Biden scores endorsements from Kennedy family, looking to shore up support against Trump and RFK Jr

WASHINGTON -- President Joe Biden volition judge endorsements from astatine slightest 15 members of the Kennedy governmental household during a run halt successful Philadelphia connected Thursday arsenic helium aims to undermine erstwhile President Donald Trump and marginalize the candidacy of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Kerry Kennedy, a girl of erstwhile Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, niece of erstwhile President John F. Kennedy and sister of the existent statesmanlike contender, volition present the endorsements of Biden, his run announced.

The determination to item the Kennedy household endorsement much than six months from Election Day is an denotation of however earnestly Biden's squad is taking the menace of the agelong changeable bid perchance utilizing his past name’s lingering Democratic magic to siphon disconnected enactment from the president.

Both Democrats and Republicans interest that Kennedy's candidacy could spoil their respective presumptive nominee's campaigns. Biden was utilizing the event, which caps a three-day run plaything successful a battleground authorities captious to his reelection effort, to besides prolong the unit connected Trump.

“I tin lone ideate however Donald Trump’s outrageous lies and behaviour would person horrified my father, Robert F. Kennedy, who proudly served arsenic Attorney General of the United States, and honored his pledge to uphold the instrumentality and support the country,” Kerry Kennedy volition say, according to prepared remarks. “Daddy stood for adjacent justice, quality rights and state from privation and fear. Just arsenic President Biden does today.”

The endorsement was hardly a surprise, arsenic the salient Democratic household has been vocal that they don't spot oculus to oculus politically with Robert Kennedy Jr., who started arsenic a protestation superior challenger to Biden successful the Democratic enactment and present is moving arsenic an independent. Biden past period hosted much than 30 members of Kennedy’s extended household astatine the White House for St. Patrick’s Day, with household members posing with the president successful the Rose Garden and Oval Office.

After the ceremonial endorsement, Biden and members of the Kennedy household were acceptable to conscionable with supporters astatine a run event, and members of the Kennedy clan were readying to marque calls to voters and sound connected doors connected Biden's behalf.

Several notable members of the household were not endorsing, including U.S. Ambassador to Australia Caroline Kennedy and nonprofit person Maria Shriver, which the Biden run said was owed to their nonpolitical nonrecreational roles.

Robert Kennedy Jr. has spoken publically successful the past astir disagreeing with his household connected galore issues, but maintains it tin beryllium done successful “friendly” ways. After a Super PAC supporting his run produced a TV advertisement during the Super Bowl that relied heavy connected imagery from John F. Kennedy’s 1960 statesmanlike run, Robert Kennedy Jr. apologized to his relatives connected the X societal media platform, saying helium was atrocious if the spot “caused anyone successful my household pain.”

The Democratic National Committee has separately hired a communications squad to combat the entreaty of third-party candidates, Kennedy archetypal among them. The DNC besides filed a caller Federal Election Commission ailment against Kennedy’s campaign, charging that it coordinated excessively intimately with an affiliated Super PAC to get his sanction connected the statesmanlike ballot successful immoderate states.

Kennedy is besides viewed warily by the Trump campaign, which is fearful that helium could besides propulsion the GOP voters they request to decision Biden successful November. While Trump has released a caller video saying, “If I were a Democrat, I’d ballot for RFK Jr. each azygous clip implicit Biden," helium has besides sometimes criticized Kennedy, including suggesting that helium is much “radical left” than the incumbent president.

The Kennedy household endorsement is simply a capstone connected 3 days of campaigning successful Pennsylvania.

It was an accidental for Biden to reconnect with his roots, starting connected Tuesday successful Scranton, wherever helium lived until helium was 10 years old. He swung by his puerility home, a three-story assemblage that his household rented, and reminisced astir attending Mass astatine St. Paul’s.

He seemed reluctant to permission municipality the adjacent day, stopping for java earlier heading to the airport. “It’s bully to beryllium backmost successful Scranton,” the president said erstwhile a lawsuit welcomed him.

Biden’s adjacent halt was Pittsburgh, wherever helium called for higher tariffs connected alloy and aluminum from China to support U.S. manufacture from what helium called unfair competition.

But adjacent that lawsuit progressive immoderate nostalgia, arsenic Biden recalled an endorsement from the steelworkers erstwhile helium was “a 29-year-old kid” from Delaware moving for U.S. Senate.

“It changed everything,” helium said.