Caroline Kennedy sends letter to US senators calling RFK Jr a ‘predator’

In a letter from his cousin, Donald Trump’s choice to lead the US Department of Health and Human Services has been described as a “predator.”

As members of the Senate considered the candidacy of her cousin Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Caroline Kennedy, a former United States ambassador and the only surviving child of former president John F. Kennedy, wrote the letter on Tuesday.

Her son, Jack Schlossberg, later posted a video of her on social media, reading the letter aloud.

I feel an obligation to speak out now that Bobby has been chosen by President Trump to lead the charge of the health of the American people, she said.

After that, Kennedy explained how she thought her cousin Robert was “unqualified” for the position he is running for.

But, she warned, there are “personal qualities” she deemed to be of “even greater concern”.

“I’ve known Bobby my whole life”, she explained. “We grew up together. Because Bobby is a predator, it should come as no surprise that he keeps birds of prey as pets.

Ambassador Caroline Kennedy’s statement to the US Senate on RFKJr’s nomination for HHS Secretary

This is a reading of a letter she just sent to Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions

I’m so proud of my courageous mother, who’s lived a life of dignity, … pic. twitter.com/feysNA0Wwp

She alleges that, as a young man, Robert “encouraged” family members “down the path of substance abuse”, though he himself eventually recovered from addiction.

His “he always had his basement, his garage, and his dorm room at the forefront of the action, where drugs were readily available, and where he enjoyed demonstrating that he had blended his chickens and mice to feed his hawks,” Kennedy said. It frequently sounded like a scene of perverse desperation and violence.

Although Kennedy acknowledged that people can change as they get older, she maintained that Robert has continued to “lie and defraud his way through life.”

She warned he would continue to “profit and enrich himself” if appointed to President Trump’s second-term cabinet, in part by peddling “conspiratorial half-truths” against vaccinations.

“He’s always been charismatic, able to attract others through the strength of his personality, his willingness to take risks and break the rules”, she said.

But, she added, “Bobby preys on the desperation of parents of sick children, vaccinating his own kids while building a following, hypocritically discouraging other parents from vaccinating theirs”.

It was an unusually direct missive for Kennedy, who served in the administration of former President Barack Obama, a Democrat.

Former environmental lawyer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has since grown to be a political lightning rod, notably because of his advocacy of conspiracy theories that undermine vaccine safety and effectiveness.

In 2023, he launched a long-shot bid for the presidency, following in the footsteps of his famous family members, several of whom served in the White House.

His father and namesake, for example, had been assassinated during his 1968 presidential bid, after serving as US attorney general and in the Senate. Although his uncle was shot dead as well, he was also the 35th US president.

However, close family, including five of his siblings, have spoken out against Robert F Kennedy Jr’s White House ambitions.

In April 2024, 15 members of the Kennedy family endorsed President Joe Biden, who was a candidate at the time, in a public snub of Robert’s bid for the White House.

When Robert eventually suspended his campaign and threw his support behind Trump, five of his siblings also issued a public statement, calling the endorsement a “betrayal” of their father’s values.

Caroline Kennedy has less resolutely opposed Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s campaign for higher office.

Shortly after his victory in November’s presidential election, Trump made good on a promise to nominate Robert to his cabinet. Prior to this, he had promised to “go wild” with his public health concerns.

Another former Obama official, David Axelrod, noted on Tuesday that it was unusual for Caroline Kennedy to speak out.

“It is noteworthy and significant that Caroline Kennedy, who is famously private about family matters, felt moved to issue this searing indictment of RFK Jr’s nomination”, Axelrod wrote on social media.

But it is unclear whether her letter will galvanise opposition to her cousin’s nomination.

After receiving complaints about allegations of sexual misconduct and alcohol abuse at work, veteran and former Fox News host Pete Hegseth was appointed head of the Department of Defense.

Hegseth had denied the allegations. But in the lead-up to his Senate confirmation vote, lawmakers received an affidavit from his sister-in-law, Danielle Hegseth, levying new accusations against the nominee.

She claimed Hegseth was “abusive” and made his second wife, Samantha, concerned for her safety.

Hegseth was ultimately confirmed to Trump’s cabinet on Friday evening. The Senate was split 50-50 over whether to approve Hegseth’s nomination, but Vice President JD Vance cast the tie-breaking vote.

Source: Aljazeera