False Information](https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/06/08/1004214189/anti-vaccine-film-targeted-to-black-americans-spreads-false-information)** > > A recent movie produced by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s anti-vaccine group tries to capitalize on the COVID-19 pandemic, the racial justice movement and renewed interest in the history of medical racism. ---
**Author:** ![Walken\_After\_Midnight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b487fb/32.png) [@Walken\_After\_Midnight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walken_After_Midnight)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2023, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423/40 "2023-05-10T19:01:58Z")
I’m not sure even the Kremlin claims that 300,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed. > [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-bannons-support-of-rfk-jr-s-potus-candidacy-all-you-need-to-know/983423.md?page=3)