The Kennedy family has been ersatz American royalty starting almost immediately after John F. Kennedy’s assassination 60 years ago this week, the deliberate product of the relentless “Camelot” PR campaign. And certainly it has worked better for the extended Kennedy clan than for any other political dynasty in American history. It was enough for a Kennedy to attach himself or herself to a cause or charity for it to gain outsize media attention and elite legitimacy.
Certainly this has long been true especially of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has attached himself to an endless series of loony left-wing causes over the years, always evading any serious criticism because of his illustrious name. But now that his independent bid for the presidency threatens to derail a second term for Joe Biden, the mainstream media is suddenly saying—hey, wait a minute! RFK Jr. may be a grasping, self-serving, money-grubbing celebrity! Who knew?
Such is the sudden discovery of the New York Times today:
How R.F.K. Jr. Has Turned His Public Crusades Into a Private Windfall
Throughout his long public life, Mr. Kennedy has cultivated an image as a man committed to a greater good, the blessing and burden of belonging to one of America’s most storied political families. Whether cleaning up rivers as an environmentalist or railing against the purported dangers of inoculations, he has said he is driven by his family’s legacy of civic duty and sacrifice. . .
But an examination of Mr. Kennedy’s finances by The New York Times, including public filings and almost two dozen interviews as well as tax returns and other documents not previously made public, showed that while he appears to believe in the causes he champions, they have also had a practical benefit: His crusades, backed by the power of his name, have earned him tens of millions of dollars. . .
Behind much of his public career has been a relentless private hustle: board positions and advisory gigs, side deals with law firms, book contracts and an exhausting schedule of paid speeches, once upward of 60 a year by his own count.
While most people have to work, Mr. Kennedy did not always settle for the six-figure salary he was earning in positions with nonprofits. For decades, he has entwined his loftier missions with opportunities for enrichment.
Oh, do tell, NY Times! These self-dealing practices could have been reported at any time over the last 25 years. Heck, from the Times description, RFK is so corrupt he could be a member of the Biden family!
So why is the Times doing it just now? It’s an obvious attempt to disqualify RFK Jr. so he can’t damage Biden’s re-election. It’s almost embarrassing, except that the Times is incapable of embarrassment at this point.
(And yes, curious that the Times decided to describe RFK’s concern with the danger of “inoculations” instead of “vaccines.” That’s not likely an innocuous—heh—choice of terms. It’s as if the Times thinks RFK thinks the needles are the real risk factor, just as they describe how the pro-Israel protestor in suburban Los Angeles was killed when a sidewalk leapt up and committed manslaughter.)
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