RFK Jr Issues Update Amid Trump Endorsement Speculation

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said he wants to “bring unity” to the nation in a video posted on social media, amid growing speculation that he could drop his bid for the White House and endorse former President Donald Trump.
Kennedy’s campaign announced on Wednesday that he will speak “about the present historical moment and his path forward” on Friday afternoon in Phoenix.
It came after his running mate, Nicole Shanahan, discussed the possibility that Kennedy could “walk away right now and join forces” with Trump to prevent Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, winning the White House on an episode of the Impact Theory podcast released on Tuesday.
“America is lucky it’s not in a civil war right now, yet we are in a kind of cold civil war. What is this experiment we call America? Let us look back and remember who we are, and how our greatest leaders—like Abraham Lincoln—comported themselves in the face of civil war,” Kennedy, who was a Democrat for most of his life, wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter, alongside an almost five-minute-long video.
“We must realign ourselves with the founding spirit of our nation. Are we ready to reach across the divide? I am, and that is what my campaign is about,” he continued.
In the video, Kennedy said civil war could have broken out if the July 13 assassination attempt on Trump had been successful. Trump sustained an ear injury, while one person was killed and two others injured in the shooting at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
“If that assassin’s bullet on July 13 that Pennsylvania had found its mark, the cold civil war that we’re now immersed in could have gone hot,” Kennedy said. “Not only President Trump, but maybe even our entire republic had a close brush with death.”
Kennedy said Americans “must realign ourselves with the founding spirit of our nation.”
He said: “Now in particular, is such a time. Are we willing to extend a hand across the divide? Are we ready to renew ourselves as one nation? One nation, indivisible. I believe that we are.
“I believe that process, the process of reunion of our nation, has already begun. That’s what my presidential campaign is about.
“The goals of ending wars, reversing chronic disease, epidemics, restoring the middle class, getting corruption out of Washington so far, are important… but they’re not the deepest core of why I’m here. Because a nation divided cannot accomplish any of these things. I’m here to bring unity to our country. For the best of my ability, as I serve all of these other goals. And that’s what I’m going to continue to do with your help.”
The Kennedy, Trump and Harris campaigns have been contacted for comment via email.
Kennedy’s remarks come after The New York Times and other outlets reported that he is expected to end his presidential campaign this week and in talks to throw his support behind Trump.
The Associated Press reported that Trump’s son, Donald Trump Jr., former Fox News host Tucker Carlson and GOP donor Omeed Malik are among those working behind the scenes to lobby Kennedy to drop out and support Trump, citing a person familiar with the efforts.
Trump said on Tuesday that he was open to offering Kennedy a role in his administration if he drops out of the race.
“I like him a lot, I respect him a lot,” Trump said during an interview with CNN’s Kristen Holmes. “I probably would if something like that would happen. He’s a very different kind of a guy, a very smart guy, and I would be honored by that endorsement certainly.”