Caroline Kennedy, cousin to the current pick for Health and Human Services secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, penned a scathing letter warning senators about the danger her relative poses if elected to power and calls him a “predator”.
“I have known Bobby my whole life; we grew up together. It’s no surprise that he keeps birds of prey as pets because he himself is a predator,” she wrote, before going on to say that his victims have included family members and the parents of sick children.
A copy of the letter was sent to lawmakers ahead of Robert F Kennedy Jr’s confirmation hearing on Wednesday presumably in hopes of deterring his appointment. Caroline alleges that his “crusade against vaccination” has served to benefit him financially, and that his actions are hypocritical to what he publicly states.
She said that he has discouraged parents from vaccinating their children while in fact vaccinating his own children. He also influenced other members of the Kennedy family “down the path of drug addiction”, the letter alleged.
She also stated that her father, President John F Kennedy, and her uncle, former US attorney general Robert F Kennedy, would be “disgusted” by the actions of her cousin.
Caroline opened the letter by explaining that she had been reluctant to openly comment on her cousin’s politics, but now feels an “obligation” to speak out due to her cousin’s bid for secretary of health.
The letter was posted on Instagram by Caroline’s son, writer Jack Schlossberg.
This is not the first time the former US ambassador to Australia has warned the public about her relative’s conspiratorial views. Despite her hesitance to speak publicly about her family, she told reporters after a speech to the National Press Club in Canberra, Australia that she believes “Bobby Kennedy’s views on vaccines are dangerous”.
Robert F Kennedy Jr is among Trump’s most controversial cabinet picks, with even Republican senators that support Trump finding the anti-vaccine stance to be questionable. Kennedy can only afford to lose three Republican votes to be confirmed.
