(Julianna Frieman, Headline USA) Nicole Shanahan, the former running mate of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., threatened Tuesday to fund primary challengers to U.S. senators who vote against Kennedy’s nomination to head the Department of Health and Human Services.
Shanahan, who has a net worth of over $1 billion due to her divorce from Google co-founder Sergey Brin, urged her followers to call their senators and convince them to vote for Kennedy in video shared the eve of his confirmation hearing.
Dear U.S. Senators,
Bobby may play nice; I won’t. pic.twitter.com/G9SZjZhFYR
— Nicole Shanahan (@NicoleShanahan) January 29, 2025
“He is more than qualified. He’s proven, principled, and prepared to lead. I’ll share a list below of key senators. If they represent your state, they need to hear from you,” she said.
Shanahan gave an example of her power by describing the time she cut two “large checks” to then-Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., which helped Democrats take two seats in Georgia away from Republicans.
“The two candidates I helped elect, Sen. Raphael Warnock and Sen. Jon Ossoff, please know I will be watching your votes very closely,” she said. “I will make it my personal mission that you lose your seats in the Senate if you vote against the future health of America’s children.”
The billionaire philanthropist made clear that she was sending a “bipartisan message” and name-dropped 11 more lawmakers who could be on the chopping block if they vote against Kennedy.
“And more than that, I also want to say to Sens. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), this is a bipartisan message, and it comes directly from me,” Shanahan said in her video posted on X.
She added, “While Bobby may be willing to play nice, I won’t. If you vote against him, I will personally fund challengers to primary you in your next election, and I will enlist hundreds of thousands to join me.”
Julianna Frieman is a freelance writer published by Headline USA, the Daily Caller, The Federalist, and the American Spectator. Follow her on Twitter at @JuliannaFrieman.
