{"id":2283735,"date":"2024-06-26T07:08:01","date_gmt":"2024-06-26T11:08:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rfk-jr-hits-major-setback-in-not-qualifying-for-cnn-debate-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-06-26T07:11:56","modified_gmt":"2024-06-26T11:11:56","slug":"rfk-jr-hits-major-setback-in-not-qualifying-for-cnn-debate-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rfk-jr-hits-major-setback-in-not-qualifying-for-cnn-debate-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"RFK Jr. hits major setback in not qualifying for CNN debate &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Frfk-jr-hits-major-setback-in-not-qualifying-for-cnn-debate-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2283735&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>President Joe Biden \u2064and\u2064 former President Donald Trump are preparing for \u2062a highly anticipated presidential debate in Atlanta, setting up a clash \u200camid their\u2064 respective\u200b challenges \u2064and public \u200bscrutiny. The debate is poised to significantly influence the 2024 presidential race. Meanwhile, independent candidate Robert F. \u2063Kennedy Jr. faced a major setback as\u200d he did not \u2063meet \u200bthe requirements to participate in this debate, missing the 15% polling threshold\u200d and \u2063sufficient state ballot placements.<\/p>\n<p>Kennedy has criticized both Biden and Trump, accusing them and CNN of \u2062conspiring to exclude him from the debate, a move he describes as undemocratic and un-American. Nevertheless, his campaign seems to be \u2063losing momentum, with latest \u2064polling showing a decline \u2064in his support. \u200cKennedy&#8217;s chances to appear on ballots vary by state, with confirmed appearances in only five states. His campaign\u2063 has also encountered legal challenges, particularly from Democrats \u2063who view his candidacy as a potential spoiler and seek to prevent wider ballot access.<\/p>\n<p>Kennedy\u2019s exclusion \u2064from the debate reflects deeper challenges \u200dfor third-party candidates\u200c in gaining a national foothold. Historical precedents suggest \u2063that even \u200dif\u2062 he had made the debate stage, there\u2019s no guarantee it \u2064would have\u200b significantly boosted \u2062his campaign. Critics and political analysts\u2062 also question the consistency of Kennedy&#8217;s political platform and his overall impact, despite his campaign\u2019s\u2064 efforts to rally public support against his exclusion. In response, Kennedy&#8217;s running mate Nicole Shanahan teased alternative programming to the CNN debate, aimed at drawing attention from the official event.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p><em>President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are set to resume hostilities with the first presidential debate in Atlanta. They are battling low expectations, legal records, and lingering doubts about their records and character, as well as battling each other. The <\/em>Washington Examiner<em> is taking a closer look at the event, which could transform the entire 2024 contest. Part three will look at independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy\u2019s campaign after he failed to qualify for the debate.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/rfk-jr\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Robert F. Kennedy Jr.<\/a>\u2018s inability to qualify for the first presidential debate alongside President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/joe-biden\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Joe Biden<\/a> and former President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Donald Trump<\/a> is a significant setback for the independent candidate\u2019s struggling campaign.<\/p>\n<p>CNN\u2019s audience would have given Kennedy one of the largest platforms to sell his case to the public as an alternative to the two main contenders. But the infamous Kennedy member <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3051318\/rfk-debate-stage-chances-slim-none\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>proved unable<\/a> to reach CNN\u2019s requirement of 15% in four reputable national polls and reach enough state ballots to garner 270 Electoral College votes, theoretically.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPresidents Biden and Trump do not want me on the debate stage and CNN illegally agreed to their demand,\u201d Kennedy pushed back in a statement last week.<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>\u201cMy exclusion by Presidents Biden and Trump from the debate is undemocratic, un-American, and cowardly. Americans want an independent leader who will break apart the two-party duopoly,\u201d Kennedy continued. \u201cThey want a President who will heal the divide, restore the middle class, unwind the war machine, and end the chronic disease epidemic.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But Kennedy\u2019s failure to make the debate stage on Thursday is just the latest setback for his campaign, which has faced barriers to ballot access since launching his campaign, and as he loses momentum in polling. <\/p>\n<p>Kennedy\u2019s campaign <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kennedy24.com\/kennedy_submits_signatures_ballot_pennsylvania\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>claims<\/a> it has been approved for ballot access in nine states: California, Delaware, Hawaii, Michigan, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, and Utah. The campaign also states it has collected enough signatures in 15 others. In theory, that would give Kennedy access to 323 electoral votes, but the count includes states that have not certified Kennedy.<\/p>\n<p>Only five states have confirmed that Kennedy will appear on their state ballots: Delaware, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Utah, and Michigan, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/politics\/2024\/06\/18\/rfk-jr-presidential-debate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"according to the Washington Post. \">according to the <em>Washington Post. <\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<p>And although voters were once weary of the rematch between Trump and Biden, their appetite to back another candidate doesn\u2019t appear as strong as it once was, as Kennedy\u2019s poll numbers have decreased over time.<\/p>\n<p>Kennedy currently polls at 10.7% in a <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearpolling.com\/polls\/president\/general\/2024\/trump-vs-biden-vs-kennedy\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>RealClearPolitics<\/a><\/em>  average of a three-way hypothetical matchup, down from the 12.3% Kennedy held in late March. Polling averages from the<em> <a href=\"https:\/\/elections2024.thehill.com\/national\/biden-trump-rfk-general\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Hill <\/a><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/elections2024.thehill.com\/national\/biden-trump-rfk-general\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>and Decision Desk HQ<\/a> showed Kennedy in the single-digit range at 7.8%, but in late February, he was polling at 11.9%.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Even if Kennedy had made the debate stage, political scholars have claimed that there is some question as to how much making the debate stage would help Kennedy.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHistorically, debates tend not to help any candidate except in the short run, and that may be true of third-party candidates too,\u201d Bernard Tamas, author of <em>The Demise and Rebirth of American Third Parties<\/em>, said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe other thing is with Kennedy is \u2026 he seems to be riding more on his name and general dissatisfaction then, then on some sort of galvanizing issues that really pull in voters,\u201d Tamas continued. \u201cHis political philosophy is all over the place \u2026 so it\u2019s not clear that necessarily the debates will help him.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Stephen Farnsworth, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/a-look-back-on-court-packing-attempts-in-us-history\/\" title=\"A Look Back On \u2018Court Packing\u2019 Attempts in US History\">political science professor<\/a> at the University of Mary Washington, said if Kennedy avoided controversial topics including reports that he admitted a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/2995737\/rfk-jr-campaign-laughs-idea-parasite-ate-part-brain-lingering-effects-fitness\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>parasitic worm<\/a> \u201cate a portion\u201d of his brain, it could help him on the debate stage.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWell, everything depends on what you say. If you get on the debate stage and you talk about brain worms, that\u2019s not going to be helpful,\u201d Farnsworth said. \u201cBut if you try to present yourself as a compelling alternative to the choices offered by the major parties, you know that can give you some support.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Farnsworth compared Kennedy\u2019s debate quest to Ross Perot, who received more votes than any nonmajor party candidate in U.S. history in 1992 and spent at least $60 million of his fortune in his presidential bid. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf you think back to Ross Perot in 1992, one of the key reasons that he retained his support throughout the election cycle is because he was a part of these debates and because he was able to be heard,\u201d Farnsworth continued. \u201cPerot did what needed to be done to keep himself in the conversation. He still lagged well behind the two major party candidates, as third-party candidates always do. But he was a part of the conversation in a way that RFK Jr. is not and not likely to be without a huge expenditure on his part or getting on the debate stage.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Kennedy\u2019s campaign <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3020944\/rfk-files-fec-complaint-claiming-cnn-biden-trump-engaged-flagrant-violations-planning-debates\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">filed a complaint<\/a> with the Federal Election Commission alleging that CNN colluded with the Biden and Trump campaigns to prevent him from joining the debate. It appears unlikely the FEC will weigh in to force the network to allow Kennedy onstage before the Thursday debate. More than 219,000 people have also signed the Kennedy campaign\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kennedy24.com\/debate-petition\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>petition<\/a> to have the candidate appear onstage. <\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Tony Lyons, co-founder of the super PAC backing Kennedy, argued that the American public would rebel against Kennedy\u2019s exclusion from the debate, comparing it to Trump\u2019s New York money trial. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think more and more you\u2019re going to see a kind of rebellion by the American people, and you\u2019ve been seeing it to a great extent,\u201d Lyons, head of American Values 2024, said. \u201cAnd you see it when they donate tons of money to Donald Trump when he\u2019s found guilty of 34 felonies because they don\u2019t believe it\u2019s real.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Nicole Shanahan, Kennedy\u2019s running mate, and his son Bobby Kennedy III <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3056193\/rfk-jr-alternate-programming-counter-cnn-fake-debate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>confirmed<\/a> the campaign will go live at the same time as the Thursday CNN debate. \u201cOk, cats out of the bag! If you don\u2019t want to watch the CNN fake debate Thursday, we\u2019ve got you covered. Plus a few surprises. Stay tuned,\u201d Shanahan wrote on X.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div>\n<blockquote data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Ok, cats out of the bag! If you don\u2019t want to watch the <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CNN?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@CNN<\/a> fake debate Thursday, we\u2019ve got you covered. Plus a few surprises. Stay tuned. \ud83d\ude09 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/fJNslvgU4J\">https:\/\/t.co\/fJNslvgU4J<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Nicole Shanahan (@NicoleShanahan) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NicoleShanahan\/status\/1804996908194427019?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">June 23, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Both the Trump and Biden campaigns have worried that Kennedy\u2019s quixotic presidential bid could act as a spoiler in the election. Democrats, fearing a repeat of the 2016 election, are working to block Kennedy from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/democrats-air-concerns-about-biden-primary-challengers-and-third-party-campaigns\/\" title=\"Democrats express worries about Biden primary challengers and third-party campaigns.\">gaining ballot access<\/a> to all 50 states. The party challenged Kennedy in several states, including two battleground states: North Carolina and Nevada.<\/p>\n<p>Nevada Democrats filed a lawsuit last week arguing that Kennedy\u2019s work with third parties to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/why-no-labels-may-have-no-cash-and-no-plan\/\" title=\"No Labels: No Money, No Strategy\">gain ballot access<\/a> violates Nevada law regarding independent candidates. Clear Choice, a Biden-affiliated super PAC that challenges third-party candidates, also alleged that Kennedy\u2019s work with the We The People party in North Carolina violated state laws due to the party being formed by Kennedy\u2019s campaign. <\/p>\n<p>After failing to make the CNN debate, the Democratic National Committee taunted the scion of one of America\u2019s most famous families.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRFK Jr.\u2019s campaign is in freefall. Struggling to gain ballot access through traditional, grassroots support, RFK Jr. has resorted to deception and shortcuts,\u201d Ramsey Reid, a DNC adviser, taunted in a memo. \u201cHis fundraising has sputtered, as his campaign has struggled to raise money from small-dollar donations and his candidacy is now propped up almost exclusively by two billionaires: his own running mate and Timothy Mellon, Donald Trump\u2019s largest donor.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Kennedy\u2019s campaign raised just $2.6 million in May according to FEC filings, far below the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3054568\/trump-outraises-biden-hush-money-conviction\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>$85 million<\/a> Biden and the DNC raised in May and the $141 million that Trump and the Republican National Committee raised in May.<\/p>\n<figure><figcaption>Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. right, waves onstage with Nicole Shanahan, after announcing her as his running mate, during a campaign event, Tuesday, March 26, 2024, in Oakland, California. (AP Photo\/Eric Risberg)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Shanahan, the former ex-wife of Google founder Sergey Brin, has bolstered much of Kennedy\u2019s finances in recent months. The campaign brought in just under $11 million in April, but $8 million came from Shanahan. When Shanahan joined the ticket in late March, she gave $2 million to the campaign. It is unclear if there is any limit to how much Shanahan is willing to give to the Kennedy campaign, but her donations could keep the campaign going until Election Day.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s Joe Biden and the Democrats who are using financial and legal resources to prevent RFK\u2019s access to the ballot because they know RFK Jr. is a radical leftist who pulls more votes from Biden than President Trump,\u201d Karoline Leavitt, national press secretary for the campaign, argued in a statement.<\/p>\n<p>Although Kennedy won\u2019t be on the debate stage, there is still an opportunity to make ABC News\u2019s presidential debate on Sept. 10, which has the same requirements as the first debate. He reached 15% in three national polls ahead of the CNN debate and could reach 15% in four national polls before September.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump will clash in the first presidential debate in Atlanta. Both face scrutiny over their legal and political records, character, and low expectations. The Washington Examiner will closely examine this pivotal event, which could significantly impact the campaign landscape<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2658,"featured_media":2283736,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/rfk-jr-1024x683.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[32651,19758,32458,32789,32076],"class_list":["post-2283735","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner","tag-cnn-debate","tag-qualifying","tag-rfk-jr","tag-setback","tag-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/rfk-jr-1024x683.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2283735","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2658"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2283735"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2283735\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2283736"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2283735"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2283735"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2283735"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}