Bad news for Democrats: Robert Kennedy Jr. picks leftist as running mate

Robert Kennedy Jr is running for president. Current polling puts his support at around 9 percent.

That’s enough to make him a serious candidate. Indeed, a third candidate with much less support than 9 percent can affect the outcome of a tight presidential race. Just ask Al Gore and Hillary Clinton.

There are, to be sure, caveats. For one thing, it’s not clear how many states will allow Kennedy’s name on the ballot. For another, third candidates always seem to do better in polls (especially ones taken this early) than they do during voting season.

But without getting anywhere close to 9 percent of the vote, Ralph Nader and Jill Stein posed problems for Gore and Clinton, respectively. Therefore, Kennedy’s candidacy must be taken seriously.

Democrats certainly are taking it that way. Having concluded that Kennedy poses a threat to Joe Biden, they’ve been shooting at him for some time, with mainstream members of the Kennedy clan joining in the fun..

Is Kennedy, in fact, a threat to Biden or a threat to Trump? On the one hand, Kennedy is a former liberal Democrat with a name that appeals strongly to many Dems. For example, he seems like an attractive alternative to Biden for many blacks.

On the other hand, as an anti-establishment conspiracy theorist, Kennedy might be an attractive option for some who would normally vote for Trump. For that reason, Team Trump, too, has been taking shots at Kennedy by painting him as a far-left figure.

On balance, I’ve gone along with the Democrats’ view of Kennedy’s likely impact. I don’t credit Democrats for much, but when it comes to the quest for power, they generally know which side their bread is buttered on.

Now, Kennedy has selected a running mate, and with that selection, I think we can say with confidence (1) that Trump is correct in its portrayal of Kennedy as a far-leftist and (2) the Democrats are right to view him as a potential threat.

Kennedy’s running mate is Nicole Shanahan, a wealthy San Francisco Bay area activist. With her colorful past and new-age proclivities, Shanahan seems perfectly suited to run with Marianne Williamson, to whose campaign she once contributed financially. But she’s not a bad match for Kennedy, either.

What Shanahan she bring to the table? First, she reportedly brings significant wealth. According to this source, her net worth is around $70 million. If she’s willing to devote a meaningful portion of her money to a campaign that can’t win, it will help Kennedy lose impactfully. Relatedly, Shanahan reportedly is well connected with the well-to-do tech crowd in the Silicon Valley.

In addition, Shanahan is young, fresh, and dynamic. This places her in sharp contrast to the four presidential/vice presidential candidates currently in the picture (though Trump has a chance to change this with his VP selection).

But if there’s any major significance to Shanahan’s selection, it resides in her left-liberalism. By picking her, Kennedy signals that he is, indeed, running from the left. Thus, the Democrats’ instinct that his campaign threatens them, not Trump, is reinforced.

Like Kennedy, Shanahan is a former liberal Democrat. In addition to backing Marianne Williamson, she contributed to Pete Buttigieg’s 2020 campaign and hosted a fundraiser for him. Later in that cycle, she contributed to Joe Biden.

She also gave the maximum $5,400 contribution to Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign in 2016, and has given to many Democratic congressional candidates. And she’s a contributor to Act Blue, a political action committee and fundraising platform that “serves left-leaning and Democratic nonprofits and politicians.”

Naturally, then, she’s also a leftist when it comes to key issues. She has donated heavily to “criminal justice reform” ballot measures. Her other favorite causes are “reproductive longevity and justice” and a “healthy and livable” planet.

I don’t know how much appeal the Kennedy-Shanahan ticket will have, in the end. But it’s not likely to have any to Trump supporters.

Without exaggerating much, Trump’s campaign can now say, and in fact says, that “RFK Jr. is the most Radical Left Candidate in the race, by far. He’s a big fan of the Green New Scam, and other economy killing disasters.”

So far, Kennedy is on the ballot only in Utah. However, his backers say they have enough signatures to get him on the ballot in Hawaii, New Hampshire, Michigan, Georgia, Arizona, and Georgia. But the signature requirement is only one of the hoops Kennedy will have to jump through to be on the ballot in some states.

Democrats, those ardent upholders of democracy, are doing everything possible to limit the right of Americans to vote for Kennedy and other third party candidates. Given the likely importance of some of the states I just listed, along with Kennedy’s firmly leftist stances, it’s easy to see why.