20, 24 SPECIAL IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE NEW HAMPSHIRE INSTITUTE OF POLITICS. CONVERSATION WITH THE CANDIDATE AND NOW ROBERT F KENNEDY JR. HELLO AND WELCOME TO OUR CONVERSATION WITH THE CANDIDATE SERIES. I'M ADAM SEXTON AND OUR GUEST IS DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE ROBERT F KENNEDY JR. WE'LL BE GETTING TO KNOW MR. KENNEDY AND WHERE HE STANDS ON KEY ISSUES AT THE START OF OUR SHOW. I'LL BE ASKING THE CANDIDATES SOME QUESTIONS. AND THEN AFTER A BREAK, WE'LL HAVE OUR STUDIO AUDIENCE ASK THEIR QUESTIONS IN A TOWN HALL FORMAT. BUT BEFORE WE BEGIN WITH THAT, LET'S TAKE A QUICK LOOK AT THE CANDIDATE'S BIOGRAPHY. ROBERT F KENNEDY JR SAYS HE HAS CARRIED ON HIS FAMILY'S LEGACY OF PUBLIC SERVICE BY DEVOTING HIMSELF TO ENVIRONMENTAL CAUSES AND CHILDREN'S WELFARE. HE WAS THE FOUNDER OF THE WATERKEEPER ALLIANCE, THE WORLD'S LARGEST CLEAN WATER ADVOCACY GROUP. IT WAS CHIEF LITIGATION COUNSEL FOR CHILDREN'S HEALTH DEFENSE, WHICH, AMONG OTHER THINGS, ADVOCATES IN THE VACCINE RESISTANCE MOVEMENT. KENNEDY IS ALSO AN AWARD WINNING WRITER, INCLUDING TWO NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLERS 2005 CRIMES AGAINST NATURE AND 2021 THE REAL ANTHONY FAUCI. HE SAYS HIS CAMPAIGN FOR PRESIDENT IS FIGHTING FOR PROGRESSIVE ISSUES, STOPPING WHAT HE CALLS THE RIGGING OF THE SYSTEM AND THE WAR AGAINST AMERICA'S MIDDLE CLASS. KENNEDY GRADUATED FROM HARVARD UNIVERSITY. HE STUDIED AT THE LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS AND EARNED HIS LAW DEGREE FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA. HE IS MARRIED TO ACTRESS CHERYL HINES. THE COUPLE HAS SEVEN CHILDREN, INCLUDING KENNEDY'S SIX CHILDREN FROM TWO PREVIOUS MARRIAGES. ROBERT F KENNEDY, JR IS THE THIRD OF 11 CHILDREN OF THE LATE SENATOR ROBERT KENNEDY. MR. KENNEDY, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US ON CONVERSATION WITH THE CANDIDATE. WE APPRECIATE HAVING YOU HERE. HAPPY TO BE BACK HERE WITH YOU, ADAM. SO WHEN IT COMES TO CAMPAIGN POLITICS, THE KENNEDY NAME STANDS FOR SOMETHING, THE FIGHT FOR ECONOMIC JUSTICE, THE FIGHT AGAINST RACIAL INJUSTICE, AND ALSO YOUTH ENGAGEMENT. THOSE THEMES COULDN'T BE BIGGER IN THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY RIGHT NOW. A BIG PLUS FOR YOUR CANDIDACY. YOU ALSO HAVE PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN BASICALLY SAYING TO NEW HAMPSHIRE, POUND SAND, I'M GOING TO TAKE AWAY THE NEW HAMPSHIRE PRIMARY, THE FIRST IN THE NATION TRADITION THAT'S BEEN THERE FOR 100 YEARS. REPORTEDLY, HE'S NOT GOING TO CAMPAIGN HERE OR PUT HIS NAME ON THE BALLOT. SO REALLY, THE TABLE COULDN'T BE ANY MORE BEAUTIFULLY SET FOR A CANDIDATE JUST LIKE YOU. AND YET, RATHER THAN FOCUSING INTENTLY ON PROGRESSIVE VOTERS HERE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE, WE SEE YOU TALKING ABOUT THINGS AND ENGAGING WITH AUDIENCES THAT MIGHT NOT NECESSARILY WIN YOU OVER. THE MOST DEMOCRATIC VOTES HERE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. SO WHY NOT FOCUS LIKE A LASER ON THOSE KENNEDY THEMES RATHER THAN GETTING SIDETRACKED ON OTHER ISSUES? WELL, I'VE BEEN I THINK I'VE BEEN FOCUSED ON THE THEMES THAT THAT THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY HAS REPRESENTED. YOU KNOW, PARTICULARLY, I WOULD SAY, THE THEME THAT I'M GOING TO BE TALKING ABOUT TONIGHT AT MY SPEECH AT SAINT SIMMONS COLLEGE ON PEACE, WHICH IS THE 60TH ANNIVERSARY OF MY UNCLE, PRESIDENT KENNEDY'S FAMOUS SPEECH AT AMERICAN UNIVERSITY. THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY HAS, I THINK, THE COUNTRY REALLY WENT INTO A BAD DIRECTION AFTER PRESIDENT KENNEDY'S DEATH, WHICH IS THAT ALL OF HIS SUCCESSORS, YOU KNOW, HE STEADFASTLY RESISTED SENDING COMBAT TROOPS ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD DURING THE THOUSAND DAYS THAT HE WAS IN OFFICE. HE DID SEND 16,000 MILITARY ADVISERS TO VIETNAM. HE WAS HIS MILITARY INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX, INTELLIGENCE APPARATUS WERE BEGGING HIM TO SEND 250,000 COMBAT TROOPS. HE REFUSED. HE REFUSED TO GO INTO LAOS. HE REFUSED TO GO INTO BERLIN. HE REFUSED TO GO INTO CUBA A MONTH BEFORE HE DIED IN OCTOBER OF 63, HE HEARD THAT ONE OF THE GREEN BERETS HAD BEEN KILLED IN VIETNAM. OF THOSE ADVISERS. AND HE ASKED ONE OF HIS AIDES FOR A LIST OF COMBAT CASUALTIES. AND THERE WERE 75. AND WHEN HE READ THAT, HE SAID THAT'S TOO MANY AMERICANS DYING IN VIETNAM. THAT'S THEIR WAR. AND THAT DAY, HE SIGNED A NATIONAL SECURITY ORDER TO 63, ORDERING ALL TROOPS FROM VIETNAM. A MONTH LATER, HE WAS KILLED. A WEEK AFTER THAT, PRESIDENT JOHNSON DEMANDED THAT ORDER. WE ENDED UP SENDING 560,000 TROOPS THERE, 56,000 NEVER CAME BACK, INCLUDING MY COUSIN GEORGE SKAKEL, WHO DIED IN THE TET OFFENSIVE AND MILLIONS OF AT LEAST A MILLION VIETNAMESE WERE KILLED AFTER MY UNCLE'S DEATH. ALL OF HIS SUCCESSORS AND ENDED UP SENDING COMBAT TROOPS ABROAD IN THE ROLE OF THE UNITED STATES WAS ALWAYS A PEACEMAKER IN THE WORLD, AND THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY, WHICH WAS THE PARTY OF PEACE, KIND OF DISAPPEARED. AND NOW, YOU KNOW, PARTICULARLY RECENT AND DURING THIS ADMINISTRATION, WE BECOME THE PARTY OF THE NEOCONS AND, YOU KNOW, OF A VERY BELLIGERENT AND VIOLENT FOREIGN POLICY THAT IS NOT ONLY DESTROYING, ERODING OUR MORAL AUTHORITY AROUND THE WORLD, BUT IT IS IT IS BANKRUPTING THE MIDDLE CLASS IN OUR COUNTRY. WHAT ARE THE OBSTACLES ALSO THAT'S KEEPING YOU ESSENTIALLY FROM THAT BASE OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY? IS YOUR HISTORY OF ANTI-VACCINE ACTIVISM, MEDICAL COMMUNITY, THE MEDICAL ESTABLISHMENT CONSIDERS YOU A DANGEROUS PURVEYOR OF VACCINE, MISINFORMATION AND A THREAT TO PUBLIC HEALTH IS SAYING THE LOS ANGELES TIMES HAS THAT AS A HEADLINE. SO ULTIMATELY, THE PEOPLE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE WILL MAKE UP THEIR MIND ABOUT THIS. THEY'RE GOING TO TAKE MEASURE OF YOU AS A CANDIDATE AND A PERSON, YOUR VIEWS, YOUR POLICY POSITIONS. MY QUESTION IS THIS IF YOU'RE THE PRESIDENT, HOW DOES VACCINE POLICY CHANGE AND WE KNOW THIS IS MORE OF A STATE BY STATE ISSUE, BUT HOW AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL WILL YOU BRING YOUR VIEWS TO BEAR AT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT? IT IS A FEDERAL ISSUE BECAUSE THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT RECOMMENDS AND APPROVES NEW VACCINES. AND I ONLY ARGUMENT, I'VE NEVER BEEN ANTI-VACCINE. I'M CALLED ANTI-VACCINE BECAUSE THAT'S A WAY OF KIND OF MARGINALIZING AND DISCREDITING ME IN THE VIEW OF THE PUBLIC. BUT I'VE NEVER HAD ALL MY CHILDREN VACCINATED. I WAS FULLY VACCINATED AND I'VE NEVER BEEN ANTI-VACCINE. BUT WHAT I'VE SAID IS I'M PRO-SCIENCE AND PRO SAFETY AND WE OUGHT TO SUBJECT VACCINES WHICH ARE MANDATED FOR HEALTHY CHILDREN, NOT FOR SICK PEOPLE. WE WE OUGHT TO SUBJECT THEM TO AT LEAST THE KIND OF RIGOROUS, PLACEBO CONTROLLED TRIALS THAT ARE MANDATED FOR EVERY OTHER MEDICINE. IT'S THE ONLY MEDICINE THAT'S EXEMPT FROM RELICENSING, SAFETY TRIALS, AND NONE OF THE VACCINES THAT ARE CURRENTLY ON A 70, YOU KNOW, GOT THREE SHOTS A KID MY MY KIDS GOT 72 SHOTS, WHICH ARE NOW, YOU KNOW, ESSENTIALLY MANDATED FOR AMERICAN CHILDREN. AND NONE OF THEM HAVE BEEN SUBJECTED TO PRE LICENSING SAFETY TRIALS. AND AND WHAT I WOULD DO IS SAY, LET'S DO THE TRIALS, LET'S FIND OUT WHAT THE RISK PROFILE IS WITH THE BENEFIT PROFILE IS AND THEN ALLOW PARENTS TO MAKE UP THEIR MINDS ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHETHER THEY WANT TO WHETHER THEY WANT TO USE VACCINE GENES FOR THEIR CHILDREN. EACH OF THOSE VACCINES, THAT OUGHT TO BE A FREE CHOICE. ALL RIGHT, MR. KENNEDY, ENOUGH QUESTIONS HERE. LET'S GET TO THAT TOWNHALL AUDIENCE OUT IN STUDIO B COMING UP AFTER THE BREAK, WE'LL BRING OUR STUDIO AUDIENCE INTO THE CONVERSATION. STAY WITH US