Here are various attacks and criticisms on the RFK Jr. presidential campaign and some fact checking rebuttals.
Claim 1: RFK Jr.’s campaign chief of staff revealed that he is only in the election to steal enough Democratic votes from Biden to allow the election to be contested, which would send it to the Republican majority in the House.[1][2]
Rebuttal: The search results did not support the claim that RFK Jr.’s campaign chief of staff revealed that the goal is to steal enough Democratic votes from Biden to allow the election to be contested and sent to the Republican-led House. Here is a summary of the key facts:
- Amaryllis Fox, Kennedy’s campaign director, said in a statement posted on X that Palma was hired by the campaign as a ballot-access consultant and that she doesn’t shape electoral strategy, adding that Palma’s remarks in a circulated video were made as a private citizen.[5]
- The search results indicate that a campaign staffer named Rita Palma, who was identified as a “ballot access consultant” for the RFK Jr. campaign, made comments suggesting that having RFK Jr. on the ballot in New York could help Trump defeat Biden. [3][4][5]
- Palma attended “Stop the Steal” rallies in support of Trump and expressed support for Trump running again in 2024. She also downplayed the violence at the January 6th Capitol riot. [4][5]
- After the video of Palma’s comments surfaced, the RFK Jr. campaign distanced itself from her, stating that she was hired only as a ballot access consultant and had no involvement in electoral strategy. [3][5]
- There is no evidence in the search results that RFK Jr.’s campaign chief of staff or any other senior campaign official revealed a strategy to steal Democratic votes from Biden in order to send the election to the Republican-led House. [3][4][5][6][7]
In summary, the premise of the question is not supported by the information provided in the search results. The RFK Jr. campaign has denied any involvement by Palma in electoral strategy, and there is no indication that senior campaign officials have revealed such a plan. The search results indicate that Palma’s comments were made independently and do not reflect the campaign’s official position or strategy. [3][5]
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Claim 2: RFK Jr. claims that “Covid-19 is targeted to attack Caucasians and Black people” and “the people who are most immune are Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese”.[1]
Rebuttal: Word choice problem (targets vs impacts). It appears that RFK Jr. did make the claims about COVID-19 being “ethnically targeted” to disproportionately affect certain races while sparing others. Specifically, at a press event on Tuesday, RFK Jr. stated that “COVID-19 attacks certain races disproportionately” and that “COVID-19 is targeted to attack Caucasians and Black people. The people who are most immune are Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese.”[1][2][3][4][5] Factually, COVID-19 has indeed disproportionately impacted (different from “targeting”) certain racial and ethnic minority groups in the United States:
- Non-Hispanic American Indians or Alaska Natives are 2.7 times more likely to need hospitalization due to COVID-19 compared to non-Hispanic white people.[7]
- Non-Hispanic Black or African American people and Hispanic people are about twice as likely to need hospitalization due to COVID-19 compared to non-Hispanic white people.[7]
- African Americans have historically had higher rates of chronic diseases like asthma, hypertension, and diabetes, which are underlying conditions that can make COVID-19 more severe.[10]
- In Kansas, while Black Americans made up only 4,854 out of 94,780 COVID-19 tests, they accounted for 59 out of 208 COVID-19 deaths in the state.[10]
- In Illinois, the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases was similar between Black and white residents, but the testing numbers showed a disproportionate gap, with 220,968 tests for white residents compared to only 86,616 for Black residents.[10]
The search results indicate these disparities are due to longstanding health and socioeconomic inequalities faced by racial and ethnic minority groups, not any intentional targeting of specific populations by the virus itself.[7][10] Experts have rejected claims that COVID-19 was engineered to disproportionately impact certain races.[9]
After facing backlash for these remarks, RFK Jr. later claimed the New York Post story was “mistaken” and that he “never, ever suggested that the COVID-19 virus was targeted to spare Jews.”[3][4] He said his comments were about the potential for governments to develop “ethnically targeted bioweapons” more broadly, and that he did not believe the ethnic effects of COVID-19 were deliberately engineered. [3][4]
The search results indicate that RFK Jr.’s initial claims about COVID-19 being “ethnically targeted” were widely criticized as promoting antisemitic and racist conspiracy theories. [1][4][5] Experts stated there is no evidence to support the idea that COVID-19 was designed to spare certain ethnic groups. [2][5]
He later attempted to walk back those remarks and to clarify that he was speaking more generally about the potential for ethnically-targeted bioweapons, not that COVID-19 itself was deliberately engineered in that way. [3][4]
In response to China’s claims, US experts have stated that it is “highly unlikely” such weapons could be developed, as humans are too genetically similar for this to be feasible.[12][13]
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Claim 3: RFK Jr. claims that gender dysphoria was linked to atrazine exposure.
Rebuttal: False claim (He said “could be” , not “was”). RFK Jr. has suggested that atrazine, an endocrine-disrupting chemical, could be causing “sexual dysphoria” or “gender confusion” in children[4], citing a study that found atrazine can feminize male frogs. Experts have rejected this claim, stating that while atrazine and other endocrine disruptors can affect reproductive functions, there is no evidence linking them to gender dysphoria or changes in sexuality in humans.
Specifically, a study found that exposing male frogs to the chemical turned 75% infertile, but turned one-tenth of them into female frogs. Kennedy suggested that the same chemicals could have similar effects on children and their sexuality.[1] Overall, the evidence indicates gender development is complex, involving both biological and social influences, rather than being solely determined by prenatal hormones. Hormones appear to shape certain gender-related traits and behaviors, but not necessarily core gender identity.[2][3] No research supports or completely refutes the possibility, but based on research, it seems unlikely.
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Claim 4: RFK Jr. claims that coronavirus vaccines were developed to control people via microchips.[1]
Rebuttal: Apparently false claim, no quote supports him saying this. No direct quotes found support the claim he that that I could find so far. Based on the search results, there does not appear to be any evidence that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. directly stated that coronavirus vaccines were developed to control people via microchips. The articles indicate that he has promoted this conspiracy theory, but do not provide direct quotes from him making that specific claim.
The key points from the search results are:
- The Seattle Times article states that Kennedy “has promoted a conspiracy theory that coronavirus vaccines were developed to control people via microchips”, but does not provide a direct quote.[4]
- The Forbes article notes that Kennedy posted on Instagram an image implying vaccines would be used to install microchips, but does not include a direct quote from him.[5]
- The NBC News article states that Kennedy has made “debunked claims, such as linking a rise in autism to vaccines” and shared “medical misinformation”, but again does not provide a direct quote about microchips.[3]
So while the search results indicate that Kennedy has promoted the microchip conspiracy theory, they do not contain any direct quotes from him explicitly stating that coronavirus vaccines were developed for that purpose. The media coverage appears to be characterizing and summarizing his views, rather than providing verbatim quotes. Without a direct quote, it would be inaccurate to claim that he definitively said the vaccines were developed to control people via microchips.[1][2]
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Claim 5: RFK Jr. claims that “Democrats were getting more money from pharma than Republicans”, even though an analysis by STAT News found 23 of the country’s biggest drug companies and 2 pharmaceutical trade organizations have favored Republicans in 14 of the past 16 elections from 1990-2020.[1][2]
Rebuttal: His claim is still true. More Repubs took $, but Dems took more $$. Search results I ran did not provide any evidence that RFK Jr. made the specific claim stated, but the claim about STAT News verifies as true as I read it, but not by much.[2]
“At the state level, spending was split almost evenly between Democrats and Republicans, who received 49% and 50% of the campaign checks, respectively. While more Republicans than Democrats accepted drug industry support, Democrats tended to accept industry contributions in larger increments. Of the $5,041,021 in total spending, 54% was directed to Democrats and 45% to Republicans.”[2]
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Claim 6: RFK Jr. claims that gun ownership in Switzerland is similar to the United States, even though U.S. civilians possess an average of 120.5 firearms per 100 people, the highest per-capita rate in the world, compared to 27.6 in Switzerland.[1]
Rebuttal: His claim is true in that Switzerland is one of the three most similar in gun ownership to the United States, when compared to all other countries. Switzerland, while not very close to the US in gun ownership, still appears to be the closest to the US or one of the three closest countries. Context: While vowing not to “take away anyone’s guns” if elected president, RFK Jr. made the claim that “gun ownership in Switzerland is similar to the United States”. No one has the full transcript that I can find. The comment was attacked as RFK Jr meant similar in numbers. Did he mean something else? It seems not. The key differences between gun ownership in Switzerland and the United States are:
1. Licensing and Regulations: In Switzerland, gun ownership is much more regulated compared to the U.S. Swiss citizens must apply for a gun license, which is only valid for a maximum of 9 months and limits them to one weapon. Local police also have the ability to deny a license if they deem the applicant unlikely to cause harm. In contrast, U.S. laws generally allow any adult to purchase firearms as long as they pass a background check, without the same level of scrutiny.[3][4]
2. Military Service Requirement: In Switzerland, most adult men are required to undergo military service, during which they are trained to use firearms. This provides a level of gun safety education that is not as prevalent in the U.S. civilian population.[1][3][4]
3. Restrictions on Automatic Weapons: Switzerland banned automatic weapons and silencers in 2008, unlike the U.S. where such weapons are more accessible.[3]
4. Gun Culture: Switzerland’s gun culture is deeply rooted in tradition and patriotism, with an annual shooting contest for teenagers. The U.S. gun culture is more diverse, with a mix of recreational, self-defense, and ideological motivations.[4]
While both countries have high rates of gun ownership, the licensing process, regulations, and overall gun culture in Switzerland are significantly more restrictive and safety-focused compared to the more permissive approach in the United States.[1][3][4]
Based on search results, the countries with gun ownership numbers most similar to the United States are:
1. Switzerland. The search results show that Switzerland has a civilian gun ownership rate of 27.6 firearms per 100 people, which is significantly lower than the US rate of 120.5 firearms per 100 people[6][8]. So while Switzerland’s gun ownership is not very similar to the US’s, it appears to be more similar to the US in this regard than any other country.
2. Yemen. Yemen has a civilian gun ownership rate of 52.8 firearms per 100 people, which is much lower than the US rate but still relatively high compared to other countries[6][7].
3. New Caledonia. New Caledonia has a civilian gun ownership rate of 42.5 firearms per 100 people, which is also lower than the US but still relatively high[6][7].
The search results do not identify any other countries with gun ownership numbers truly similar to the extremely high rate in the United States. Most other countries have significantly lower civilian gun ownership per capita.
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Claim 7: RFK Jr. claims Anthony Fauci and Bill Gates sought to exaggerate the pandemic, in part, to promote vaccines.[1]
Rebuttal: No Evidence He Said This Found So Far. Based on the search results for this claim about Gates and Fauci, the book being referred to in the search results is “The Real Anthony Fauci: Bill Gates, Big Pharma, and the Global War on Democracy and Public Health” by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. We found no quote in it yet where RFK Jr. claimed that Fauci and Gates conspired to exaggerate the COVID-19 pandemic in order to promote vaccines. RFK Jr. does say that High level officials, including Dr. Fauci, receive yearly emoluments of up to $150,000 in royalty payments on products that they help develop and then usher through the approval process. He gives a source footnote.
According to the search results, there is evidence that high-level government scientists, including Dr. Anthony Fauci received significant royalty payments from third-party companies for inventions and products that were developed during their government employment:
- More than 1,800 government scientists, including Dr. Fauci collected 27,244 royalty payments worth hundreds of millions of dollars from 2009 to 2016.[6]
- Dr. Fauci received 37 royalty payments between 2010 and 2021 from companies like Ancel Corp, Santa Cruz Biotechnology, and Chiron Corp.[9]
- Under current NIH policy, government scientists can receive up to $150,000 annually in outside royalty payments for their work that is commercialized. Any payments above that threshold go to the NIH.[9]
- This lack of transparency around these royalty payments has led to concerns about potential conflicts of interest, as the government scientists involved in approving or overseeing the development of these products are also profiting from them.[6][7][8]
So in summary, the search results indicate that high-level government scientists like Dr. Fauci have indeed received significant royalty payments, up to the $150,000 annual limit, on products they helped develop and approve while working for the government.[6][9]
Some other claims are from an online conspiracy circulating on Facebook[3], (not from RFK Jr.) which falsely state the following:
– that Fauci and Gates were roommates at Cornell University, and that Gates patented the RFID microchip technology while they were there.[2]
– the company Moderna, which is developing a COVID-19 vaccine, has roots tracing back to the Nazi-era IG Farben company that produced Zyklon B gas used in the Holocaust, and that George Soros was involved in rebranding IG Farben as Moderna.[2]
– that convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was the “primary stockholder of Moderna until his death” and that this is where Epstein made his fortune.[2]
These claims are unfounded conspiracy theories widely debunked and not attributed to RFK Jr.
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Claim 8: RFK Jr. is a nut who promotes unfounded conspiracies about atrazine causing gender dysphoria and ridiculous unsubstantiated myths about vaccines, particularly Covid vaccines. He colludes with members of the fascist right including Steve Bannon, Michael Flynn, QAnon conspirators, and has the same super PAC donor as Trump. None of his family support him nor do labor organizers who were close to Bobby. He’s disingenuously in the race to allow Trump to win.
Rebuttal: In one poll most Americans viewed both Biden (56%) and Trump (56%) unfavorably[8]. Ultimately, while lack of science literacy is a problem for the country, Kennedy is entitled to engage with scientific literature, raise questions about public health issues, and participate in the political process. Reasonable people can disagree with his positions, but they should be addressed with facts and evidence, including RFK Jr’s actual words, in context, because much of what he says gets twisted. Kennedy has associated with a range of political figures, including some on the right. However, there is no evidence that he is “colluding” with them or sharing a “fascist ideology.”
Kennedy has a rather large family. Some of the members of his family work for the Biden administration[6]. Four of them have disagreed strongly that he should run for president[7]. RFK Jr. claims many more members of his family support his run.
The claim that Kennedy is running to allow Trump to win is purely speculative. Kennedy is running as a Democrat and has not expressed support for Trump. Looking at one poll, RFK Jr. is pulling about equally from both Trump and Biden. He has a right to run for office and share his platform with voters. According to the search results, several polls have found that Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s independent presidential bid is drawing support equally from both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.[1][2][3][4] The Monmouth University survey showed that Kennedy’s candidacy is costing both Biden and Trump 14% of their current base of support.[1] Among voters who said they would definitely vote for Kennedy, Biden loses 4% of his current support and Trump loses 3%.[1] Another Quinnipiac University poll found that in a three-way race, Biden is ahead with 39% to Trump’s 36% and Kennedy’s 22%.[2] The poll found that independents are almost evenly split among the three candidates, with 36% supporting Kennedy, 31% backing Trump and 30% with Biden.[2] So the search results indicate that RFK Jr. is drawing support fairly equally from both Biden and Trump supporters, with perhaps a slightly larger impact on Trump’s base.[1][2][3][4]
Citations (Claim 1)
[1] https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2020/08/15/debunked-bill-gates-conspiracy-gets-a-boost-from-rfk-jr-marla-maples/?sh=29c95f008bb2
[2] https://edition.cnn.com/2024/04/08/politics/rfk-jr-new-york-biden-trump/index.html
[3] https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/rfk-jr-campaign-fires-new-york-staffer-said-defeating-biden-was-no-1-p-rcna147341
[4] https://www.yahoo.com/news/rfk-jr-campaign-aide-revealed-183449846.html?guccounter=1
[5] https://edition.cnn.com/2024/04/09/politics/rfk-jr-campaign-official-january-6-trump/index.html
[6] https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/rfk-jr-calls-biden-greater-threat-democracy-trump-rcna145961
[7] https://www.vanityfair.com/news/robert-f-kennedy-jr-campaign-rita-palma-donald-trump
Citations (Claim 2)
[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7762908
[2] https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4099639-rfk-jr-attempts-to-walk-back-controversial-covid-19-remarks/
[3] https://nypost.com/2023/07/15/rfk-jr-says-covid-was-ethnically-targeted-to-spare-jews/
[4] https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/rfk-jr-pushes-back-report-said-covid-was-targeted-spare-jews-rcna9444
[5] https://www.politico.com/news/2023/07/15/rfk-jr-covid-19-ethnically-targeted-00106478
[6] https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/15/us/politics/rfk-jr-remarks-covid.html
[7] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32562416/
[8] https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/coronavirus/expert-answers/coronavirus-infection-by-race/faq-20488802
[9] https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0003134820973356
[10] https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/rfk-jr-pushes-back-report-said-covid-was-targeted-spare-jews-rcna94440
[11] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7762908/
[12] https://www.armyupress.army.mil/Journals/Military-Review/Directors-Select-Articles/Ethnic-Weapons/
[13] https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3239723/chinas-top-spy-agency-warns-gene-weapons-able-target-specific-ethnicity-or-race
Citations (Claim 3)
[1] https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.0909519107
[2] https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/03/180301164809.htm
[3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6235900/
[4] https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/154418/health-experts-reject-rfk-jrs-repeated-theory-chemicals-contributing-to-rise-in-lgbt-youth/
Citations (Claim 4)
[1] https://centerforinquiry.org/blog/outrageous-misquotes-are-you-sure-they-said-it/
[2] https://theexonian.net/opinions/2020/02/20/the-dangers-of-media-bias
[3] https://www.rochester.edu/newscenter/study-of-headlines-shows-media-bias-growing-563502/
[4] https://www.theglobeandmail.com/world/article-robert-f-kennedy-jr-medical-misinformation/
[5] https://imprimis.hillsdale.edu/is-the-mainstream-media-fair-and-balanced/
Citations (Claim 5)
[1] https://www.cnn.com/2023/06/22/politics/robert-f-kennedy-jr-vaccines/index.html
[2] https://www.statnews.com/feature/prescription-politics/state-level-examination/
Citations (Claim 6)
[1] https://bigthink.com/the-present/switzerland-high-gun-ownership/
[2] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27904256
[3] https://impakter.com/why-gun-ownership-switzerland-not-same-us/
[4] https://www.businessinsider.com/switzerland-gun-laws-rates-of-gun-deaths-2018-2
[5] https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2015/12/4/9850572/gun-control-us-japan-switzerland-uk-canada
[6] https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/gun-ownership-by-country
[7] https://wisevoter.com/country-rankings/gun-ownership-by-country/
[8] https://www.forbes.com/sites/saradorn/2023/10/10/rfk-jr-launches-independent-2024-run-here-are-all-the-conspiracies-he-promotes-from-vaccines-to-mass-shootings/?sh=58dde4863cef
[9] https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jun/01/robert-kennedy-jr-president-candidate-conspiracy
Citations (Claim 7)
[1] https://www.cnbc.com/2021/01/27/bill-gates-was-very-surprised-by-crazy-covid-conspiracy-theories.html
[2] https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2020/aug/13/facebook-posts/conspiracy-about-moderna-gates-epstein-fauci-and-s/
[3] https://www.cnbc.com/2020/10/14/bill-gates-anti-vaxxer-theories-about-fauci-and-me-hurt-public-trust.html
[4] https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/89440659-the-real-anthony-fauci-bill-gates-big-pharma-and-the-global-war-on-de
[5] https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2020/05/26/fact-check-anthony-fauci-hasnt-served-clinton-gates-foundation-boards/5238168002/
[6] https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/royalty-payments-government-scientists-scrutiny
[7] https://www.hsgac.senate.gov/media/reps/icymi-dr-pauls-transparency-bill-on-royalties-paid-to-government-officials-advances-from-committee/
[8] https://www.hsgac.senate.gov/media/reps/dr-pauls-transparency-bill-on-royalties-paid-to-government-officials-advances-from-committee/
[9] https://www.openthebooks.com/epoch-times-nih-officials-received-325-million-in-royalties-from-3rd-parties-over-11-years/
[10] https://www.pay.gov/public/form/start/28680443
Citations (Claim 8)
[1] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-12-11/kennedy-presidential-bid-draws-equally-from-biden-and-trump
[2] https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4289365-rfk-jr-trump-votes-biden-three-way-race-poll/ [3] https://elections2024.thehill.com/national/biden-trump-rfk-general/
[4] https://www.forbes.com/sites/saradorn/2024/03/14/why-rfk-jr-could-hurt-biden-more-than-trump-as-democrats-launch-anti-third-party-campaign/?sh=58d12c864caf
[5] https://www.ipsos.com/en-us/whos-voting-robert-kennedy-jr
[6] https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2024/03/18/kennedy-family-visits-white-house-no-rfk-jr/73020257007/
[7] https://twitter.com/KerryKennedyRFK/status/1711419719683559659
[8] https://www.ipsos.com/en-us/trump-biden-rematch-still-too-close-call