R.F.K., Jr.: An Independent Thinker in a Democrat Family Collective

I KIND OF LIKE R.F.K., JR.  He’s principled and gutsy. I don’t like it when Trump mouths off too much. In fact, at times, I believe it may be a blessing in disguise that he has been ‘gagged’ by that idiot New York judge. But R.F.K., Jr. said something not too long ago that I could foresee invoking Trump’s rage: he would view it as a betrayal. He was upset that R.F.K. had told the press Trump’s inner circle had spoken to him about possibly being his running mate. 

They could’ve made an interesting and formidable team. There’s something for everyone, liberals and conservatives alike. And it would make a powerful statement about Trump’s mistakes during the Covid pandemic. Note I am not suggesting at all that Trump’s intentions were negligent or malicious. He wasn’t given accurate information, of course, thanks to Dr. Fauci and his Wuhan connections, and good data may not have even been available, but R.F.K. would’ve been suspicious of such a ‘vaccine’ instantly and innately, and it may have saved lives. 

Having R.F.K. on the ticket could have been a way for Trump to tacitly acknowledge his (however understandable) lapse in judgment over Covid without having to openly admit it. It would show Trump is both educable and beyond party politics in keeping Americans safe. Besides, veeps don’t make policy choices, so forget about any climate change scams.

But Trump being Trump, he didn’t appreciate his private thoughts being made public, however cryptically. I believe his team did discuss the possibility of R.F.K. being on the ticket. I cannot determine if Trump’s possible overture was summarily dismissed by R.F.K. or left as a possibility later on, though he obviously wants voters to believe he won’t take second-best because he will win. I believe Trump has purposely and wisely kept his options open, talking to anyone who made it to his short list. 

Once R.F.K. betrayed him, however, Trump went on the defensive by first, calling him very liberal, suggesting he wouldn’t have ever have been considered by Trump at all, and second, claiming R.F.K. was a “Democrat plant,” adding he would even “take Biden” over R.F.K.  I highly doubt it. R.F.K. is more liberal than Trump, to be sure, but he isn’t a vengeful man recklessly engaging in high-stakes extrajudicial lawfare against Trump and the United States like Biden is. And it is notable R.F.K. is more likely to take votes from Biden than Trump—so much so, it appears Biden has not only stupidly and dangerously denied R.F.K. Secret Service protection, he praised him with damnation, calling him “conservative.” 

R.F.K.’s newly-announced running mate, tech industry entrepreneur and lawyer Nicole Shanahan, apparently doesn’t think he’s all that conservative or it’s doubtful the radical left liberal would pony up her big bucks to get them on ballots nationwide, even if she has been relegated to a Biden-like basement to prevent Biden-like gaffs. For his part, Biden ‘thinks’ (sort of) it was a good idea to get the Kennedy clan to denounce and condemn one of their own.

Saving Democracy By Censoring Trump Voters

GOVERNMENT PRESENCE in censoring the internet is ubiquitous, and more is learned about its sinister motives by the day. Now, new documents obtained by America First Legal and released on 2/16 reveal that the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency attempted to censor pro-Trump tweets in order to disguise possible election fraud. 

AFL had previously obtained evidence that CISA was actively working on censoring narratives about mail-in voting risks, calling it ‘disinformation.’ ahead of the 2020 presidential election.  Even after the election, CISA continued to advance then-Director Chris Kreb’s narrative that it had been the “most secure [election] in American history.” (Brackets added.) (Krebs was fired by Trump in Nov. 2020 for his failure, as senior cybersecurity head, to secure the election. He then sued the Trump campaign and others for defamation.) Pounding the table on this point was more important to CISA than investigating whether the election was, in fact, secure. Many Americans doubted it. Many still do. The new documents can be viewed here.

New documents show that on Nov. 9, 2020, one day after the election, Brian Scully, a member of the DHS Countering Foreign Interference Task Force of CISA, sent an email with a subject heading ‘Text Msgs.’ Said email showed screenshots of President Trump’s fundraising texts of #StopTheSteal. Scully received a reply from a CISA colleague asking him what his thoughts were as to ‘how to handle.’ The colleague asked, “Or just FYSA?” (FYSA is an intelligence community acronym for ‘for your situational awareness.’). Scully responded, “I think FYSA.” 

CISA continued to collect dis- and misinformation reports through official channels and third-party ‘fact checkers.’ So-called ‘counter-messaging’ was used to discredit any ‘false narrative’ that mail-in voting posed risks to election integrity—and all reports of suspicions of fraud were deemed to be false narratives.

The new documents were received as part of discovery in FOIA lawsuits by AFL against two federal agencies in the Biden regime it believes were hiding federal collusion with Big Media and Big Tech to censor and shape public opinion: the U.S. Department of State, including its Global Engagement Center (read it here), and the Department of Homeland Security’s CISA (read it here). The FOIA requests were made on April 4, 2022, nearly two years ago. 

Also discovered under this FOIA action were the pre-election efforts to control the election narrative, as well as CISA’s engagement with social media regarding mis- and disinformation and its work with Facebook to suppress the Hunter Biden laptop story. AFL’s has also previously released evidence of collusion between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Big Tech in order to censor anything the Biden regime deemed to be mis- or disinformation about Covid-19. (See here, here, and here.)

In a Month, the Most Consequential Free Speech Case Hits SCOTUS

ROBERT F. KENNEDY, JR. is correct when he says his father and uncle wouldn’t recognize today’s Democrat party. It used to be almost the complete antithesis of what it is today, which goes a long way to explaining why RFK, Jr. has to run as an independent presidential candidate. His forbears, for example, would not recognize (nor tolerate) the government censorship fomented and excused by Dems in the terrible twenty-twenties. 

RFK, Jr. had a victory in his battle against censorship last week when a federal court granted a preliminary injunction against the Biden regime and other defendants concerning their high pressure tactics to silence vaccine criticism and other complaints on social media platforms. RFK, Jr. brought it as a First Amendment class action, consisting of persons who consumed news related to COVID-19 or U.S. elections on Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube, anytime between Jan. of 2020 to now. For the most part, the histrionics concerning Covid-19 have died down, but could resume at any time, including, as some in the G.O.P. anticipate, right before the election.

The injunction, issued by Trump appointee Judge Terry A. Doughty of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana on Feb. 14th, prevents defendants from taking any actions to coerce social media companies to remove or suppress content that contains protected speech. The defendants are the White House, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and over 50 officials in a dozen agencies. Defendants naturally deny any wrongdoing. Instead, they say they simply ‘flagged’ objectionable content, meaning alleged ‘mis-‘ or ‘disinformation,’ and pointed out the content being suppressed violated the companies’ own terms of service. RFK, Jr. aptly called the arrangements “collusive partnerships.”

Judge Doughty found that RFK, Jr. et al. were likely to succeed on the merits, calling defendants’ actions as “blurring the line between public and private action.” He also specifically found defendants “could use their power over millions of people to suppress alternative views or moderate content that they do not agree with in the upcoming 2024 national election.” He added the regime’s “willingness to coerce” could suppress protected speech in other arenas, including e.g., gas prices, climate change, gender, and abortion.

This isn’t Judge Doughty’s first brush with this issue. Last July, he granted a similar injunction in Missouri v. Biden, which is now pending before the Supreme Court. As such, the temporary injunction in Kennedy v. Biden which just issued will be paused until his proceeding is consolidated and heard with Missouri v. Biden, which is based on the same evidence. The only distinction is in Kennedy, plaintiffs do not sue as speakers on, but as (big) users of social media.

The class action complaint can be read here. Judge Doughty’s ruling can be read here.  This major case, styled as Murthy v. Missouri after consolidation, will be heard on 3/18/24.

The National Science Foundation Files

ALONG WITH EVERYTHING ELSE that happened on Friday, the U.S. Department of the Treasury confirmed to Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) that it has used political watchwords in searches throughout its surveillance of Americans’ financial transactions. The admission was made in a letter to Scott, who is ranking Republican on the Senate Banking Committee. Examples of the watchwords used by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, or FinCEN, include “MAGA,” “Antifa,” Trump,” “Biden,” “Kamala,” “Schumer,” or “Pelosi.” Banks were to surveil private financial transactions after Jan. 6, 2021 protests at the Capitol, according to a letter Fox News Digital received. 

The terms weren’t used in isolation, but instead, used alongside other data that banks regularly use as part of their anti-money laundering (AML) programs to detect and report suspicious activity. That such surveillance has been ongoing isn’t new, but what the search terms are is. It is clear they were based on political ideology alone, which is what makes it particularly pernicious and offensive. That such acts by the government violate Americans’ Fourth Amendment rights under the Constitution was ignored, perhaps because it wasn’t expected to ever be discovered. 

Only days before, on Tuesday, we learned more about just how far-reaching the government has become in our collective lives. It’s not only surveillance (such as with Homeland Security or FinCEN), it’s also censorship (such as with Twitter or Amazon) and propaganda (as with Ukraine or Russia.) Under Joe Biden’s regime, we now know the National Science Foundation expended vast millions into artificial intelligence-powered censorship and propaganda ‘tools’ in order to suppress online speech ‘at scale.’ The NSF further went to serious efforts to conceal its censorship from the media. We only learned this from a report issued by the House Judiciary Committee and the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government. 

The report states the NSF granted multi-millions of dollars to university and non-profit research groups, ostensibly to quell alleged ‘misinformation’ regarding Covid-19 and the 2020 election. In a press release, the Judiciary Committee said: “The purpose of these taxpayer-funded projects is to develop A.I.-powered censorship and propaganda tools that can be used by governments and Big Tech to shape public opinion by restricting certain viewpoints or promoting others.” 

The Judiciary Committee reached its conclusion through non-public documents it, and the Select Subcommittee in the Weaponization of the Federal Government, obtained. These documents also indicate the researchers and non-profit organizations knew very well that their acts constituted ‘content moderation’ and ‘censorship,’ but continued the work anyway. They have also stonewalled efforts by the House committees to obtain further information for literally years. At this point, Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) has subpoenaed the NSF to obtain communications it had with the private companies and non-profit groups. 

Lee Fang is an investigative journalist who has reported extensively in surveillance and censorship. He also presented his views in the Weaponization committee on Tuesday, which he called, ‘Examining the threat to the First Amendment posed by artificial intelligence and the federal government.’ In his presentation, he said a British A.I. firm named ‘Logically’ came to the U.S. market looking for “contracts to monitor and remove alleged social media misinformation in the upcoming 2024 presidential election.” The company reportedly conducted censorship for Great Britain during the pandemic, and wanted to expand its market. It bragged about its relationship with Meta, parent of Facebook and Instagram, and how it could automatically suppress ‘misinformation.’ 

In other words, the government was contracting out its desired censorship to private concerns in order to try to evade detection and culpability. This is expressly unconstitutional, however. After reports surfaced on what the NSF was doing, it strategized means to obfuscate its actions and developed a media strategy to blacklist media outlets reporting on it. 

The Daily Caller’s Supreme Court reporter, Katelynn Richardson, testified about this, and  something it has cryptically named ‘Convergence Accelerator:’

“After I reported on Convergence Accelerator grants shortly after their announcement, the NSF devised an official media strategy instructing research teams to highlight the ‘pro-democracy’ nature of their projects. I only know this thanks to emails unveiled in a report this committee put out today.”

Greg Lukianoff, President an C.E.O. of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), believes leftist bias is inherent in existing A.I. and generates a “massive body of official facts that we can’t actually trust.” He, too, testified:

“[T]he most chilling threat that the government poses in the context of emerging A.I. is regulatory overreach that limits its potential as a tool for contributing to human knowledge. A regulatory panic could result in a small number of Americans deciding for everyone else what speech, ideas, and even questions are permitted in the name of ‘safety’ or ‘alignment.’” 

He did a show-and-tell to illustrate his point. He asked Chat GPT to write a poem about why certain members of the Weaponization committee were the best politicians in the country. Chat GPT did so for Democrats, but not for Republicans. (Lukianoff self-describes as left-leaning.) FIRE, he added, is filing a brief with SCOTUS warning of the perils of ‘jawboning,’ or using government pressure to coerce social media platforms to censor speech.

The report by the Weaponization committee, called ‘The Weaponization of the National Science Foundation: How NSF is Funding the Development of Automated Tools to Censor Online Speech ‘At Scale’ and Trying to Cover Up its Actions,’ can be read here.

As the World Turns…

THE TRUTH IS STARTING to emerge on a number of stories that have been remained mysteries for too long. Some of them involve Covid-19. Just in a few days, The Epoch Times has published a number of updates to the saga. It has been called a conspiracy rag because it is pro-Falun Gong and anti-CCP, although the very mainstream BBC deems it reliable in China-related coverage. This appearance of potential bias in an editorial piece doesn’t mean it’s necessarily wrong, in whole or in part, however, even if published by The Epoch Times. 

Some of the criticism is that in the beginning of the pandemic, how could the world know if there was any reason to be as alarmed as we were.  After all, there was no test and no one really knew when it emerged. The policies enacted worldwide were harebrained and inconsistent. Some have speculated that the U.S. response was used as an opportunity to implement the disastrous mail-in ballot scheme that stole the 2020 election from Donald Trump and gave it to perhaps the biggest loser in the Senate, ‘lunchpail’ Joey Biden. 

No doubt the mail-in ballots made the Big Steal easier, but I suspect other factors were involved in the rigging, including, for example, the revelations about censorship, especially on social media platforms. The latest is that there are emails from April of 2020 that indicate Twitter knew with certainty that the Election Integrity Partnership of the Stanford Internet Observatory was a product of the Cybersecurity and Information Security Agency of the Department of Homeland Security for the express purpose of monitoring and controlling social media. Despite that knowledge, or perhaps because of it, Twitter censored content like crazy—not long after Covid lockdowns began. It was dubbed the Virality Project, an initiative with the C.I.A. and Big Tech (more here.)

Somehow, The Epoch Times concludes that March 13, 2020 was a coup. I’m not sure ‘coup’ is the word for what happened: it implies much more planning than I think could be made, but it was definitely taking advantage of an opportunity that presented itself, or else good or bad luck, depending on your point-of-view. 

Another new piece of information from The Epoch Times is that a new email recently unearthed by Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) shows that Dr. Anthony Fauci intentionally did not keep records he knew would be requested by Congressional investigators, and the public. (Johnson’s letter to HHS Secy. Xavier Becerra with the email is here.) It also appears federal record-keeping requirements averted by the use of personal gmail. This would mean a Freedom of Information request couldn’t gain access to them. Johnson has referred the matter to Christine Grimm, who is the inspector general for HHS. His recent letter to her is here.

And, speaking of FOIA requests, a response to a recent request shows the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention admitted it recommended Covid-19 vaccines for those who had recovered from a case Covid despite the fact CDC experts didn’t have access to relevant underlying data. The FOIA request was first made on Oct. 29, 2021.

The CDC then claimed without uncontroverted or convincing evidence that unvaccinated people who had been previously infected were five times more likely to get Covid than vaccinated people. The claim was made in the Nov. 9, 2021 edition of the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. The conflicts-of-interest section of the report noted that a number of the authors of the underlying study had been sponsored ny pharmaceutical companies, including Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Merck, Sanofi, and GlaxoSmithKline. At least four of the companies were then involved in the manufacturing and marketing of the subject vaccines. 

The CDC has finally ‘fessed up and admitted it doesn’t have the data it said it had. Instead, it said, it was in the possession of an “external partner organization and was maintained by a contractor.” It did admit that “CDC subject matter experts didn’t receive copies of the raw data prior to the contract termination.” This confirms the concerns raised earlier by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) about the CDC’s study. 

Of note is the fact that the emergency use authorizations for the vaccines specifically excepted people previously infected with the virus. Pfizer’s exception is here, Moderna’s here, and Johnson & Johnson’s here. (Also of note is that when it was reported that the emergency use authorizations didn’t apply to people who had already been infected with the virus, Twitter (now X) identified the statement as ‘misinformation.’ So much of this didn’t make sense at the time, and it still doesn’t. But at least now, some threads are being pulled from the narrative that is, at last, fraying before us. 

UPDATE: Hopefully, we are not going to experience a repeat of respiratory diseases prior to another national election as this story—out of China—suggests here.

RFK, Jr. Novelty and Jill Stein Redux Unlikely to Change Anything.

IT’S A fait accompli Donald Trump will be the G.O.P. nominee for president in 2024. What is less certain is whether Brandon will be the compromised nominee of the far left, given there is—or should be—ample evidence to proceed with an impeachment (and likely conviction) and/or a 25th Amendment proceeding.

For the sake of argument, and making the rather safe assumption the G.O.P. doesn’t have the testicular fortitude to play by the same rules as Dems do, let’s just say it’ll be Trump v. Biden. The next inquiry is how  independent candidates for president may thwart the plans of either of them.

Let’s take Jill Stein first as she’s the easiest to analyze. Here is her recent announcement on X, formerly known as Twitter. She represents the Green Party again, which isn’t referring to dollars, but rather, action against ‘climate change,’ a bogus clarion call for fascists looking to control others.

She replaces a nut, Cornel West (think a black Bernie Sanders socialist who wants to free Palestine), who has since turned independent. Also running is super-long shot candidate Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.). Others could enter the fray, but for now, this is it. Back to Jill… 

The Electoral College pretty much ensures either a Republican or Democrat will win, so the chances of any of these others needing to measure for drapes at the White House is slim to next-to-none. Yet, given Stein’s sensibilities (if you could call them that) more closely align with Biden’s, it’s really a wonder she’s running. Except: Biden is quite obviously compromised, as well as senile. She is likely to siphon off Dems, which will only help 45th President Donald Trump.

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is another story. He comes from a line of prominent Dems, including a former president and attorney general. Dems pretty much rejected him, though, because of his allegedly controversial views on some vaccines, especially the Covid shot. Not having a mainstream view means RFK Jr. has had his First Amendment rights curtailed enough that he more closely aligns with MAGA on this issue. As such, he has decided to run as an independent.

Pollsters have been champing at the bit to see whether he will affect Trump or Biden more, and it is a toss-up. He could get up to 22% of voters in a three-way race, and it seems he’d take roughly 8 votes from Biden for every 7 from Trump in swing states. In effect, RFK Jr. running changes nothing.

Both would benefit from attacking him: he is doing better than any independent since Ross Perot in 1992. 

Just When You Thought It Was Safe…

THE CHINESE tell us in fortune cookies, “It’s amazing how much good you can do if you don’t care who gets the credit.” I’d posit as a corollary that it’s amazing how much harm you can do if you don’t care who gets the blame. Such is the case with the Covid-19 virus which I believe was intentionally created by China as a potential bioweapon in a Wuhan lab. The virus’ release, accidental or intentional, laid waste most of the planet for the better part of three years. The world is still suffering from some of the consequences. I bury the lede…

That said, it was disconcerting, to say the least, to read that Chinese scientists have discovered eight novel viruses on a tropical island that could infect humans—and they plan to experiment with them. The island is Hainan, just off China’s southern coast (off Vietnam) and the C.C.P. funded the discovery, which also happens to include another new coronavirus. Another cookie might taunt you, “A ship in harbor is safe, but that’s not why ships are built.”

Over 700 samples were taken from rodents to study. Findings were published in a Chinese Society for Microbiology journal, Virologica Sinica. It is edited by Dr. Shi Zhengli, a scientist who works at the Wuhan Institute of Virology (glorified bio here) and is known (fondly or frighteningly?) as China’s ‘bat woman.’ (Interestingly, the publication asserted the new virus samples conclusively proved Covid-19 wasn’t engineered it a lab, however, independent experts dismissed the claim.)  Another fortune might reassure you, “Nothing is so much to be feared as fear,” or even “Fear is interest paid on a debt you may not owe.” 

Science is noble pursuit and one that can advance the human condition immeasurably. However, when its pursuit involves ultra-hazardous activities, such as experimenting with, e.g., nuclear chain reactions, lethal chemical agents, or, as here, pathogenic bio-agents, extraordinary care must be used, particularly with respect to public safety. This has obviously not been the practice, though, and gain-of-function research has been conducted furtively by governments, including hostile regimes, such as Red China. Dr. Anthony Fauci arrogantly proclaimed, “I am the science,” but it seems he was more a ‘useful idiot’ for C.C.P.  Many Americans probably just as soon he declare, “I am a liar” given his propensity to obscure the truth. Maybe he could be humbled by a cookie that reads, “The wise man is the one that makes you think that he is dumb.” Yet, he could counter, “People learn little from success, but much from failure.”  Toi aussi, Chine?

SCOTUS Refuses to Discuss Censorship in Murthy v. Missouri.

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IT WAS A MIXED BAG on Friday for free speech advocates. The Supreme Court agreed to review a Biden censorship scheme and determine whether it passes constitutional muster in Murthy v. Missouri. The Court also blocked a lower court’s temporary stay on the scheme by federal agencies until the case is decided, sometime before the end of June of 2024. The bottom line is that the Biden regime can resume its censorship through directing Big Tech companies to limit Americans’ speech and debate with impunity for at least that long. 

The genesis of the case were groups concerned over the proscriptions on debate surrounding “the COVID-19 lab leak theory, pandemic lockdowns, vaccine side effects, election fraud, and the Hunter Biden laptop story.” They particularly objected to officials who “coerced, threatened, and pressured” social media platforms. The District Court for the Western District of Louisiana believed the plaintiffs had a case likely to prevail on the merits. As such, it issued an injunction on the Fourth of July against offending federal agencies and officials that make up what has become known as the “Censorship Industrial Complex.” In his 155-page memorandum (here), the District Court judge, Terry Doughty, found: “In their attempts to suppress alleged disinformation, the Federal Government, and particularly the Defendants named here, are alleged to have blatantly ignored the First Amendment’s right to free speech.”

The case was appealed to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, where the court agreed with the lower court’s findings and ruling, writing: “[T]he district court was correct in its assessment — ‘unrelenting pressure’ from certain government officials likely ‘had the intended result of suppressing millions of protected free speech postings by American citizens.’” (Ruling here.)

Unfortunately, but predictably, the regime again appealed, and even more unfortunately, and less predictably, SCOTUS overruled the decisions.  The justices, including Chief Justice John Roberts, did not provide a rationale. But Justice Samuel Alito penned a scathing dissent that was joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch (here), writing: “[W]hat the Court has done, I fear, will be seen by some as giving the Government a green light to use heavy-handed tactics to skew the presentation of views on the medium that increasingly dominates the dissemination of news. That is most unfortunate.” Indeed, it is, but maybe SCOTUS will get it right—eventually.

Another Cali-Chyna Connection

ITHE EPOCH TIMES updated an earlier report from Dec. of 2022 about a discovery of a black market Chinese biolab in California with a convoluted and tangled morass of shell companies designed to obscure its ownership and control. As a result, cleanup of the lab was stymied and public disclosure delayed. 

The biolab was operating out of a warehouse in Reedley, which is about 25 miles southeast of Fresno. Code Enforcement Officer Jesalyn Harper discovered it after responding to an anonymous tip about a potential plumbing violation. She found vials of bacterial and viral agents, including coronavirus, chlamydia, E. Coli, streptococcus pneumonia, HIV, hepatitis, herpes, rubella, and malaria.

Almost 1,000 lab mice were also found on the premises. The biolab also apparently packaged and shipped Covid-19 and pregnancy test kits.

The F.B.I. was duly notified, but there was no specific authority that could respond to the combination of pathogens and chemical and biological hazard. Eventually, after a month, a trifecta of city, county, and state authorities assembled a team from the F.B.A., CDC, E.P.A. and F.D.A. to assist. 

Even by March, there was no one in the U.S. government who had regulatory authority over lab mice, for some inexplicable reason. Harper eventually used her state Health and Safety Code pertaining to cruelty to animals to obtain a warrant, get a permit, and have the animals humanely euthanized in April.

By Aug. of 2023, the site was sanitized and the City Council meeting in Sept. placed a temporary ban on labs levels 2 through 4 within the city. Harper was concerned many other jurisdictions may have the same cracks in oversight over chemical and biological agents.

How did China weigh in? The biolab is owned by Prestige Biotech Inc., but that company lead back to Jia Bei “Jesse” Zhu, a Chinese national with a Canadian passport. He has since been arrested in California and charged with manufacturing and distributing misbranded medical devices (with a maximum sentence of three years in prison) and for making false statements to the F.D.A. about his identity and knowledge of the company (with up to five years in prison.)

A sealed indictment was filed on Oct. 18th. It seems the charges (Complaint here) only relate to the manufacture, sale, and distribution of Covid-19 and pregnancy test kits without authority in the U.S. by Prestige Biotech and predecessor (now bankrupt) Universal Meditech. Complex corporate schema is reported in depth here.

Will the Independent Ticket Lead Kennedy to Camelot?

Above: screen grab from Kennedy website at 10/9/23 rally.

ROBERT F. KENNEDY, JR. has been running for president as a Democrat, but has been treated rather deplorably by the party of his forebears. As a result, and has been rumored for weeks, he ditched the capital ‘D’ for an ‘I’after his last name. He made his announcement at a well-attended rally on Monday in Philadelphia and floated a new campaign slogan, “Declare your independence.” The announcement was live-streamed on Kennedy’s campaign site.

To give an indication of just how the Dems feel about one of their own, a Democratic National Committee spokesman, when asked to comment on the news, responded only with an eye-roll emoji. They generally refer to him as a ‘conspiracy theorist’ too, based on his skepticism of the need for so many vaccines in kids and his concerns about lack of safety and efficacy testing of the Covid-19 jab. Even his own family, with its solid Dem bona fides, calls RFK Jr.’s run “dangerous.”

It isn’t altogether clear whether Kennedy’s independent bid will hurt Joe Biden or putative G.O.P. nominee Donald Trump more, but his favorability rating is higher among Republicans than the Dems. However, given the wholesale failure of the Biden regime, Dems who cannot envision voting for Trump would have a candidate to vote for even if Biden manages to pull off becoming the Democrat nominee. Either way, RFK Jr.’s independent run is likely to be the most formidable since Ross Perot’s over two decades ago.

Politico surmises RFK, Jr. isn’t a serious candidate, but I’m less sure. After all, it’s rare that an incumbent is so weak, debilitated, and despised as Biden is, and no other Democrat of note is running. Minimally, he saw an opportunity for publicity. And minimally, he is a thoughtful, perspicacious, and honorable man.