Of Course RFK Jr. Is Working for Trump
A damning video of RFK Jr. with Trump on speakerphone a day after the latter’s assassination attempt was posted and then deleted by RFK Jr.’s son to Twitter/X and is now making the media rounds. In the video, Trump cozies up to the long-time anti-vaxxer by promoting the long-debunked childhood vaccine autism connection myth and appears to offer RFK Jr. a position in his future administration.
RFK Jr. and Trump, who share the same largest campaign donor, have an interesting history dating back to the former’s apparent failed attempt to ingratiate himself in the latter’s early administration in 2016/2017. There had even been talk about RFK Jr. joining Trump as a running mate.
During the pandemic, RFK Jr. has been working tirelessly in service of the MAGA movement, as I have discussed in my publications for WhoWhatWhy. So this leaked call should come as no real surprise.
In August 2020, long before the vaccines were available, RFK Jr. went on the Christian television circuit with the future insurrectionist leader of America's Frontline Doctors, Dr. Simone Gold, to promote Trump's failed Covid cure, hydroxychloroquine. The pastor who hosted them would go on to die of unvaxxed COVID-19 after urging his congregation not to get vaccinated.
See; HCQ: The MAGA Fool’s Gold That Turned RFK Jr. From Gadfly to Global Threat
RFK Jr. has since been involved in legal efforts to shield his disinformation spreading doctor friends from accountability.
Last summer, RFK Jr. went before MAGA Jim Jordan's (R-OH) weaponization subcommittee as part of the right-wing attack on the Center for Countering Digital Hate.
See: Far Right’s Campaign Against Information Hits Center for Countering Digital Hate
That same summer, encouraged by MAGA mastermind Steve Bannon, RFK Jr. announced his campaign for president as a Democrat. This was largely seen as a strategic spoiler campaign to aid Trump.
See: RFK Jr.: Bannon Chaos Candidate Born on Third Base and Now Playing Left Field
As I most recently wrote, polling had shown the spoiler strategy may backfire, with RFK Jr. pulling more Trump voters than Biden voters. Trump lashed out at RFK Jr. on social media in a contrast to the friendly conversation captured on this week’s leaked call.
See: Deep in MAGA Pandemic Politics, RFK Jr. Morphs From Asset to Risk for Trump
Additionally, given the news of Elon Musk pledging to donate $45 million per month to Trump’s super PAC, let's remind ourselves just how bad Musk x Trump has been:
How Musk Sold MAGA on HCQ — and Opened the COVID-19 Disinformation Floodgates