An independent researcher. We encourage readers to verify information.
Kennedy Debunked | Vol. 1
Kennedy Debunked
Explore Debunks
Explore Debunks
President Trump and President Biden were fact-checked multiple times from the Presidential Debate. Here we go through the claims that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made during The Real Debate that his campaign hosted along side the CNN debate.
Economy
“President Trump came into office promising to balance the budget. Instead, he spent more money in office than every president in the United States history combined from George Washington from George W. Bush.”
“(President Biden) He’s already run up 6.3 trillion dollars in debt and by the time he leaves office he’ll have run up more than President Trump.”
Almost
Joe Biden has approved 6.2 trillion of new borrowing but has also approved 1.9 trillion in deficit reduction, amounting to a total of 4.3 trillion so far in his term.
“The interest alone on that debt is costing us more than our military budget.”
True
So far in 2024, 601 billion has been spent on the interest on the debt and 576 billion has been spent on National Defense.
Covid
“These two presidents shut down every business in our country. 3.3 million businesses with no due process, no just compensation.”
True and Almost
The NIH study that records this was analyzing this data found that 3.3 million businesses were closed in April 2020. This indicates that this happened under President Trump. According to the Federal Reserve, many, not all, closures remained until mid 2021.
“They shifted 4.3 trillion dollars upward to this new oligarchy of billionaires that he was talking about. They created a billionaire a day in 500 days.”
True – and some.
Many sources even show more than 4.3 trillion. This source shows 5 billion of wealth was shifted up during the pandemic.
“We ended up having the worst record of, body count, of any country in the world. We had 16% of the covid deaths under these two presidents. We only have 4% of the world’s population.”
True
According to John Hopkins data, we had the highest number of covid deaths than any other country at 1,123,836. Forbes wrote this when referencing that same data, “The U.S. has 4% of the world’s population but recorded 16% of Covid-19 deaths.”
Abortion
“I believe it should be limited, late term, should be limited. Absolutely. That’s what was permitted under Roe v Wade.”
True
During the debate, there was back and forth between the candidates about the limitations, if any, Roe v Wade provided. RFK Jr. is correct when he said that it limited late term abortions.
“That’s what every European country, has the same law.”
With one exception.
Poland only allows abortion in the cases where the life of the mother is at risk. There are five other countries that also ban abortion, but the average person would not consider them countries since they are the size of a small city. See image below.
“52% of abortions in this country, the woman says economic considerations played a key role in her decision.”
True
Percentages change drastically depending on what source you use. For example, this medical paper by Dr. Dawn Stacey lists “not financially prepared,” with 40% and, ‘unable to provide a “good” life,’ with 12%. This equals the 52% Kennedy was most likely referring to. According to this medical journal, 73% of women reported getting an abortion because they could not afford a baby. Point is, Kennedy is correct that a majority of abortions take place because of financial reasons.
“Every million dollars that we spend on weapons provides two jobs, creates two jobs. Every million dollars that we spend on childcare creates 22 jobs.”
The idea is true – more research is needed on the specific numbers.
Many sources conclude the idea that an investment in childcare creates more jobs than investments in defense do. However, I have had a difficult time trying to find the exact data Kennedy referenced to. According to Brown University, a one million investment in federal defense creates 6.9 jobs. They do not list childcare specifically, but they do list education which is usually tied into that. The same investment in elementary and secondary school creates 19.2 jobs.
Equitable Growth noted, “In one economic model, for example, fully subsidizing child care costs so that parents paid nothing rather than an average of $89 per week (in 2021 dollars) increased the rate of maternal employment from 37 percent to 87 percent.17“
Feel free to email info@kennedydebunked.com if you have any additional data.
Immigration
“I think almost everything that President Biden said I know to be, not to be true, including his claim that he was endorsed by the border patrol.”
True
During the debate, President Biden made the comment that the Border Patrol endorsed him. Kennedy then said he knew that was false, and that is correct. The Border Patrol Union posted during the debate, “To be clear, we never have and never will endorse Biden.”
“You know the border, there’s been at least 7 million people who have come across the border. This is without the got aways which are another 2 million.”
True
According to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, total border encounters are at 8,280,550. According to the Center for Immigration Studies, there have been 1,849,515 gotaways between 2021 and 2023. According to the Homeland Security Committee in the House of Representatives, they also estimate roughly 2 million gotaways under President Biden’s term.
“President Biden, when he became president, ordered a stop on the construction of the wall.”
True
On President Biden’s first day in office, he issued a proclamation to stop the construction at the border wall. The Biden administration is currently in litigation over this decision. Plaintiff’s argue that congress appropriated that money for the building of the wall and the executive branch does not have the authority to redirect those funds.
“The two laws that were changed under President Biden, the day they came in that catch-and-release law…”
Kennedy ran out of time during the middle of this statement. Because of that, I will not comment on the validity of it. I will, however, provide additional information.
On February 4th, 2021, President Biden issued a memorandum which essentially reinstated catch-and-release that was revoked under the Trump administration. On President Biden’s first day in office he signed executive order 13993. This order revoked an executive order from President Trump that enforced many aspects of the immigration law. This move is seen to have opened the border on Biden’s first day in office.
“We’re seeing rises in crime that are associated with the immigrants.”
True
The number of arrests have gone up in recent years according to the U.S. Customs and Border protection. Many people believe that crime rate among undocumented immigrants is much lower than U.S. citizens. However, there is competing data on this. The Department of Justice reports, “we observe considerably lower felony arrest rates among undocumented immigrants compared to legal immigrants and native-born US citizens.” This report is from 2020. On the other hand, the Bureau of Justice Statistics reports, “64% of all federal arrests were of non-U.S. citizens.” Because of this, I revert back to the U.S. Customs and Border protection.
“The border patrol takes, because they’ve been ordered to not to do their job, you know catch-and-release. They bring them to the Uma airport, put them on a plane to any destination they want… and they pay their ticket. They have an asylum court date seven years in the future.”
True
Dr. Phil interviewed the president of the Border Patrol Union and many border agents about this issue. If you do not believe Kennedy or Dr. Phil, listen to the agents who work at the border below.
Reality: The portrayal of Nicole Shanahan’s TV interview as incoherent and nonsensical is both misleading and dismissive of her thoughtful responses. The media’s selective reporting failed to capture the full context of her comments and the full context of the question. After gaining the needed background on the topic, why aren’t more people talking about semiconductors and batteries?
The Media’s Game
Following Nicole Shanahan’s first television interview as Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s vice-presidential pick on June 20th, several media outlets published articles that portrayed her responses as baffling and off-the-rails. The Daily Beast claimed, “Nicole Shanahan Lists Reasons She’d Be a Good Prez—And They Make No Sense” , while The New York Post described her explanations as “baffling” and questioned her understanding of foreign policy and technology.
Here is what the Chair of the DNC had to say along with one of their operatives:
The Full Context
Contrary to these characterizations, Shanahan’s interview was coherent and demonstrated a deep understanding of critical issues. When asked why she would make a good vice president, she articulated her motivations clearly:
“I want to be vice president because I want to take my learnings of being a mother in today’s America, being somebody who has really looked at our healthcare issues, who understands deeply our AI challenges and the technology landscape of this country, and I want to bring it to the White House” .
Shanahan emphasized her commitment to bringing a youthful, capable mindset to address the country’s challenges, reflecting her broader vision for the role.
Foreign Policy Expertise
The media also misrepresented her views on foreign policy. When asked about her foreign policy understanding to be commander-in-chief in a worst-case scenario, Shanahan responded with a detailed explanation of her qualifications and the importance of understanding global commerce, semiconductors, and world religions:
“I think that I have a very sophisticated view on foreign affairs due to my previous work both in intellectual property law. I understand how global commerce works. I understand how we build batteries around the world. I understand the importance of semiconductors… I’ve spent most of my spiritual life studying world religions, and I think it’s really important right now for us to understand and respect each other’s religious alignment and understand the depths and the nuances of it” .
Shanahan’s comments highlighted the significance of semiconductors in global politics, particularly concerning U.S.-China relations over Taiwan, a crucial center for semiconductor production.
Why aren’t more People Talking about Semiconductors?
Let’s talk batteries 😉 pic.twitter.com/i6leuooLXc
— Nicole Shanahan (@NicoleShanahan) June 21, 2024
Following the interview, Shanahan took to X (formerly Twitter) to clarify her remarks, emphasizing the vital role of semiconductors in modern life and their strategic importance in foreign policy:
“From your smartphone to your home medical device, to the car you drive, your home appliances, the airplanes we all travel on, you name it, most devices and services we rely on today depend on semiconductors and batteries” .
She further explained the geopolitical stakes, noting that 70% of the world’s semiconductors and 90% of the world’s most sophisticated chips are produced in Taiwan. The potential Chinese takeover of Taiwan could disrupt global supply chains, highlighting why understanding semiconductors is critical for anyone involved in foreign policy. Read more about the China, Taiwan, and US relations here.
The real question is, why aren’t more people talking about semi-conductors and batteries?
Conclusion
Shanahan’s comments on semiconductors and global commerce were taken out of context and reduced to sound bites that misrepresented her comprehensive understanding of foreign policy.
In defending herself and explaining her rationale, Shanahan demonstrated her commitment to bringing informed and thoughtful leadership to the table. The media’s attempt to undermine her qualifications by focusing on out-of-context remarks does a disservice to public discourse. It is no secret why the mainstream media is experiencing the lowest trust by viewers of all time. As voters, it’s crucial to seek out the full context. Issues as big as foreign policy cannot be dwindled down to 10 second sound bites.
Donald Trump, Joe Biden, and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. do not qualify for the presidential debate according to CNN’s guidelines. One of the requirements is that the candidate “must appear on a sufficient number of state ballots to reach the 270 electoral vote threshold to win the presidency.” Trump and Biden are currently not on any state’s ballot as their conventions have not happened yet. Kennedy has turned in signatures in enough states, but he cannot control how fast or slow those signatures take to get certified. However, he is officially on nine state’s ballots making him the most eligible out of the three candidates.
Ballot Access and Electoral Votes
Kennedy’s campaign has made significant strides in securing ballot access across multiple states. According to his campaign’s statement:
- The Kennedy-Shanahan ticket is officially on the ballot in nine states, including key states like California and Texas.
- The campaign has collected enough signatures for ballot access in 14 additional states.
- Kennedy has turned in the signatures needed for ballot access in 23 states, totaling 310 electoral votes, which surpasses the 270 electoral vote threshold required for presidential victory.
While Kennedy is waiting for some states to certify the signatures, this process is out of his control. He has ensured that multiple times the required number of signatures have been submitted to mitigate the risk of disqualification.
In contrast, neither Biden nor Trump currently appear on any state’s ballots, as their official nominations will not occur until their respective party conventions later this year.
Polling Criteria and Performance
To qualify for the debate, CNN requires candidates to receive at least 15% support in four separate national polls from a specific list of credible polling organizations. Kennedy has achieved this. When considering margin of error, he far exceeds this.
- CNN: 16% with a margin of error of 3.8%.
- Marquette University Law School: 17% with a margin of error of 4.3%.
- NBC News: 13% with a margin of error of 3.1%.
- Quinnipiac University: 16% with a margin of error of 2.6%.
- Monmouth: 18% with a margin of error of 4.3%.
- Fox: 13% with a margin of error of 2.5%.
Two polls that meet CNN’s standards do not have RFK Jr. listed as an option in the poll. These include CBS News and NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist College. Several of these organization have not done recent polls. CNN also left out the Harvard-Harris poll which consistently has RFK Jr over 15%. Was this done on purpose?
A margin of error reflects the range within which the true value of a poll’s results likely falls, accounting for the variability inherent in sampling a portion of the population rather than the whole. For instance, if a poll shows Kennedy with 16% support and a margin of error of 3.8%, his actual support could be as high as 19.8% or as low as 12.2%. This means that Kennedy’s reported percentages, when considering the margin of error, may well meet or exceed the 15% threshold required by CNN.
Is this a Campaign Finance Violation?
The Kennedy campaign has filed a complaint with the FEC regarding CNN’s debate criteria and potential violations of federal election law. The FEC has clarified that there is no “presumptive nominee” exemption in its regulations, which means CNN must apply its criteria equally to all candidates, including Biden and Trump, who currently do not meet the same ballot access criteria as Kennedy.
What is Really Going on?
Another poll came out of Utah this week showing Kennedy and Biden polling the same at 20%.
68% of respondents say that the future of democracy is an extremely important issue while CNN is actively trying to rig the debate criteria.
According to PBS, 55% of respondents are not satisfied with Trump and Biden being the major party candidates.
One must also consider the significant influence of pharmaceutical advertising on television, a multi-billion dollar industry from which CNN profits. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has pledged to sign an executive order to ban pharmaceutical advertising on television, a move that would certainly level networks like CNN. This raises questions about potential conflicts of interest and the network’s objectivity in setting debate criteria.
Conclusion
While neither Joe Biden nor Donald Trump currently meet CNN’s ballot access criteria due to pending party conventions, Kennedy has made significant strides, being officially on the ballot in nine states and having submitted sufficient signatures for ballot access in an additional 14 states. He has effectively reached the necessary threshold for 270 electoral votes, a feat not yet achieved by Biden or Trump.
Kennedy also meets CNN’s polling criteria, by reaching at least 15% support in four national polls. Despite the deliberate exclusion of certain polls that would bolster his standing, his performance indicates substantial voter support.
CNN, President Trump, and President Biden are making one thing clear: Any challenge to the two party system will be silenced.
Reality: Within the landscape of third-party and independent candidates, Kennedy’s campaign is not only financially strong but also highly competitive. While Joe Biden and Donald Trump brag about raising millions of dollars in one night, RFK Jr. is focused on addressing why 17% of people couldn’t pay all their bills last month, 27% skipped medical treatment because of the cost, 37% can’t afford a $400 emergency, and 52% cannot afford a $2,000 emergency.
Propaganda
On 06/15/2024, Politico published this article. It says, “Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s presidential campaign is on financial life support.” This is far from the truth.
Cash on Hand
Here is how much Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and Cornel West have raised according to the FEC.
Joe Biden (Democratic Party):
- Receipts: $194,773,233.44
- Disbursements: $110,548,279.91
- Ending Cash on Hand: $84,485,428.90
Donald Trump (Republican Party):
- Receipts: $124,151,212.64
- Disbursements: $75,087,164.04
- Ending Cash on Hand: $49,064,048.60
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (Independent):
- Receipts: $44,029,356.48
- Disbursements: $33,842,903.49
- Ending Cash on Hand: $10,186,452.99
Cornel West (Third Party):
- Receipts: $1,157,202.17
- Disbursements: $1,141,820.83
- Ending Cash on Hand: $15,381.34
When compared to third-party candidates like Cornel West, Kennedy’s campaign finances are robust. Kennedy has raised nearly 40 times more than Cornel West, highlighting his financial advantage in the third-party landscape. Although a third party automatically gives you a disadvantage, Kennedy is the fourth highest fundraiser of all presidential candidates for 2024.
“Broke” is also a relative term. To Republicans and Democrats who have billionaires as donors, ten million dollars might not seem like a lot. For everyday Americans who have to put groceries back on the shelf because they can’t afford them or skip meals altogether, ten million is a lot of money.
What Really Matters:
While Biden and Trump boast about raising millions of dollars in short time frames, many Americans are struggling with basic necessities:
Biden raised $30 million in one night at a Hollywood fundraiser. Trump raised $141 million in just a few days following a legal verdict.
In stark contrast, Americans face rising household debt, unaffordable living costs, and economic insecurity. Kennedy’s Real State of the Union address highlights these issues, emphasizing that:
New Wealth: The wealth of the past generation has disproportionately benefited billionaires, leaving the middle class behind.
Public and Household Debt: U.S. public debt has soared to $34 trillion, and household debt has hit a record high of $17.3 trillion.
True Unemployment: Including discouraged workers, the true unemployment rate is 23%.
Living Costs: Many Americans struggle with housing, groceries, and child care costs.
Economic Despair: The economic situation leaves many fearing a single emergency could push them into homelessness.
Conclusion: Kennedy’s Campaign is Financially Strong
The narrative that Kennedy is financially struggling is inaccurate when viewed through the proper context of third-party politics. His campaign is financially solid, especially when compared to other independent candidates like Cornel West. The real issue lies in the stark contrast between the fundraising of major political campaigns and the economic hardships faced by ordinary Americans, which Kennedy is committed to addressing.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is focused on tackling these core issues, ensuring that the economic struggles of everyday citizens are at the forefront of his campaign.
Written by Larry Ramer
Reality: Robert F. Kennedy Jr is absolutely correct when he says that Israel is not committing genocide. According to Oxford Languages, genocide is defined as “the deliberate killing of a large number of people from a particular nation or ethnic group with the aim of destroying that nation or group. “
Far from aiming to “destroy” all Gazans, the Israeli military is taking multiple steps to kill as few noncombatants as possible in the course of its war against Hamas. In fact, according to a statement made on May 3, 2024 by a top U.S. expert on urban war, John Spencer, “Israel has done more to prevent civilian casualties in war than any military in history.” Spencer, who has extensively studied the Israel-Hamas War, is the Chair of Urban Warfare studies at West Point’s Modern War Institute.
What RFK Jr. Has to Say:
In an interview with Piers Morgan, Kennedy said:
“Today Hamas, which is you know authoritarian control, hasn’t won an election in 16 years of Gaza, is a corporate kleptocracy and it’s absolutely intent on one issue one issue only, to annihilate Israel and to kill all the Jews.
In their charter Hamas has a provision that says it is against Islamic law to even negotiate with Israel except as a ruse. So I don’t see how people who are saying, ‘well you should have a ceasefire.’ Then what? Then you’ve rewarded Hamas for taking hostages and they’re going to keep taking hostages to get more and more advantage. This is, by the way, the fifth ceasefire. On October 7th, they broke a cease fire.”
Steps That Israel Has Taken to Minimize Civilian Casualties
In his X feed, Spencer detailed the many steps that Israel has taken during the war in order to kill as few Gaza civilians as possible.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have told Gazan civilians to evacuate areas where it is going to attack next, and the IDF has actively helped civilians leave places that will be targeted. Moreover, the IDF has used multiple methods to tell civilians to leave dangerous areas. In addition to flyers, as of May, it had made more than 79,000 direct phone calls and sent more than 13.7 million text messages in order to tell civilians to evacuate parts of Gaza that the military planned to target.
Other steps that the IDF has taken to facilitate evacuations include conducting “multi-hour pauses” of their operations and handing out maps that detail which areas will be targeted in the future.
Israel Has Been More Careful to Avoid Civilian Casualties Than Any Military in History
As I noted in the introduction, Spencer said that Israel had actually done more to prevent civilian casualties
during a war than any other country .
Israel has done everything to protect civilians that the U.S. has done in its wars, he reported. And the Jewish State has taken some actions to protect civilians that America has never utilized, Spencer added. Indeed, I never remember the U.S. actively evacuating civilians from areas that it was going to attack during its wars.
So Why Have So Many Gazans–Including Women and Children — Been Killed in Gaza by Israel?
Based on Hamas’ estimate of total deaths and Israel’s estimate of the number of Hamas fighters that it has killed, the ratio of civilian deaths to combatant deaths is about 1.5 to 1, Spencer reported about a month ago. But Hamas itself has said that it is not sure whether 11,000 of the deaths that it had previously reported actually occurred.
Leaving out those 11,000 questionable deaths, the ratio of combatants to civilians killed in Gaza is about 1 to 1. By comparison, during the U.S.-led battle against Isis in the Iraqi city of Mosul in 2016-2017, 10,000 civilians and 4,000 Isis fighters were killed.
So Israel has much more effectively protected civilians than the U.S.-led coalition which fought Isis in Mosul. did And nobody has accused the U.S.-led coalition of committing genocide in Mosul.
Further, as Spencer noted, “war is hell,” and international law does not prohibit the killing of civilians in wars. Indeed, during World War 2, the Allies firebombed mass swaths of multiple, large cities, including Tokyo and Dresden, Germany, without taking any significant steps to prevent civilians from being killed. And of course, President Harry Truman dropped nuclear weapons on two Japanese cities, killing many tens of thousands of civilians in the process. And yet almost no one, whether they are Left, Right or Center politically, says that the Allies committed genocide.
Hamas’ widespread placement of weapons and fighters below and inside schools, mosques, and hospitals has also greatly raised the number of civilian deaths in Gaza.
According to Spencer, Hamas has made “every protected site (i.e hospitals, mosques, and schools) a military facility.” He reported that Hamas has used this “human shield” approach more than any other entity he’s ever seen. And Spencer also noted that when Isis fighters entered hospitals, the U.s. “bombed complete hospitals to the ground ” Israel has not done that.
Israel Is Defending Itself Against Genocidal Hamas
Hamas has promised to try to repeat the mass murder and atrocities that it committed against Israeli Jewish civilians on October 7 “again and again” until Israel is destroyed.
In other words, Hamas wants to carry out genocide against Israeli Jews. Israel is fighting to destroy the terrorist organization in order to prevent it from doing so.
The Bottom Line
Israel has taken unprecedented steps to prevent civilians in Gaza from being killed. And based on the assessment of a U.S. expert on urban warfare, the Israeli army has been very successful in limiting civilian deaths, despite Hamas’ widespread placement of fighters and weapons in areas filled with civilians.
Given these points, Robert F. Kennedy Jr is completely on target when he says that Israel is not committing genocide.
Reality: Kennedy has repeatedly emphasized that he does not plan to confiscate firearms or restrict Second Amendment rights. The data shows gun ownership levels have remained the same while mental health issues have drastically increased. He stresses the need for a comprehensive approach that includes better mental health care and understanding the underlying factors contributing to violence, rather than simply imposing gun restrictions.
RFK Jr.’s Position on Gun Ownership
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been profoundly impacted by gun violence with the tragic assassinations of his father, Robert F. Kennedy, in 1968, and his uncle, President John F. Kennedy, in 1963. However, in various interviews Kennedy has reiterated his commitment to protecting Second Amendment rights while seeking to address the complex factors contributing to gun violence. In response to a question about banning assault weapons, RFK Jr. stated:
“I am not going to take people’s guns away. If there was consensus where Republicans and Democrats voted a majority to do that, I would sign the bill.”
He acknowledges that significant changes to gun laws would require bipartisan support, which is currently very unlikely given the strong opposition to gun restrictions among Republicans. However, the data shows that guns are not causing the increase in mass shootings.
Gun Ownership and Violence Data
Contrary to the notion that reducing gun ownership would decrease violence, data shows a different trend. According to the Violence Policy Center, gun ownership rates have remained relatively stable since the early 2000s, with only slight fluctuations.
Active Shooting Incidents
Data from the Pew Research Center indicates a rise in active shooting incidents over the years, despite stable gun ownership rates. This suggests that other factors are contributing to the increase in violence.
The Role of Mental Health
Rising violence, particularly among younger individuals, correlates more closely with increasing mental health issues than gun ownership. Research by the American Psychological Association highlights a significant increase in mental health disorders among young Americans over the past decade:
- Major depression in adolescents increased by 52% from 2005 to 2017.
- Serious psychological distress in young adults increased by 71% from 2008 to 2017.
- Suicidal thoughts and attempts among young adults increased by 47% from 2008 to 2017.
Kennedy continually emphasizes that studies should be done to find out why this is happening.
RFK Jr.’s Policy on Addressing Gun Violence
In a NewsNation Townhall, Kennedy elaborated on his approach to addressing gun violence:
Audience Question: I want to know how are you going to use federal resources to slow and or end the epidemic of gun violence in America.
RFK Jr.: Thank you for that question. For me, it’s a very tough question. You know, I lost my father to gun violence. I lost my uncle to gun violence, and many friends. So, I’m aware and sensitive to the injuries that that can cause to generations.
We have a gun problem in this country. We have a Supreme Court now that has given a very expansive view of the Second Amendment. I believe in the Constitution, including the Second Amendment. Practically, I do not believe that there is, within that Second Amendment, that there is anything we can meaningfully do to reduce the trade and ownership of guns and I’m not going to take people’s guns away.
Because telling the people that I’m gonna take their guns away is not practical. Anybody who tells you that they’re going to have a reduced gun violence through gun control at this point, I don’t think is being realistic. I think we have to figure out other ways to do that. I think we have to figure out other ways to reduce that violence.
Ultimately, my hope is that we can bring Americans together, get them to trust each other, get them to trust their government again, and then we can work out. You know, every American, whether their a Republican gun carrier a Democrat who is, you know, who believes that nobody should own guns, we all want the same thing. We want to keep our children safe and want to keep our neighborhoods safe.
I think we have to look at what the alternatives are for doing that. Some of the things I’ve talked about are that we need to look at some of the other causes of violence. One is the division among Americans, and the hatred, we need to reduce that. The distrust of government, need to reduce that. We also need to look at the contribution, you know, particularly with the school shootings of some of these psychiatric drugs. I’m not saying they’re causing it, I’m saying there is evidence they are and that evidence…
Interviewer: What’s that evidence?
RFK Jr.: Well, part of the evidence includes the fact that for SSRIs, almost all of them have on their manufacturers inserts, among the listed side effects, are homicidal and suicidal behavior.
Interviewer: That doesn’t mean antidepressants caused any of these people to commit mass shootings.
RFK Jr.: Of course it doesn’t. But we ought to be looking at it, shouldn’t we? Should we be looking at video games, and cell phones, and some of the social media stuff. We should be looking at all these things, including the SSRI’s. By the way, there are studies out there that indicate a higher percentage of the people who committed the school violence were on SSRIs.
Interviewer: Yeah, but they’re also like ten’s and ten’s of millions of Americans on antidepressants who don’t commit mass shooting.
RFK Jr.: Of course. There are people who smoke cigarettes and don’t get cancer. Shouldn’t we be looking at those things? Something happened in this country. Something happened that we can’t really explain and that we need to explain. NIH really ought to be explaining it to us, but it doesn’t do these studies. It will not do the studies where there may be a big shot as the culprit.
You know when I was a kid, many of the schools that my friends attended had gun clubs in them. The kids brought their rifles to school every day and nobody was shooting children. In all of human history, all of the nations in the world, there’s never been a time when people randomly went into a group of children and start shooting them. Why did this suddenly start? Why is it not happening in Switzerland, which has, you a comparable number of guns per capita that we have?
Interviewer: No, we have far more guns per capita.
RFK Jr.: We have far more, but they have a lot of guns, but their last school shooting was 21 years ago. We’re having them every 21 hours.
Interviewer: We have few more questions we want to get to. But very quickly in ten…
RFK Jr.: But do you believe we shouldn’t even look at that issue?
Conclusion
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., someone affected by the gun violence himself, is committed to finding balanced, effective solutions to reduce violence. He respects the cultural significance of gun ownership for many Americans and supports democratic processes in determining gun policy. Given the current political landscape, significant gun restrictions are unlikely to gain bipartisan support, making the claim that Kennedy will take away guns both misleading and unfounded.
Kennedy’s focus is on evidence-based measures that starts with good scientific studies, not on infringing on the rights of responsible gun owners. It is crucial to understand the full context of his statements and to understand the data on gun ownership, as well as mental health throughout the years.
Reality: Kennedy’s focus is on the potential endocrine-disrupting effects of chemicals like atrazine, which the CDC themselves have issued a Public Health Statement saying, “atrazine is commonly found in the water collected from drinking water,” and “atrazine can affect your health is by altering the way that the reproductive system works.” He did not say it is causing kids to turn transgender, he simply repeated what the CDC, NIH, and others have noted in the scientific literature.
The Origin of the Claim
The assertion that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. believes water is turning children transgender stems from comments he made during an interview with Jordan Peterson. In the interview, Kennedy discussed the impact of environmental chemicals on children’s health, particularly the role of endocrine disruptors like atrazine. Watch the interview on Rumble Here or listen on Spotify Here. The frog study Kennedy refers to is an NIH published study here.
“I see these huge levels of depression and despair, loneliness in kids. I don’t think there’s a single cause to it. I think blaming it on depression about climate is probably over simplistic. In fact, I think a lot of the problems we see in kids, and particularly in boys, it is probably underappreciated how much of that is coming from chemical exposures. Including a lot of the sexual dysphoria that we’re seeing. These kids are being overwhelmed by a tsunami, I mean they’re swimming through a soup of toxic chemicals today, and many of those are endocrine disruptors. There is atrazine throughout our water supply. Atrazine, by the way, if you put atrazine in a tank full of frogs, it will chemically castrate and forcibly feminize every frog in there. 10% of the male frogs will turn into fully viable females able to produce viable eggs. If it’s doing that to frogs, there is a lot of other evidence that it is doing it to human beings as well.”
The Propaganda
This is what media outlets like CNN and The New York Times had to say:
“Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has a history of repeatedly sharing unfounded conspiracies that man-made chemicals in the environment could be making children gay or transgender and causing the feminization of boys and masculinization of girls.” – CNN
“But no evidence exists to indicate that the chemical, typically used on farms to kill weeds, causes the same effects in humans, let alone gender dysphoria.” – The New York Times
Now let’s look at what the CDC and NIH have to say.
What the CDC and NIH have to say:
Kennedy’s statements were focused on the potential health effects of environmental pollutants like atrazine, a widely used herbicide known to be an endocrine disruptor. The CDC acknowledges that atrazine can persist in water sources and has been linked to reproductive system alterations in animals. The CDC also notes:
“Any atrazine that is washed from the soil into streams and other bodies of water will stay there for a long time, because breakdown of the chemical is slow in rivers and lakes. It will also persist for a long time in groundwater. This is one reason why atrazine is commonly found in the water collected from drinking water wells in some agricultural regions.”
“One of the primary ways that atrazine can affect your health is by altering the way that the reproductive system works. Studies of couples living on farms that use atrazine for weed control found an increase in the risk of pre-term delivery. These studies are difficult to interpret because most of the farmers were men who may have been exposed to several types of pesticides. Atrazine has been shown to cause changes in blood hormone levels in animals that affected the ability to reproduce. Some of the specific effects observed in animals are not likely to occur in occur in humans because of biological differences between humans and these types of animals. However, atrazine may affect the reproductive system in humans by a different mechanism. Atrazine also caused liver, kidney, and heart damage in animals; it is possible that atrazine could cause these effects in humans, although this has not been examined.”
The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIH) confirms that endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) like atrazine can interfere with hormonal functions, leading to a variety of health issues. According to the NIH:
“Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are natural or human-made chemicals that may mimic, block, or interfere with the body’s hormones, which are part of the endocrine system. These chemicals are associated with a wide array of health issues.”
Forever Chemicals and Their Effects
Atrazine is not the only concern. Other chemicals, such as antidepressants, are also persistent in the environment and have been found in water sources. According to the NIH, antidepressants are considered PFAS or commonly known as “forever chemicals.” This study says, “high concentration of antidepressants was detected in the raw and treated wastewater.” The NIH notes an adverse effect; “SSRIs are well-known to impair sexual function while they are being taken.”
RFK Jr. Wants to do the Science
To summarize the findings, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is correct that Atrazine is found in water and that it has potential harmful health effects. Not only that, many other forever chemicals, such as SSRI’s, are also known to cause sexual dysfunction among other side effects. These chemicals have either not been studied in humans or studied very little. They certainly have not been studied to see how they react together in the human body over time.
Kennedy consistently advocates for thorough, independent scientific studies on the effects of environmental pollutants, free from corporate influence.
Kennedy/Shanahan Policy on These Chemicals
The claim that RFK Jr. says our water is turning kids transgender is a gross misrepresentation of his actual stance. Kennedy is focused on the potential endocrine-disrupting effects of chemicals like atrazine and advocates for thorough scientific research to understand their impact on human health. His focus is on ending the chronic disease epidemic which starts with good science. This also goes hand in hand with his environmental policy since he wants to clean up these forever chemicals up from our water and food supply.
As always, it is crucial to look beyond sensational headlines and consider the full context and scientific evidence before forming conclusions.
Reality: Official records from the Federal Election Commission (FEC) show no donations from AIPAC to Kennedy’s campaign or any PAC supporting him.
Understanding the FEC Website
The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent regulatory agency that oversees the financing of federal elections in the United States. The FEC provides public access to a comprehensive database of campaign contributions, including details of all donations made to political candidates and committees. This database allows anyone to search for and verify contributions by specific organizations or individuals to various campaigns.
The Evidence
A review of the FEC’s official records clearly shows that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and any PACs supporting him have not received any contributions from AIPAC. The screenshot from the FEC website displays the filtered results for campaign contributions for the 2023-2024 election cycle, specifically looking for donations from AIPAC to Kennedy-related entities. As illustrated, there is no data available, confirming that no such contributions exist.
Conclusion
The claim that RFK Jr. is funded by AIPAC is false. According to the official FEC records, neither Robert F. Kennedy Jr. nor any associated PAC has received money from AIPAC. This debunks the narrative that AIPAC is financially supporting Kennedy’s campaign. Always verify such claims against reliable sources like the FEC to avoid misinformation.
Reality: The CDC data shows that measles has never been entirely eradicated in the United States. Although there was a rise in measles cases following the easing of lockdowns and travel restrictions in 2020, this was to be expected. The majority of measles cases in the U.S. are imported, meaning they are brought in by travelers who contract the disease abroad and then bring it into the country. With the lifting of travel bans, the number of imported cases naturally increased. However, it is important to note that the overall number of measles cases has dropped significantly since 2019.
Measles Never Went Away
Contrary to popular belief, measles has never been completely eliminated from the United States. Measles cases have been recorded every year. Nearly all measles cases were imported cases, meaning a traveler was exposed abroad and brought it into the U.S.
Below is a breakdown of measles cases by year from the CDC, highlighting the fluctuation in case numbers and the presence of measles in the U.S. even before the recent debates over vaccination:
2019 Measles Outbreak
The 2019 measles outbreak in the United States saw a significant rise in cases, from 381 in 2018 to 1,274 in 2019. This increase is often cited as evidence of a resurgence linked to anti-vaccine rhetoric. However, the details of the outbreak reveal a different story. According to a New England Journal of Medicine analysis, the outbreak began when one unvaccinated child returned home from abroad with measles, triggering a localized outbreak in New York City.
This was not a widespread outbreak across the entire U.S. but rather a concentrated incident in the Williamsburg area. 72.9% of cases between September 30, 2018, and July 15, 2019 were from this area.
Understanding Vaccination and Reporting Bias
The New England Journal of Medicine study reports that “85.8% of the patients with a known vaccination history were unvaccinated.” This statistic is often used to argue that unvaccinated individuals are primarily responsible for measles outbreaks. However, it’s important to note potential biases in reporting vaccinated cases. The study highlights that:
“Because of the potential for a false positive IgM assay, patients who lacked clinical information and had only a positive IgM assay were included only if they were confirmed to be unvaccinated, since the likelihood of a true infection would increase in the absence of vaccination.”
This suggests that vaccinated cases may have been underreported due to the exclusion of cases that could not be confirmed through clinical information. The bias towards reporting unvaccinated cases can skew the perception of the role of vaccination in measles outbreaks.
Mumps Outbreak Among Vaccinated
Interestingly, Brooklyn also experienced a mumps outbreak in 2009. The analysis of the 2009 mumps outbreak provides critical insights:
“Transmission was focused within… schools for boys, where students spend many hours daily in intense, face-to-face interaction… The epidemiologic features of this outbreak suggest that intense exposures, particularly among boys in schools, facilitated transmission and overcame vaccine-induced protection in these patients.”
The mumps outbreak, which occurred among a highly vaccinated population, was driven by the high-density, close-contact environment of the schools, which facilitated the spread of the virus despite vaccination. This context is crucial for understanding the dynamics of infectious diseases. Vaccination is never 100% effective and other factors can contribute to an outbreak.
Data Insights from CDC Reports and Studies
According to a CDC analysis, “During January 1, 2020–March 28, 2024, CDC was notified of 338 confirmed measles cases; 97 (29%) of these cases occurred during the first quarter of 2024, representing a more than seventeenfold increase over the mean number of cases reported during the first quarter of 2020–2023. However, this is expected as travel restrictions and lockdowns were in place in 2020. As we learned, most cases are imported. Travel restrictions being lifted are the primary reason for the increase in cases since 2020. It is notable to point out that the U.S. still has less cases so far in 2024 (151 measles cases) than in 2019, 2018. 2015, 2014, 2013, 2011, and more.
As you can see below, the highest vaccination year was also the year of the 2019 measles outbreak. According to the CDC, the vaccination rate for kindergarteners was 95.2%. Once again, this suggests that outbreaks are more nuanced than vaccination rates.
Who’s to Blame?
The claim that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is responsible for the resurgence of measles is baseless and misleading. Data shows that measles has never been fully eradicated in the U.S., and recent outbreaks are primarily due to imported cases, not domestic anti-vaccine sentiment. The 2019 outbreak was localized in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and caused by international travel, not a widespread anti-vaccine movement. High vaccination rates in 2019 and a similar mumps outbreak in 2009 in the same community illustrate that other factors, like close-contact environments, contribute to disease spread.
Blaming Kennedy is misleading and ignores the true causes of these outbreaks. It also ignores the fact that vaccination is never 100% effective and that while you may have a reduced risk of measles, mumps, and rubella, you can also have other side effects. “I think some of the live virus vaccines are probably averting more problems than they’re causing,” Kennedy told Lex Fridman. The CDC says, “There are risks in taking any medicine, vitamin or other supplement.” A person should have the bodily autonomy to weigh the risks and benefits for themselves to make an informed decision. Read more about his vaccine stance here. Kennedy is also running to end the chronic disease epidemic. We are paying more for healthcare than anywhere in the world but have the worst health outcomes. Read more about his policies here.
