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(The Hill) – The Kennedy family is set to endorse President Biden in his reelection campaign on Thursday during an event in Philadelphia, a strong rebuke of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s independent White House bid.
The Biden campaign is expecting 15 members of the Kennedy clan to attend Thursday’s event alongside the president. Kerry Kennedy, the younger sister of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., will deliver remarks outlining her family’s support for Biden.
“President Biden has been a champion for all the rights and freedoms that my father and uncles stood for,” Kerry Kennedy will say, according to excerpts provided by the Biden campaign.
“I can only imagine how Donald Trump’s outrageous lies and behavior would have horrified my father, Robert F. Kennedy, who proudly served as Attorney General of the United States, and honored his pledge to uphold the law and protect the country,” Kerry Kennedy will say, directly invoking her father. “Daddy stood for equal justice, human rights, and freedom from want and fear. Just as President Biden does today.”
After the endorsement, Biden and the Kennedys in attendance will join local volunteers at a grassroots organizing event, where they will participate in voter outreach that includes phone calls and door knocking.
Thursday’s endorsement is not surprising, as Kerry Kennedy and other family members have expressed their disapproval of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s presidential bid and sought to distance themselves from his campaign.
Biden last month hosted more than 30 members of the Kennedy family at the White House for a St. Patrick’s Day celebration Sunday. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was not in attendance.
An activist and lawyer, Kennedy Jr. has raised conspiracy theories about vaccines and has more broadly expressed distrust in the government. He has recently sparked controversy with his comments about the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
He is running an independent campaign for the White House, arguing Biden is not up to the job for another term and that former President Trump “failed” in his first term and would be bad for the country.
Democrats have expressed concerns that his candidacy would pull votes away from Biden in November and help elect Trump in a close race. A pro-Trump super PAC earlier this week launched a website labeling Kennedy Jr. a “radical liberal” that highlights his views on tax policy, gun laws and the climate.
A New York Times/Siena College poll published Saturday found Trump polling at 46 percent support to Biden’s 45 percent, with the president closing the gap from February, when Trump had a 5-percentage point lead.
