# RFK Jr Files to Run for President (Dropped Out on August 23, 2024) **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [April 6, 2023, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260 "2023-04-06T16:36:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 38
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2024, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/741 "2024-08-20T19:10:25Z")
I suspect that many of our learned fellow posters are once again ascribing _too much intelligence_ to someone whose defense against paying spousal support was, I repeat, a _brain worm_. Seeing contradictory efforts, language, and actions is IMHO a flailing about of someone who, while not as screwed up as Trump, keeps trying to follow a few goals and then flailing about like a dog after two bones. First, he wanted to replace Biden. Well, that failed, but he realized (correctly) that there were a lot of concerns about Biden’s age that he could take advantage of, thus the third party concern. I’d guess that at that point, he was hoping that if Biden dropped out, or possibly in 2028, to be able to reclaim the party, _especially_ if he made a credible showing in 2024 -and- showed he had some crossover with Republicans (his screwed up anti-vax stance, etc). As he became something of a joke, and didn’t score many sponsors, he kept turning ever right-ward, both because he’s apparently crazy (see vax, brainworms, etc) AND that’s where he was getting his money from. Which was great for him, but became a liability for Trump as he stopped stealing from Biden (hello Harris!) and started to erode Trump’s support. So now he needs something to show for it, and he’s not gonna leave until he GETS IT. Whether that be a payout from Trump, a role from Harris, or just running as best he can for fame and fortune. TL;DR - he’s not conflicted in motivations and goals, he’s just flailing about because he can’t keep up with the changes, and he’s a low-level whackadoodle. ---
**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:** [August 20, 2024, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/742 "2024-08-20T19:19:37Z")
In Shanahan’s mind (and probably Junior’s too), the DNC has been committing dirty tricks right and left to shut them down. > [@](#): > > “We wanted to win. We wanted a fair shot,” Shanahan added. “The DNC made that impossible for us. They have banned us, shadow-banned us, kept us off stages, manipulated polls, used law-fare against us, sued us in every possible state — they’ve even planted insiders into our campaign to disrupt it and to create actual legal issues for us.” Yep, without the evil machinations of those “insiders”, RFK Jr. would be way up in the polls by now. 🤔 > [@](#): > > The DNC responded to Shanahan’s interview in a statement saying she “isn’t even pretending to be a serious VP candidate anymore.” > > “In one interview alone, she floated RFK Jr. for HHS Secretary in a Trump administration, discussed her interest in running for governor of California in 2026, admitted that the Kennedy-Shanahan campaign has no path to victory, and raised the possibility of joining forces with Trump to defeat Vice President Harris. From the beginning of this race, we’ve said that RFK Jr. is nothing more than a spoiler for Donald Trump, and we’re glad that his running mate is finally admitting it,” DNC communications adviser Lis Smith said. > **[RFK Jr. Considering Dropping Out, Endorsing Trump, Running Mate Says |...](https://www.nationalreview.com/news/rfk-jr-considering-dropping-out-endorsing-trump-running-mate-says/)** > > Shanahan said the campaign wants to avoid pulling votes away from Trump. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2024, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/743 "2024-08-20T21:34:13Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > In Shanahan’s mind (and probably Junior’s too), the DNC has been committing dirty tricks right and left to shut them down. > > > [@](#): > > > > “We wanted to win. We wanted a fair shot,” Shanahan added. “The DNC made that impossible for us. They have banned us, shadow-banned us, kept us off stages, manipulated polls, used law-fare against us, sued us in every possible state — they’ve even planted insiders into our campaign to disrupt it and to create actual legal issues for us.” Sure, they wanted to win. But I don’t see why the Democratic Party had an obligation not to try to prevent that from happening by any legal means. Plus, anyone who uses the word “lawfare” has lost the right to participate in serious discussions. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2024, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/744 "2024-08-20T22:01:33Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > Plus, anyone who uses the word “lawfare” has lost the right to participate in serious discussions. My thought as well. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2024, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/745 "2024-08-20T22:24:06Z")
It’s actually a pretty widely-accepted term, and not unique to MAGA idjits: [Lawfare - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawfare) > [@Atamasama](#): > > I think it’s just myself being unclear, so I sincerely apologize (and I mean that, no sarcasm). My point was solely that JFK Jr is not a MAGA person or Trumper… JFK Jr. hasn’t taken any political positions since 1999. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2024, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/746 "2024-08-20T22:25:17Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > JFK Jr. hasn’t taken any political positions since 1999. Not true, first of all we know he is secretly plotting to bring Trump back into power. And secondly, I clearly typo’d. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2024, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/747 "2024-08-20T22:28:57Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > It’s actually a pretty widely-accepted term, and not unique to MAGA idjits: [Lawfare - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawfare) There are idjits of all political stripes. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2024, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/748 "2024-08-20T22:50:02Z")
From the _National Revies_ article: > Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is weighing whether to exit the race and endorse former president Donald Trump, according to Kennedy’s running mate, Nicole Shanahan. Translation: “Weighing” means Junior is waiting for a suitable ~~bribe~~ offer of a job in the Trump administration before officially canning the campaign and endorsing the Orange Felon. Elsewhere, I’ve read that Trumpie has called Junior “very smart” and implied that he’d be quite happy to offer Junior the desired bribe in exchange for his endorsement. I don’t think Junior’s endorsement is going to mean anything much, but dropping out is probably going to move new votes to Trump, which could be critical when margins are razor-thin in swing states. It’s pretty sad when one lunatic dropping out causes a different lunatic to gain his votes, but there we are. To be clear, it hasn’t happened yet but looks like Trumpie is all for it. ---
**Author:** ![Chingon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chingon/32/17645_2.png) [@Chingon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chingon)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2024, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/749 "2024-08-20T22:58:06Z")
> Shanahan said the conundrum was “not an easy decision” but added that her sympathies lay more with Trump and his wealthy backers than with Harris’s campaign, which has its own moneyed supporters. > > “If we are splitting hairs, I would say that I trust the future of this county more under the leadership of Trump and the [Peter] Thiels [the founder of PayPal and a leading Trump backer] and the JD Vances [the Republican vice-presidential nominee] than I do right now under Harris and the Reid Hoffmans [a Democratic-supporting mega-donor],” she said. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2024, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/750 "2024-08-20T23:06:07Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > JFK Jr. hasn’t taken any political positions since 1999. His political cohort is extremely centrist, lacking both a left and right wing. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2024, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/751 "2024-08-21T01:57:07Z")
my god ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2024, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/752 "2024-08-21T02:49:33Z")
No wings, and no head either. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2024, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/753 "2024-08-21T05:55:19Z")
Too soon? ---
**Author:** ![Mallard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Mallard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mallard)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2024, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/754 "2024-08-21T15:45:28Z")
I friggen knew this prack would eventually drop out & publicly back Trump. I wonder if he’s been promised a few pieces of silver (that will likely be reneged anyway) ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2024, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/755 "2024-08-21T18:32:10Z")
His fundraising is not exactly roaring along: > **[Harris erases Trump’s cash edge while RFK Jr. faces dwindling resources, new...](https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/21/politics/cash-advantage-harris-trump-rfk-filings/index.html)** > > Kamala Harris supercharged Democratic fundraising in July after taking over the top of the party’s presidential ticket, new federal filings show, helping erase what had been an emerging cash advantage for Republican nominee Donald Trump. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2024, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/756 "2024-08-21T21:32:23Z")
Well, it’s not a problem any more. > **[RFK Jr. expected to drop out of race by end of week, plans to endorse Trump:...](https://abcnews.go.com/US/rfk-jr-plans-drop-presidential-race-end-week/story?id=113028999)** > > Robert Kennedy Jr. is planning to drop out of the presidential race by the end of this week, sources familiar with the decision tell ABC News. ---
**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:** [August 21, 2024, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/757 "2024-08-21T21:41:44Z")
Countering the idea that Democrats brought on RFK Jr.'s revenge plan by playing “dirty tricks” on him like the N.Y. ballot challenge: it’s been obvious for a long time that Junior’s campaign was aimed at defeating Biden. Way back in April, an RFK Jr. campaign official made that clear. > **[RFK Jr. New York campaign official says her ‘No. 1 priority’ is preventing a...](https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/08/politics/rfk-jr-new-york-biden-trump/index.html)** > > A New York-based campaign official for Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is pitching Republican voters to support his independent presidential bid by arguing that Kennedy will help Donald Trump defeat Joe Biden if he’s on the ballot in New York. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2024, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/758 "2024-08-21T21:54:10Z")
You misspelled “Fails” in the title. ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2024, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/759 "2024-08-21T22:43:51Z")
Maybe a mod could fix it by the end of the week. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260/760 "2024-08-22T13:15:38Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > it’s been obvious for a long time that Junior’s campaign was aimed at defeating Biden Well, he can declare victory and go home then - Biden is toast! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260.md?page=37) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rfk-jr-files-to-run-for-president-dropped-out-on-august-23-2024/982260.md?page=39)