‘Spoiler’ questions swirl as Trump says he would vote for RFK Jr. ‘if I were a Democrat’

Embracing polls and reports that claim independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. could take more votes from President Joe Biden than from Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee is effectively "endorsing" RFK Jr., but only for Democratic voters.

"RFK Jr. is going to be taking away votes from crooked Joe Biden and he should because he's actually better than Biden," Trump says in a rambling nearly three-minute video posted to his Truth Social page. "He's much better than Biden. If I were a Democrat, I'd vote for RFK Jr. every single time over Biden, because he's frankly more in line with Democrats."

Trump's remarks come as multiple news reports and the DNC this week suggest RFK Jr. could be a "spoiler" to help Donald Trump, and as the Kennedy campaign announced it had fired a New York State staff member whose remarks suggested the goal was to "get rid" of President Biden, throw the election to the House, which, she said, would choose Trump. RFK Jr.'s campaign manager has denied that is their plan.

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In his video, Trump calls RFK Jr., "the most radical left candidate in the race," while saying, "he's a better man than Joe Biden," "great for MAGA," and, "I happen to like him." He ends the video repeating his claim: "I do believe he's going to take a lot of votes away from crooked Joe Biden."

Noting that "RFK Jr. sounds like Trump as he courts MAGA voters," Axios this week reported, "Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is making targeted appeals to Donald Trump supporters, pledging to "seal the border" from undocumented migrants and investigate the prosecutions of pro-Trump rioters who attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021."

UC Berkeley Professor of Public Policy Robert Reich warns, "Don’t be fooled: RFK Jr. has received funding from big Republican donors."

"Steve Bannon urged him to run! Why? Because he’s there to play spoiler. The MAGA world knows that a vote for RFK Jr. is a vote to help Trump win, plain and simple," he added.

Is RFK Jr. a threat to Biden?

"Election spoiler?" writes USA Today on Friday. "Seven months from the election, Kennedy has the support of 11.7% of likely voters, according to a RealClearPolitics average of polls. That doesn't make him a serious contender to win the election. But Kennedy's current double-digit standing is more than enough to swing outcomes in battleground states."

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The Hill on Friday also asked, "Will RFK Jr. be a spoiler in November?"

"Kennedy and other independent candidates 'certainly could be spoilers,' conceded No Labels chief strategist Ryan Clancy, who cautioned that much could happen before November."

Bloomberg Opinion's Patricia Lopez this week slammed No Labels and RFK Jr.

"Let’s Call No Labels and RFK Jr. What They Are: Spoilers," Lopez wrote. "A rudderless third party and a nepo baby’s vanity run distort the dynamics of a pivotal election."

Democratic strategist Joe Trippi points to a New York Times report from Wednesday: "Trump Allies Have a Plan to Hurt Biden’s Chances: Elevate Outsider Candidates." Trippi writes: "Trump Allies, Trump Donors, MAGA Supporting Billionaire all in to make RFK Jr a Spoiler For Trump."

The liberal Super PAC American Bridge 21st Century has repeatedlylabeled RFK Jr. a "spoiler."

RFK Jr. touts Trump's praise for his campaign, saying Trump believes he'll "take more votes from Democrats."
They aren't even hiding the fact that his campaign is a spoiler for Trump. pic.twitter.com/asEbL7Ze5i — American Bridge 21st Century (@American_Bridge) April 7, 2024

"Trump is desperately trying to prop up RFK Jr.’s spoiler campaign after two straight weeks of negative headlines and zero polling bump after his running mate announcement last month," the group said on Friday, posting a short clip of the Trump video.

“If I were a Democrat, I'd vote for RFK Jr. every single time..."
Trump is desperately trying to prop up RFK Jr.’s spoiler campaign after two straight weeks of negative headlines and zero polling bump after his running mate announcement last month. pic.twitter.com/BN7Kce9qvd — American Bridge 21st Century (@American_Bridge) April 12, 2024

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