(Jacob Bruns, Headline USA) Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was expected to announce on Friday that he was dropping out of the 2024 presidential race and endorsing Donald Trump, according to a bombshell report from ABC News on Wednesday.
“Sources cautioned the decision is not yet finalized and could still change, with one source adding that Kennedy’s hope is, in part, to finalize things quickly in order to try to blunt momentum from the Democratic National Convention,” ABC reported, citing unnamed sources.
“One possible scenario being discussed is for Kennedy to appear on stage with Trump at an event in Phoenix on Friday, though the sources cautioned that Kennedy’s thinking could always change and sources close to Trump say no plan for Friday is finalized,” ABC reported.
Independent Presidential Candidate @RobertKennedyJr will address the nation live on Friday about the present historical moment and his path forward. 🇺🇸https://t.co/i8gVV96xYW
— Stefanie Spear (@StefanieSpear) August 21, 2024
“Kennedy’s campaign manager, Amaryllis Fox, emailed senior staff on Wednesday morning thanking them for their hard work—but indicated a decision on the way forward had not been made.”
ABC’s bombshell report followed recent comments from RFK Jr.’s running mate, Nicole Shanahan, running mate, who reportedly said that the Kennedy campaign is considering dropping out and endorsing Trump.
Shanahan, a 38-year-old Silicon Valley lawyer, recently appeared on an Impact Theory podcast, telling the host that, though Kennedy wants to win, the preservation of free and fair elections is more important for America.
“We are taking a very serious look at making sure that the people that have corrupted our fair and free democracy do not end up in office in November,” she said, laying out two potential paths forward.
The first is “staying in” but running the risk of a Harris and Walz victory. The second is, “we walk away right now and join forces with Donald Trump and we explain to our base why we are making this decision.”
RFK’s VP Nicole Shanahan says they are debating whether to stay in the race or drop out and join forces with Trump:
“There’s two options that we're looking at and one is staying in, forming that new party, but we run the risk of a Kamala Harris and Waltz presidency because we… pic.twitter.com/O3HrLbbCLO
— End Tribalism in Politics (@EndTribalism) August 20, 2024
Shanahan concluded by noting that difficult decisions lie ahead.
“It’s not an easy calculation,” she added. “We want what’s best for this country first and foremost.”
Currently, Kennedy is polling at around 3%, after the campaign had some early momentum.
According to Shanahan, who has described herself as a “disillusioned Democrat,” the difficulty they have faced is that the Democrats denied them “a fair shot at this election,” lamenting that “that is not where we are today” thanks to the DNC.
Conservative commentator Charlie Kirk chimed in on Twitter, suggesting that “RFK endorsing Trump is the natural move” because they are both “sworn enemies of the CIA, FBI, and the military machine.”
Kennedy has been an outspoken critic of the deep state, even floating the possibility that the CIA may have been behind the high-profile assassinations of his father, RFK Sr., and uncle, President John F. Kennedy.
“It doesn’t matter if they disagree on some issues,” he added, “they agree on the big stuff, the civilizational defining issues.”
Several others—including Donald Trump Jr.—supported the idea of appointing Kennedy as CIA chief after the news broke that he was communicating with Trump’s campaign.
🚨WOW.🚨
Don Jr. just enthusiasitcally endorsed the idea of RFK Jr. joining the Trump Administration as potential CIA Director after speculation of his looming Trump endorsement grows:
"I could think of a dozen roles I'd love to see him in. I think that would be great." pic.twitter.com/jY0Uj4lNLp
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) August 21, 2024
Another possibility would be to appoint Kennedy—a prominent vaccine skeptic and critic of ex-COVID czar Anthony Fauci—to oversee the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, over which Fauci lorded for several decades prior to his 2022 retirement.
The move would be likely to roil Democrats to the extreme, although it may be poetic justice considering their own track record of controversial appointments during the Biden administration.
Ben Carson should b @HHSGov director, but @RobertKennedyJr should be in charge of @NIH and @NicoleShanahan can be the #NIAID director (or work with Elon on the Dept. of Gov't Reduction). Dems don't like it? Remember whom Biden put in charge of health & nuclear waste containment. pic.twitter.com/GbCPLRyLdD
— Ben Sellers (@realbensellers) August 21, 2024
Ken Silva contributed to this report.
