Update: This story published before website Mediaite reported
Kennedy is planning to run as an independent
According to a Rassmussen poll of Democrats, 25% support Kennedy in the current presidential primary and, worse, a whopping 33% said they would consider voting for him if he runs as a third-party candidate.
Kennedy has accused the national Democratic Party of unhappily pushing him to the side in his bid to win the nomination, so the famous nephew of John F. Kenndy has hinted he is open to pursuing a third-party or independent campaign.
In fact, left-leaning website Mediaite reported today Kennedy plans to announce he will run as an independent candidate because of the DNC's opposition to his candidacy. That announcement is planned for Oct. 9, the story said, citing a campaign official.
For its poll, Rassmussen surveyed 998 likely U.S. voters in mid-September.
Washington Times columnist Robert Knight tells AFN that Robert Kennedy, Jr. is a staunch liberal. So an independent bid, he says, would not attract Republican voters if they look closely at his beliefs and political views.
“But boy, I could see him taking a lot of Democrats with him,” Knight observes. “And that's what the Democrat Party fears.”
Gary Bauer, who leads Campaign for Working Families, suspects Kennedy is creating a lot of behind-the-scenes political drama within the Democratic National Committee. Meanwhile, Democrat voters are hurting from Joe Biden’s policies and growing restless and frustrated.
“So there are deep, deep troubles,” Bauer concludes, “not the least of which is a candidate like Robert F Kennedy, Jr., one of the most iconic names in Democrat Party politics, who legitimately believes and feels like he is being cheated."
As far as the Republican Party and the current bid for a presidential nominee, attorney and political activist Phillip Jauregui says the second GOP debate did not help voters. He tells AFN some candidates made good points but, overall, it was terrible.
“The people were interrupting each other, and insulting each other, and it just became very difficult to watch,” he says.
Jauregui, who leads the Center for Judicial Renewal at AFA Action, says the debate was so bad he stopped watching it.
The next GOP debate is Nov. 8, in Miami, and Jauregui hopes the field of candidates will be narrowed by then for a better debate and discussion.
Editor's Note: AFA Action is an affiliate of the American Family Association, the parent organization of the American Family News Network, which operates AFN.net.
