I'm not worried about Bannon-backed RFK Jr because

[spooky3]

The media giveth and it taketh away.

He was just on CNN and he looks and sounds at least ten years older than he is. The people who are obsessed with Biden’s age aren’t going to perceive RFK Jr to be an energetic, inspiring alternative.

JMHO.

[peppertree]

1. We should call him Bobby Bannon

'Cause that's his real daddy now.

[PortTack]

6. Yes...good one!

[peppertree]

8. Why, thank you.

I'm only glad the great man's not here to see this pathetic spectacle.

[lastlib]

10. ME TOO!!

RFK Sr. has always been my political hero. His son is an embarrassment.

[peppertree]

12. +1

That apple fell from the tree - and just kept rolling didn't it.

[DemocraticPatriot]

33. Anti-vax squirrels carried it far away...

[Ms. Toad]

2. That's not necessarily something to cheer about.

That perception is largely a result of a disability - Spasmodic dysphonia. (The same condition Diane Rehm has.) It gives his speech an odd pacing and makes him seem older/less energetic because speaking is so challenging.

[H2O Man]

5. I would add

that if the media shows clips of his daily work-out routine, he will appear twenty years younger than he is. The emphasis will be on President Biden's record of accomplishments, which is absolutely outstanding -- especially in the current political climate, with republicans opposed to everything good the president does.

I like Robert, and have been friends with him for over 35 years. But I think that the nation's recent experience with electing someone with literally no political experience should be a warning. President Biden will win virtually every primary contest. And then re-election.

[Ms. Toad]

7. Aside from no political experience,

He believes in the same kind of election conspiracy theories as Trump does - although he seems relatively quiet about them recently, and his vaccinations beliefs are off the rails.

We don't need someone leading the country with those two deficiencies.

[Hekate]

9. Thanks, H2O Man. I don't wish him ill -- I just wish he had more friends like you & none like Bannon.

[Dorian Gray]

25. You're friends with him?

Have you ever talked about his anti-vaccine work? How CDF targets minority neighborhood and low resource countries, which seem like targeted eugenics?

[H2O Man]

31. When my nephew

was attacked by a racist hate gang in 1998, because they didn't like a black high school scholar/athlete getting so much positive media attention, they left him for dead in a dark field. He lived, but with serious injuries that remain constant today. At that time, Robert had assisted me in Native American burial protection, and on getting SuperFund Sites cleaned. He helped me get $200,000 in grants to hire firms for testingair, soil, and water. I didn't have to ask for his support on my nephew's case.

It might be hard for people here to appreciate -- or even understand -- what it is like to have the support he gave my nephew, his brothers, and his parents at that time. But I guess Robert knows what it is like to have a family member be victim to hatred. The (in)justice hearing the gang leader's case said that his calling my nephew a "dumb ni___r" didn't mean racism was involved. Nor did he give any sentence for the guy punching and kicking my already unconcious nephew at least 14 times. But he did give him a $20 fine for having an open beer at the time.

The hundreds of people that did come out -- many from 30 or more miles away -- for the various trials that resulted from 17 men attacking a high school kid all remember Robert, too. Just like when potential fracking was an issue in this state, and at my request, Robert and I met at Pace with the heas on grass roots environmental groups. Those people remember Robert, too, and view him very differently than, say, the average DUer.

I do, too. I've done interviews with him in support of local-regional Democrats for newspapers, served as his lone security person at a university where a freak tried to aggressively approach him on stage (I was younger then), and talked on the phone about what we were preparing for our children's supper. Thus, there is not now, nor has there ever been, any problem whatsoever in either of us disagreeing with the other. I opt not to air those things publicly, but I will say in the area of vaccines and running in 2024 are likely choices. I also avoid correcting a significant amount of the things being said about him by a significant part of our party. I'd prefer that those of us who are supporting President Biden listen to why other party members support Robert or that other lady. Neither poses any serious risk to President Biden in the primaries. But the party absolutely needs them in the general election. The history in this century documents that when we are divided, a republican becomes president. When we are united, we kick their asses.

[mopinko]

15. sadly, politics is a shallow business.

all the hay that gets made of biden’s occasional stammers, ppl react to that kind of thing.
i wish he’d be rejected for his loathsome views, but this will hurt him.

[Ms. Toad]

16. It may be reality, but progressives should not be celebrating

a disability preventing someone from being elected.

[spooky3]

17. I don't see anyone "celebrating" here. Nt

[Ms. Toad]

19. Perhaps celebrating is too strong a word -

but suggesting that he won't be a strong candidate because of a disability is not a good look.

[spooky3]

20. No one did that. Please reread the OP and other posts carefully. Nt

[Ms. Toad]

21. The OP is specifically what I was responding to. n/t

[spooky3]

24. And neither I nor anyone else is criticizing him because of

Disability. Surely you aren’t arguing that his disability affects his looks. And, multiple factors can affect how someone sounds as a prospective candidate. Note also that I specifically raised the Bannon issue, and we all know that Pres Biden has recently announced he is running.

The OP concerns the primary. Maybe you haven’t heard about the polls that have reported that a large minority, or more, of Democratic voters are concerned about Joe Biden’s age, despite his fine performance on policy, winning over Congressional votes, dealing with foreign policy, etc. Other polls of Democratic voters have reported as many as 19 % of them prefer RFK Jr. Some of DU and elsewhere have expressed concerns about these results, understandably. I’m simply expressing my opinion that I’m not worried about RFK’s potential showing despite these polls, and noting that *people who are concerned about the President’s age* (which does not include me) would likely not find RFK a superior candidate.

[Ms. Toad]

27. I didn't suggest you were criticizing because of his disability.

But you were expressing some relief that his disability (how he sounds) will make him easier to beat because voters would perceive him as older and less energetic.

[NotVeryImportant]

28. Is sister Rehm still alive?

I used to listen to her back in the early oughts.

She's such a pleasant, and attractive, old lady.

[Ms. Toad]

29. She appears to be.

She retired about the same time I started listening to audio books in my car insteady of NPR. But I certainly enjoyed her!

Looks like she's got a book club gig: https://dianerehm.org/

[wryter2000]

3. I'm not too worried

He’ll get the anti-vax vote, who wouldn’t have voted for democrats, anyway.

[wnylib]

22. Only if he runs as a 3rd party candidate.

The campaign being discussed in the OP is the Democratic primary. Biden will win that, hands down. Then in the general election, it will be Biden against whoever the Republicans choose as their candidate for the general election. The only way that Kennedy would be in that race is if he runs as a 3rd party candidate because he will not be the Dem candidate.

[wryter2000]

32. Correct

But as third party he’ll appeal to anti-vax types, and most of them, not all, are Republicans.

[kimbutgar]

4. And his voice is so grating and hard to listen to!

Plus his anti vaccine stance during the pandemic will turn a lot of people off. Over 1 million died and it has affected most Americans, someone they are related to and acquaintances are no longer with us. People are still getting Covid but having the vaccine has lessened the severity of cases.
RFK jr being anti vax is not a great selling point for him.

[Ms. Toad]

18. You do realize his voice is the result of a disability, right?

He has spasmodic dysphonia (the same condition Diane Rehm has).

[Dorian Gray]

26. Honestly his anti-vaccine stance prior to covid

is more problematic. His organization is partly responsible for measles outbreaks in multiple communities, including two in America Samoa that killed many kids.

Measles should be eradicated, but because of his "work," it's coming back.

[kimbutgar]

30. That's the most troubling about him In My opinion

[JI7]

11. Kennedys haven't been doing well in elections in recent years

he is the least appealing one also . I wonder how much of those that support him right now do so just becsuse of the name.

His true supporters will be anti vax and other conspiracy theory types .

[spooky3]

13. He has to get through the Dem primary first (if he in fact runs as a Dem). I wouldn't think

many Dem primary voters would be conspiracy theorists but you never know.

[JI7]

14. Yes, he has no chance of winning the primary

I don't think they are real Democrats but conspiracy theory types are always trying to mess with our elections. They claim they are left wing and the country is moving too right and just spend most time attacking Democrats.

These are the types that are likely to support him. The ones that booed Hillary at the convention tyoes. I'm sure most of them voted trump in the GE.

[wnylib]

23. Kennedy will not be the Dem candidate for the general, but

if he runs as a 3rd party candidate in the general, he might get some RW and Libertarian votes because of his conspiracy theories about vaccines.