BOSTON — Anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. launched his longshot bid to challenge President Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination next year.
Kennedy, a member of one of the country’s most famous political families who has in recent years been linked to some far-right figures, kicked off his campaign in Boston on Wednesday and likened his campaign to the American revolution.
“My mission over the next 18 months of this campaign and throughout my presidency will be to end the corrupt merger of state and corporate power that is threatening now to impose a new kind of corporate feudalism in our country,” Kennedy said.
Self-help author Marianne Williamson is also running for the Democratic nomination. Biden has said he’s planning on running again but has not formally announced a campaign. He’s expected to have a glide path to the nomination, with much of the Democratic establishment behind him.
Hans Pennink
FILE - Attorney Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks at the New York State Capitol, May 14, 2019, in Albany, N.Y. Anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. launched his longshot bid to challenge President Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination next year. Kennedy, a member of one of the country’s most famous political families who has in recent years been linked to some far-right figures, kicked off his campaign in Boston on Wednesday, April 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Hans Pennink, File)
Kennedy, a nephew of President John F. Kennedy and the son of his slain brother Robert F. Kennedy, was once known most as an environmental lawyer who worked on issues such as clean water. But over the past nearly two decades, he’s become one of the leading voices of the anti-vaccine movement. His work has been described by members of his own family and public health experts as misleading and dangerous.
His efforts intensified after the pandemic and development of the COVID-19 vaccine, and an AP investigation in 2021 showed he had linked up with anti-democratic figures and other groups. He has appeared at events pushing the lie that the 2020 presidential election was stolen and with people who cheered or downplayed the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
A photo posted on Instagram showed Kennedy backstage at a July 2021 Reawaken America event with former President Donald Trump’s ally Roger Stone, former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn and anti-vaccine profiteer Charlene Bollinger. All three have promoted the lie about the 2020 election being stolen.
Kennedy has been a guest on Infowars, the channel run by conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, and on the “War Room” podcast hosted by longtime Trump ally Steve Bannon, where he promoted his bestselling 2021 book, “The Real Anthony Fauci,” in which he accused the U.S.’s top infectious disease doctor of participating in “a historic coup d’etat against Western democracy.”
The AP documented how Kennedy and his anti-vaccine group, Children’s Health Defense, had capitalized on the COVID-19 pandemic – raking in funding and followers in the U.S. and abroad, and doubling its revenue from 2019 to 2020. Researchers have found that the group is among the most influential spreaders of anti-vaccine misinformation, and the AP found traffic to its website had soared.
In the second year of the pandemic, Children’s Health Defense continued its huge growth, according to a more recent filing with charity regulators in California. Revenue more than doubled from $7 million in 2020 to $16 million in 2021.
Facebook and Instagram removed the accounts of Children’s Health Defense for spreading misinformation.
Kennedy has repeatedly invoked Nazis and the Holocaust when talking about measures aimed at mitigating the spread of COVID-19, such as mask requirements and vaccine mandates. He has apologized for some of those comments, including when he suggested that people in 2022 were worse off than Anne Frank, the teenager who died in a Nazi concentration camp after hiding with her family in a secret annex in an Amsterdam house for two years.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Donald Trump: The former president officially launched his campaign in November, days after the midterm elections. And he never really stopped running after 2020, continuing to hold campaign-style rallies with supporters.
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Donald Trump: The former president officially launched his campaign in November, days after the midterm elections. And he never really stopped running after 2020, continuing to hold campaign-style rallies with supporters.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Nikki Haley: Haley launched her presidential campaign Feb. 14. It was a shift from her previous insistence she would not run against Trump. "It's time for a new generation of leadership to rediscover fiscal responsibility, secure our border and strengthen our country, our pride and our purpose," she said in a video announcing her bid.
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Nikki Haley: Haley launched her presidential campaign Feb. 14. It was a shift from her previous insistence she would not run against Trump. "It's time for a new generation of leadership to rediscover fiscal responsibility, secure our border and strengthen our country, our pride and our purpose," she said in a video announcing her bid.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Ron DeSantis: The Florida governor emerged as the top alternative to Trump in many conservatives' eyes after his dominant reelection victory. A DeSantis announcement is likely months away, with Florida currently in the middle of its legislative session. But his memoir, accompanied by a media blitz, will drop at the end of February, and top advisers are building a political infrastructure.
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Ron DeSantis: The Florida governor emerged as the top alternative to Trump in many conservatives' eyes after his dominant reelection victory. A DeSantis announcement is likely months away, with Florida currently in the middle of its legislative session. But his memoir, accompanied by a media blitz, will drop at the end of February, and top advisers are building a political infrastructure.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Mike Pence: The former vice president's split with Trump over the events of Jan. 6, 2021, kicked off a consistent return to political travel. He has made clear that he believes the GOP will move on from Trump. "I think we're going to have new leadership in this party and in this country," Pence told CBS in January.
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Mike Pence: The former vice president's split with Trump over the events of Jan. 6, 2021, kicked off a consistent return to political travel. He has made clear that he believes the GOP will move on from Trump. "I think we're going to have new leadership in this party and in this country," Pence told CBS in January.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Tim Scott: The South Carolina senator would make a second Palmetto State Republican in the 2024 field if, as expected, he enters the race in the near future. Scott is building a political infrastructure, including hiring for a super PAC, and is set to visit Iowa for an event his team billed as focused on "faith in America."
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Tim Scott: The South Carolina senator would make a second Palmetto State Republican in the 2024 field if, as expected, he enters the race in the near future. Scott is building a political infrastructure, including hiring for a super PAC, and is set to visit Iowa for an event his team billed as focused on "faith in America."
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Ted Cruz: The Texas senator and 2016 GOP contender has not ruled out another presidential bid. But he is also seeking reelection in 2024. "I think there will be plenty of time to discuss the 2024 presidential race. I'm running for reelection to the Senate," he told the CBS affiliate in Dallas in February.
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Ted Cruz: The Texas senator and 2016 GOP contender has not ruled out another presidential bid. But he is also seeking reelection in 2024. "I think there will be plenty of time to discuss the 2024 presidential race. I'm running for reelection to the Senate," he told the CBS affiliate in Dallas in February.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Glenn Youngkin: The Virginia governor's 2021 victory offered Republicans a new playbook focused on parental power in education. His political travel, including stops for a series of Republican gubernatorial candidates last year, makes clear Youngkin has ambitions beyond Virginia. He faced a setback to his push for a 15-week abortion ban when Democrats won a state senate special election earlier this year, expanding their narrow majority.
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Glenn Youngkin: The Virginia governor's 2021 victory offered Republicans a new playbook focused on parental power in education. His political travel, including stops for a series of Republican gubernatorial candidates last year, makes clear Youngkin has ambitions beyond Virginia. He faced a setback to his push for a 15-week abortion ban when Democrats won a state senate special election earlier this year, expanding their narrow majority.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Chris Sununu: The New Hampshire governor's timeline isn't clear, but he recently established a political action committee that borrowed his state's motto: "Live Free or Die." He has positioned himself as a strong Trump opponent and alternative within the GOP. He would also start with the advantage of being universally known in an early-voting state. "I think America as a whole is looking for results-driven leadership that calls the balls and strikes like they see them and is super transparent," Sununu told Axios this week.
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Chris Sununu: The New Hampshire governor's timeline isn't clear, but he recently established a political action committee that borrowed his state's motto: "Live Free or Die." He has positioned himself as a strong Trump opponent and alternative within the GOP. He would also start with the advantage of being universally known in an early-voting state. "I think America as a whole is looking for results-driven leadership that calls the balls and strikes like they see them and is super transparent," Sununu told Axios this week.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Kristi Noem: The South Dakota governor who won reelection in November has certainly cultivated a national profile, becoming a regular at conservative gatherings and donor confabs. But she hasn't committed to a presidential run. "I'm not convinced that I need to run for president," she told CBS in January.
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Kristi Noem: The South Dakota governor who won reelection in November has certainly cultivated a national profile, becoming a regular at conservative gatherings and donor confabs. But she hasn't committed to a presidential run. "I'm not convinced that I need to run for president," she told CBS in January.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Greg Abbott: The Texas governor who cruised past a 2020 presidential contender, former Rep. Beto O'Rourke, to win his third term in November is unlikely to make any official 2024 moves until his state's legislative session wraps up at the end of May. He told Fox News in January that a 2024 run "is it's not something I'm ruling in right now. I'm focused on Texas, period."
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Greg Abbott: The Texas governor who cruised past a 2020 presidential contender, former Rep. Beto O'Rourke, to win his third term in November is unlikely to make any official 2024 moves until his state's legislative session wraps up at the end of May. He told Fox News in January that a 2024 run "is it's not something I'm ruling in right now. I'm focused on Texas, period."
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Larry Hogan: The former Maryland governor is another Trump opponent. He told Fox News he is giving a 2024 run "very serious consideration."
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Larry Hogan: The former Maryland governor is another Trump opponent. He told Fox News he is giving a 2024 run "very serious consideration."
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Asa Hutchinson: The former Arkansas governor is a rare Republican from a deep-red state who has been willing to criticize Trump. Now weeks removed from office, he also doesn't have the at-home responsibilities facing other governors. He told CBS that he'll decide on a 2024 by "probably April." He said he believes voters are "looking for someone that is not going to be creating chaos, but also has got the record of being a governor, of lowering taxes."
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Asa Hutchinson: The former Arkansas governor is a rare Republican from a deep-red state who has been willing to criticize Trump. Now weeks removed from office, he also doesn't have the at-home responsibilities facing other governors. He told CBS that he'll decide on a 2024 by "probably April." He said he believes voters are "looking for someone that is not going to be creating chaos, but also has got the record of being a governor, of lowering taxes."
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Chris Christie: The former New Jersey governor is one of several 2024 GOP prospects headed to Texas for a private donor gathering in late February, along with Pence, Haley, Scott, Sununu and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp. Christie said on ABC earlier this year he doesn't believe Trump could beat President Joe Biden in 2024.
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Chris Christie: The former New Jersey governor is one of several 2024 GOP prospects headed to Texas for a private donor gathering in late February, along with Pence, Haley, Scott, Sununu and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp. Christie said on ABC earlier this year he doesn't believe Trump could beat President Joe Biden in 2024.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Mike Pompeo: Trump's secretary of state and the former Kansas congressman said during a tour for his new book, "Never Give an Inch: Fighting for the America I Love," that he would decide on a presidential run in the coming months. He's been among the Republicans most openly considering a run, traveling to early-voting states for more than a year.
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Mike Pompeo: Trump's secretary of state and the former Kansas congressman said during a tour for his new book, "Never Give an Inch: Fighting for the America I Love," that he would decide on a presidential run in the coming months. He's been among the Republicans most openly considering a run, traveling to early-voting states for more than a year.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Liz Cheney: The former Wyoming congresswoman who emerged as the foremost GOP critic of Trump's lies about widespread election fraud lost her House seat to a Trump-backed primary challenger. She launched a political action committee last year and made clear she intends to try to purge the GOP of Trump's influence. But what that means in the context of a potential 2024 bid is not yet clear.
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Liz Cheney: The former Wyoming congresswoman who emerged as the foremost GOP critic of Trump's lies about widespread election fraud lost her House seat to a Trump-backed primary challenger. She launched a political action committee last year and made clear she intends to try to purge the GOP of Trump's influence. But what that means in the context of a potential 2024 bid is not yet clear.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Will Hurd: The former Texas congressman who represented a border district recently traveled to New Hampshire, an early-voting state, though it's not clear whether or when he would enter the race. "I always have an open mind about how to serve my country," he told Fox News.
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Will Hurd: The former Texas congressman who represented a border district recently traveled to New Hampshire, an early-voting state, though it's not clear whether or when he would enter the race. "I always have an open mind about how to serve my country," he told Fox News.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Brian Kemp: The Georgia governor, who fended off a Trump-backed primary challenge on the way to reelection last year, has added political staffers and is sometimes mentioned as a vice presidential prospect.
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Brian Kemp: The Georgia governor, who fended off a Trump-backed primary challenge on the way to reelection last year, has added political staffers and is sometimes mentioned as a vice presidential prospect.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Rick Scott: The Florida senator has said he won't run for president, but things can change. He has taken steps to build his national profile.
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Rick Scott: The Florida senator has said he won't run for president, but things can change. He has taken steps to build his national profile.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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Josh Hawley: The Missouri senator has also said he won't run but, like Scott, has taken steps to build his national profile.
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Josh Hawley: The Missouri senator has also said he won't run but, like Scott, has taken steps to build his national profile.
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Things to know about Nikki Haley, GOP presidential hopeful
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John Bolton: Trump's former national security adviser has teased a run as a Trump foil.
