10 months ago
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PHOENIX (AP) — Robert F. Kennedy Jr. withdrew from the ballot successful Arizona precocious Thursday, a time earlier helium and Donald Trump were acceptable to look miles isolated successful the Phoenix country arsenic speculation grows that Kennedy could driblet his autarkic statesmanlike bid and endorse the Republican nominee.
Kennedy is scheduled to talk astatine 2 p.m. Eastern clip successful Phoenix “about the contiguous humanities infinitesimal and his way forward,” according to his campaign. Hours later, Trump volition clasp a rally successful neighboring Glendale.
Trump, campaigning Thursday successful confederate Arizona astatine the U.S.-Mexico border, said that “no plans person been made” for Kennedy to look with him connected Friday. But helium noted they would beryllium successful the aforesaid metropolis astatine the aforesaid time.
On Thursday evening, Trump's run made an antithetic announcement, teasing that helium would beryllium joined by “a peculiar guest” astatine his Glendale event.
Hours aboriginal erstwhile helium called into Fox News Channel aft the Democratic National Convention wrapped, Trump said of Kennedy, “I person nary thought if he’s going to endorse me.”
But helium noted that they were going to beryllium successful the aforesaid authorities and said, “It’s imaginable we volition beryllium gathering time and we’ll beryllium discussing it.”
Representatives for Trump's run did not respond to messages astir whether Kennedy would beryllium the impermanent and the Kennedy run did not instantly instrumentality a connection seeking remark if helium would beryllium joining Trump.
Kennedy’s Arizona withdrawal, confirmed by a spokesperson for the caput of state, came little than a week aft Kennedy submitted good much than the required fig of signatures to look connected the ballot. His critics raised questions astir the validity of immoderate of the signatures aft a pro-Kennedy ace PAC was heavy progressive successful his effort to cod them, perchance moving afoul of rules against coordination betwixt candidates and autarkic governmental groups.
A twelvemonth ago, immoderate would person thought it inconceivable that Kennedy — a subordinate of the astir storied household successful Democratic authorities — would enactment with Trump to support a Democrat retired of the White House. Even successful caller months, Kennedy has accused Trump of betraying his followers, portion Trump has criticized Kennedy arsenic “the astir extremist near campaigner successful the race.”
But the 2 campaigns person ramped up their compliments to each different and engaged successful behind-the-scenes discussions successful caller weeks, according to those acquainted with the efforts. Both campaigns person spent months accusing Democrats of weaponizing the ineligible strategy for their ain benefit. And some person hinted publically that they could beryllium unfastened to joining forces, with the shared extremity of limiting the predetermination chances of Democratic statesmanlike nominee Kamala Harris.
Last month, during the Republican National Convention, Kennedy’s lad posted and past rapidly deleted a video showing a telephone telephone betwixt Kennedy and Trump, successful which the erstwhile president appeared to effort to speech Kennedy into siding with him.
Talks betwixt the 2 camps person continued, with adjacent Trump allies softly lobbying Kennedy to driblet retired of the contention and enactment the Republican nominee, according to a idiosyncratic acquainted with the efforts who spoke connected information of anonymity to sermon backstage conversations.
Trump told CNN connected Tuesday that helium would “love” an endorsement from Kennedy, whom helium called a “brilliant guy.” He besides said helium would “certainly” beryllium unfastened to Kennedy playing a relation successful his medication if Kennedy drops retired and endorses him.
Kennedy's moving mate, Nicole Shanahan, besides openly suggested connected a podcast this week that his run mightiness “walk distant close present and articulation forces with Donald Trump.” While she clarified that she is not personally successful talks with Trump, she entertained the thought that Kennedy could articulation Trump's medication arsenic caput of the Department of Health and Human Services.
“I deliberation that Bobby successful a relation similar that would beryllium excellent,” Shanahan said. “I afloat enactment it. I person precocious hopes.”
Kennedy, a lad of erstwhile Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy and a nephew of erstwhile President John F. Kennedy, hasn't disclosed the crushed for his Friday remarks, but they travel arsenic his campaign's momentum has slipped.
Kennedy Jr. archetypal entered the 2024 statesmanlike contention arsenic a Democrat but near the enactment past autumn to tally arsenic an independent. He built an unusually beardown basal for a third-party bid, fueled successful portion by anti-establishment voters and vaccine skeptics who person followed his anti-vaccine enactment since the COVID-19 pandemic. But helium has since faced strained run finances and mounting ineligible challenges, including a caller ruling from a New York justice that helium should not look connected the ballot successful the authorities due to the fact that helium listed a “sham” code connected nominating petitions.
Recent polls enactment his enactment successful the mid-single digits. And it's unclear if he’d get adjacent that successful a wide election, since third-party candidates often don’t unrecorded up to their aboriginal canvass numbers erstwhile voters really formed their ballots.
There's immoderate grounds that Kennedy's staying successful the contention would wounded Trump much than Harris. According to a July AP-NORC poll, Republicans were importantly much apt than Democrats to person a favorable presumption of Kennedy. And those with a affirmative content of Kennedy were importantly much apt to besides person a favorable presumption of Trump (52%) than Harris (37%).
In an interrogation with MSNBC astatine the Democratic National Convention successful Chicago connected Thursday, Harris communications manager Michael Tyler said her run welcomes Kennedy voters should the autarkic campaigner driblet out.
For voters who spot Trump arsenic a threat, who are looking for a caller mode forward, oregon who privation “government to get the hellhole retired of the mode of their ain idiosyncratic decisions, there's a location for you successful Kamala Harris' campaign,” Tyler said.
For Trump, Friday volition people the extremity of a week's worthy of battleground authorities visits successful which helium has sought to gully attraction distant from Democrats' solemnisation of Harris’ statesmanlike information successful Chicago.
He traveled to Pennsylvania, Michigan, North Carolina and Arizona’s U.S.-Mexico borderline for events focused connected his argumentation proposals connected the economy, transgression and safety, nationalist information and the border. He volition adjacent retired the week Friday with stops successful Las Vegas and Glendale.
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Associated Press writers Jill Colvin successful New York, Michelle L. Price successful Phoenix, Meg Kinnard successful Chicago and Linley Sanders successful Washington contributed to this report.
___ The Associated Press receives enactment from respective backstage foundations to heighten its explanatory sum of elections and democracy. See much astir AP’s ideology inaugural here. The AP is solely liable for each content.
