Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is not a popular figure in American politics, but the anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist is hitting the campaign trail anyway in support of Republican candidates, including an event with Michigan Rep. Tom Barrett in one of the nation’s most competitive congressional districts.
As Politico noted, this new event is the latest in a series: “Last week, he toured an elder care program in Thornton, Colorado, outside Denver in the district of Republican Gabe Evans. The week before he spoke at a dairy farm in western Wisconsin about the benefits of drinking whole milk alongside Republican Derrick Van Orden. And last month he was at a Head Start provider in the Toledo, Ohio, district of Marcy Kaptur, perhaps the most embattled Democrat up for re-election.”
Technically, these events are not official campaign stops for the Cabinet secretary, but since Kennedy has only visited competitive districts and appeared only alongside Republicans on whom the party is focused ahead of the midterms, the emerging pattern isn’t exactly subtle.
What’s more, Politico also reported that RFK Jr. personally lobbied a Libertarian candidate in a competitive Iowa district to end his candidacy in order to help the local GOP nominee.
Kennedy’s office did not respond to a request for comment.