A 2024 presidential contender, known for his anti-vaccine sentiments, is facing intense criticism from the White House due to recent remarks made.
What Happened: Seen as a controversial figure to some, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is among the candidates running in the 2024 presidential election.
Kennedy, notorious for his opposition to COVID-19 vaccine mandates, had been previously banned from social media platforms.
He's once again in the spotlight after recently suggesting that COVID-19 may have been “deliberately targeted” to certain demographics and races, according to a New York Post report.
The presidential candidate said there were “papers out there that show the racial or ethnic differential and impact” on certain groups.
“There is an argument that it is ethnically targeted. COVID-19 attacks certain races disproportionately,” Kennedy said. “COVID-19 is targeted to attack Caucasians and black people. The people who are most immune are Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese.”
The White House is condemning the comments made by Kennedy, which some have pointed to as being anti-Semitic in nature.
“The claims made on that tape are false. It is vile. And they put our fellow Americans in danger,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said during a press briefing.
Jean-Pierre was asked by a reporter about the comments made by Kennedy, who is running as a Democrat in the 2024 presidential election.
“If you think about the racist and anti-Semitic conspiracy theories that come out of saying those types of things, it’s an attack on our fellow citizens, our fellow Americans. And so it is important that we essentially speak out when we hear those claims made more broadly.”
Jean-Pierre acknowledged the loss of loved ones by Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Every aspect of these comments reflects some of the most abhorrent anti-Semitic conspiracy theories throughout history and contributes to today’s dangerous rise of anti-Semitism. And so this is something that, you know, this president and this whole administration is going to stand against.”
Kennedy has said the story from the New York Post was “mistaken,” asserting that his comments were in reference to a particular study that was conducted.
“I accurately pointed out — during an off-the-record conversation — that the U.S. and other governments are developing ethnically targeted bioweapons and that a 2021 study of the COVID-19 virus shows that COVID-19 appears to disproportionately affect certain races since the furin cleave docking site is most compatible with Blacks and Caucasians and least compatible with ethnic Chinese, Finns, and Ashkenazi Jews,” Kennedy said.
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Why It’s Important: The New York Post also shared that Kennedy claimed that China and the U.S. are both developing “ethnic bioweapons.”
Members of the Kennedy family had previously distanced themselves from Kennedy, the son of former Attorney General and presidential candidate Robert Kennedy.
Kennedy had previously drawn comparisons between vaccine mandates and the Holocaust, even going so far as to claim that mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic were more severe than the circumstances endured by Anne Frank during the Holocaust. The presidential hopeful later issued an apology for these remarks.
Regardless, he has defended the importance of free speech and his right to publicly voice his perspectives on vaccines.
“If someone asks me about them, I’m going to tell the truth. I know a lot about the issue. If you ask me, you shouldn’t be shutting me up when I’m answering the question,” Kennedy said during a Twitter Spaces with Elon Musk.
Kennedy has gained the support of several prominent investors ahead of the 2024 election. Investor Chamath Palihapitiya hosted a fundraiser for the candidate.
“I would encourage anyone that has even a small shred of skepticism about the Establishment or mainstream media to find an opportunity to hear RFK speak and come to your own conclusion,” Palihapitiya said. “At a minimum, it will make you second guess what you’ve been told.”
Kennedy is set to testify before Congress on the subject of censorship this week. Some members of Congress have called for the invitation to be revoked.
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