Caroline Kennedy Calls RFK Jr. a ‘Predator’ Ahead of Hearing

Photo: Michael Errey/AFP/Getty Images

Caroline Kennedy is urging lawmakers to oppose her cousin Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination to be Health and Human Services secretary, denouncing him as a “predator” who has taken advantage of the vulnerable for his own gain.

In a scathing letter, the former U.S. ambassador to Australia argues that her cousin, in addition to lacking the proper qualifications for the crucial role, is unfit to serve in government on a personal level. “I’ve known Bobby my whole life; we grew up together. It’s no surprise that he keeps birds of prey as pets because he himself is a predator,” Kennedy wrote.

The Washington Post first reported on the letter’s existence. It was followed up by a six-minute video of Kennedy reading her own words directly to camera, the clip shared to social media by her son, Jack Schlossberg.

Kennedy said that her cousin has long been “charismatic” and that many of their relatives fell under his influence and followed him “down the path of drug addiction.”

“His basement, his garage, and his dorm room were the centers of the action where drugs were available, and he enjoyed showing off how he put baby chickens and mice in the blender to feed his hawks. It was often a perverse scene of despair and violence,” she said. “But siblings and cousins who Bobby encouraged down the path of substance abuse suffered addiction, illness, and death while Bobby has gone on to misrepresent, lie, and cheat his way through life.”

While Kennedy offered praise to RFK Jr. for being able to overcome his own yearslong addiction, she suggested that he simply substituted one drug for another.

“Today, while he may encourage a younger generation to attend AA meetings, Bobby is addicted to attention and power. Bobby preys on the desperation of parents of sick children — vaccinating his own children while building a following by hypocritically discouraging other parents from vaccinating theirs,” she said. “Even before he fills this job, his constant denigration of our health-care system and the conspiratorial half-truths he has told about vaccines, including in connection with Samoa’s deadly 2019 measles outbreak, have cost lives.”

The publicized letter marks a dramatic shift in tone for Caroline Kennedy, who has largely abstained from criticizing her cousin, unlike many of their relatives who have frequently lambasted him for challenging former president Joe Biden and for his embrace of President Donald Trump. It comes as RFK Jr. is set to sit for the first of two confirmation hearings on Capitol Hill on Wednesday.