Trump is increasingly making personal attacks against independent rival Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Donald Trump is known for constantly and often personally attacking top rivals like Joe Biden. Lately, he has increasingly taken this approach against independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Among the latest taunts, Trump posted a roughly four-minute video online last week in which he called Kennedy a “fake,” a “Democrat ‘plant'” and “a radical left-wing liberal installed to support the Democratic president.” help”. Trump called Kennedy’s family “a bunch of lunatics.”

“He’s not a Republican, so don’t think you’re going to vote for him and feel good,” the former president and presumptive Republican nominee told his supporters in the Truth Social post.

Such blistering attacks on Kennedy may indicate that Trump and his campaign are concerned about the independent’s candidacy in what is expected to be a close November election, where a third-party hopeful siphoning off even a small amount of support will sink one of the main candidates could leave.

Six months after an Election Day in which many Americans expressed dissatisfaction with a rematch between Trump and Biden, Kennedy offers himself as an alternative. Some of the issues Kennedy is focusing on — unwavering support for Israel and criticism of COVID-19 lockdowns — may appeal more to conservative voters than Democrats.

Recent polls show that significantly more Republicans than Democrats have a positive opinion of Kennedy, even though many Americans don’t know who he is. A February poll by the Associated Press and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that about half of Republicans, 53%, had a favorable opinion of him, compared with 30% of Democrats. About a quarter each said they didn’t know enough about Kennedy to say.

Kennedy’s campaign argues that he threatens both Trump and Biden, who boasts the support of several members of Kennedy’s own family and calls the endorsement “an incredible honor.” The president has largely ignored Kennedy, who had previously challenged him for the Democratic nomination before launching an independent bid.

Kennedy also lashed out at Trump, challenging him to a debate when both men speak at the Libertarian Party convention later this month – on separate days. Kennedy claims that Trump’s supporters are “vacillating” in their support.

But Kennedy faces major challenges.

As an independent candidate, his name will not automatically appear on the ballot. He had to work to ensure access to ballots in all 50 states, a process Kennedy said will be completed by the summer. His campaign says he has met that goal in five states — California, Delaware, Michigan, Oklahoma and Utah — and has collected enough signatures for eight additional states. In some states, authorities have not verified these numbers.

Kennedy has argued that his fairly good showing in some national polls gives him reason to consider himself competitive, although polls on horse racing this far before an election are generally unreliable. This is not a new trend for third-party candidates in presidential elections. During the 2016 campaign, early national polls showed Libertarian Gary Johnson’s support in the high single digits or low double digits; In the end he only received around 3% of the popular vote.

Supporters who flock to Kennedy’s events, including a recent comedy show in suburban Detroit, come from across the political spectrum, from those who traditionally support third-party presidential efforts to disaffected Democratic and Republican voters. These included those who had previously supported both Biden and Trump but are now either jaded or no longer enthusiastic about them.

Ben Carter, a registered nurse from White Lake, Michigan, said he supported Trump in 2016 but “couldn’t do it again” and voted for Biden four years later. This year, Carter said he admired Kennedy’s willingness to tackle difficult issues and viewed the independent candidate as willing to express unpopular opinions but to do so in a more comfortable manner than Trump.

“I just don’t hear Kennedy going out and lying about things. “Trump just stands on camera and blatantly lies about things we know to be true,” Carter said. “He has his opinions that you may not agree with, but I’ve never seen him stand in front of a crowd and just lie to people.”

Trump’s supporters admit they are curious about Kennedy’s bid, even as they remain fiercely loyal to Trump.

“He’s super interesting,” said Kim Hanson, a financial adviser from Hartford, Wisconsin, on the sidelines of Trump’s recent rally in Waukesha, Wisconsin. “I love hearing from him.”

But Hanson, a Trump supporter, said she was worried that the appeal of the news of voting for Kennedy could diminish Trump’s support.

“I’m worried about people voting for people who they think won’t get in and not voting for Trump,” she said.

There are some issue areas on which Kennedy and Trump appear to be on the same page.

Like Trump, Kennedy was a fierce defender of Israel in the war with Hamas. In April, he suggested that the prosecution of rioters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, could be politically motivated, partly echoing the misrepresentation by Trump and his allies.

Kennedy offered some criticism of Trump, saying the attack on the Capitol occurred with Trump’s “encouragement” and “in the context of his delusion that the election was stolen from him.” But Kennedy also said that as president he would appoint a special counsel to investigate whether Trump allies were wrongfully prosecuted.

Kennedy also blamed Trump for the economic damage to the middle class. Kennedy called the lockdowns during the pandemic “the worst thing he’s done to this country” and acknowledged in the same speech that Trump “will be blamed for a lot of things he didn’t do.”

Like Trump, Kennedy — a lifelong Catholic who describes himself as a “pro-choice” — holds conflicting positions on abortion. He supported and then backed away from the idea of ​​a 15-week federal abortion ban, but says he disagrees with Trump that the matter should be left to state governments.

Bernard Tamas, a professor at Valdosta State University who studies third-party presidential campaigns, pointed out that Kennedy’s policy positions, such as his vaccine skepticism and his unwavering support of Israel in its war with Hamas, were “more likely to resonate with conservative voters.” an obvious threat to Trump at this point.

“It’s entirely possible that RFK will do more harm to Trump (than Biden), especially since the Never-Trumpers are unlikely to vote for another moderate independent candidate,” Tamas said.

Tamas said even single-digit support for Kennedy could affect the outcome of the general election.

“Losing even a small percentage of the vote to candidates like RFK Jr. could easily shift the election from one major party candidate to another,” Tamas said.

Brian Schimming, chairman of the Wisconsin Republican Party, said he expects Kennedy to withdraw support from Trump and Biden, perhaps from Trump early in the campaign but more from Biden as it progresses. He said Republicans have more enthusiasm for the former president than Democrats have for the incumbent.

“But what does a casual voter do, or a voter who consciously says that he doesn’t care enough about any of these candidates?” said Schimming, a veteran Republican activist in Wisconsin. “They end up taking votes away from the weaker candidate because they are dissatisfied, which in my opinion is Biden.”

Desiree Sherdin, a small business owner from Germantown, Wisconsin, said at Trump’s rally in her state that Kennedy’s views “tend to diverge” from her preference, although she agreed with his skepticism about vaccines. She said she remains with Trump and imagines many others would, too.

“People who are loyal to Trump are extremely loyal,” she said.

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Associated Press writers Thomas Beaumont in Des Moines, Iowa, Linley Sanders in Washington and Scott Bauer in Waukesha, Wisconsin, contributed to this report.

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Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP

Meg Kinnard, The Associated Press