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(NewsNation) — Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is busy running his own campaign, but he’s kept an eye on the four Republican primary debates.
He says it appears the candidates are being told vitriol is a winning strategy.
“We didn’t hear any solutions except for blowing up people and you know, having more wars and having ‘us against them,'” Kennedy said Thursday on “CUOMO.”
Sparks flew at the fourth GOP debate hosted by NewsNation on Wednesday night, which saw former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie call Vivek Ramaswamy an “obnoxious blowhard.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley were also on the stage and engaged in several testy exchanges, each attacking the other’s record as leaders of their respective state.
As for substantive discussion, Kennedy says he saw little of it.
“An entire generation of kids has lost faith in our country and lost hope for their own futures, the only generation in American history that believes that they’re going to do worse than their parents,” Kennedy said, “and I’d like to see debates with Republicans and Democrats that address that issue.”
He referenced the rising costs of owning a home, which is now about 50% more than it costs to rent.
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“We need these kids in houses because when you’re in a house, you can borrow money and you can build a business and you can if you have an entrepreneurial impulse, you can build on it,” Kennedy said.
Kennedy announced his run for president earlier this year and is challenging the status quo of the two-party system. He faces an uphill battle, but recently received some help from a super PAC.
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American Values 2024 said it plans to spend up to $15 million getting him on the ballot in 10 states important to winning the 2024 race.
While Kennedy is believed to have cross-party appeal, having raised millions of dollars and polling at levels not seen by a third-party candidate since the early 1990s, none of it matters if he can’t get on state ballots. It’s a cumbersome process deliberately made difficult by the Republican and Democratic parties over the years.
He acknowledges on “CUOMO” that it’s a challenge but is confident he’s going be on “every ballot.”
“We are going to be able to do it,” he said.
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He has repeatedly challenged incumbent Democratic President Joe Biden to a debate, and he wants to take on Trump, too.
A recent Quinnipiac poll found Kennedy could net as much as 22% of the vote as an independent candidate for the presidency.
The poll, which was taken from Oct. 26 through Oct. 30, queried voters about a possible three-way race between RFK Jr., Biden and Trump.
It found Biden would come out on top in such a race, with 39% of the vote; Trump sat at 36% and RFK Jr. was at 22%.
“My intention is to spoil the race for both of them,” Kennedy said. “I think I’m going to win the race.”
NewsNation’s Sean Noone, Zaid Jilani and Elizabeth Prann contributed to this report.
