Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is considering dropping out of the race and supporting former President Donald Trump, according to his running mate Nicole Shanahan.
During an appearance on the Impact Theory podcast, Shanahan discussed how the Kennedy team is reviewing its options.
Shanahan said:
There are [sic] We are looking at two options. One is to stay in the party and form this novel party. That puts us at risk of Kamala Harris and Walsh becoming president because we are taking votes away from Trump, or because we are somehow taking more votes away from Trump, or because we are pulling back now and allying ourselves with Donald Trump and explaining to our base why we are making this decision.
She also admitted that it was “not an easy decision.”
Shanahan pointed out that Kennedy in view of He should stay in the race and try to get more than five percent of the vote – which would establish him as a third-party alternative to the Republicans and Democrats – and employ that momentum for a possible candidacy in 2028.
“We are looking at two options. One is to stay in the party and form this new party. That puts us at risk of Kamala Harris and Walz becoming president because we are taking votes away from Trump or somehow taking more votes away from him,” Shanahan said.
🚨 JUST IN: RFK Jr’s running mate says they’re considering dropping out of the race and joining forces with President Trump to prevent a Kamala Harris presidency
Yes! DO IT! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/29SXoRPKBj
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) 20 August 2024
Shanahan’s comments come after News that the Kennedy campaign is having financial difficulties.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s floundering presidential campaign is in sedate financial trouble after continuing to spend more than it raised in July.
The independent candidate had just $3.9 million in the bank at the end of last month – while he was nearly $3.5 million in debt, according to a report filed with the Federal Election Commission on Monday. That came after the campaign spent more than $7 million in July despite scaled-back events and raised just $5.6 million – nearly half of which came from his running mate, Nicole Shanahan.
The novel report comes as Kennedy’s campaign faces a number of other challenges. He is still trying to get on the ballot in key states, but was recently denied access in New York when a judge ruled that the home address on his ballot application was not his actual home address.
Kennedy has not appeared at any public campaign events since early July, only making occasional appearances at conferences and on podcasts. And his standing in the polls has continued to decline, even as both major parties gained support following the Republican National Convention and Vice President Kamala Harris replacing President Joe Biden at the top of the ticket.
But as the report goes on to say, it’s a rather contradictory message from the campaign trail; Kennedy reportedly recently considered supporting either Harris or Trump for a position in her administration:
In recent weeks, Kennedy has reportedly tried to secure positions in potential administrations of both Harris and former President Donald Trump in exchange for his resignation and support of those administrations, but his request was rejected.
Last Thursday, Kennedy brushed aside the rumors about Harris, writing on X: (emphasis added)
To my father and uncle, Vice President Harris’s Democratic Party would be unrecognizable, and I cannot reconcile it with my values.
The Democratic Party of RFK and JFK was the party of civil rights and free speech. The party of Vice President Harris is the party of censorship, curfews and medical coercion. …
— Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (@RobertKennedyJr) 15 August 2024
To my father and uncle, Vice President Harris’s Democratic Party would be unrecognizable, and I cannot reconcile it with my values.
The Democratic Party of RFK and JFK was the party of civil rights and free speech. The party of Vice President Harris is the party of censorship, curfews and medical coercion.
Kennedy’s Democrats were against the war. Kamala’s Democrats are riddled with neoconservative warmongers.
The RFK/JFK Democrats were allies of Main Street, police officers, firefighters, and workers. Vice President Harris is the party of Big Tech, pharmaceuticals, and Wall Street.
My father and uncle’s party was the champion of voting rights and fair elections. Vice President Harris’s party, on the other hand, is a party of lawfare, disenfranchisement, and the coronation of its candidates by corporate donors and party elites.
I have used our nation’s courts to prosecute corporations that harm Black Americans. Vice President Harris has used our nation’s courts to relentlessly prosecute Black Americans and exploit them for their labor.
My father and uncle prided themselves on their debate skills and ability to articulate a coherent vision for our country. Vice President Harris is terrified of debate and can’t survive an unscripted interview. Instead of outlining a vision, she relies on middle-school tactics — memes, made-up headlines, infantile slogans (joy!) and name-calling (“Republicans are weird.”)
I have spent years fighting corruption and lies in government. Vice President Harris spent years deceiving Americans about the health of our Commander in Chief.
I have no plans to support Kamala Harris as a presidential candidate. I have a plan to defeat them.
If RFK Jr. does indeed drop out, the question is: Will this benefit former President Donald Trump more than Vice President Kamala Harris, or vice versa?
That’s challenging to say. Economist/YouGov survey A poll conducted in June found that 44 percent of RFK Jr.’s supporters voted for President Joe Biden in 2020. About 37 percent supported Trump, suggesting the Democratic candidate may have an advantage.
However, the fact that the Democratic Party’s novel presidential nominee, Vice President Harris, is the novel standard-bearer could complicate matters even further. For disaffected Biden voters, Harris may not be quite as attractive as her boss. This could lead to more of those voters defecting to Trump or perhaps staying on the couch on Election Day.
It’s also worth noting that if the Economist/YouGov poll is correct, the previous Trump/Biden support numbers aren’t that far apart, so it’s also possible that it won’t have much of an impact on the outcome – they would almost cancel each other out. However, Harris’s novel candidacy, combined with a Kennedy endorsement of Trump, could make a difference for the former president. Still, at this point, it might be more beneficial for Kennedy to stay in the race.
