The 7 Strangest Events from RFK Jr.’s Unlikely Campaign
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. embarked on a fascinating campaign for the presidency.
TroibNews 
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced on Friday that he was suspending his presidential campaign, marking the end of one of the most unusual campaigns in recent history.
The independent candidate, the son of former Senator Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of former President John F. Kennedy, ran a long-shot campaign filled with conspiracy theories. Despite consistently low polling numbers, Kennedy frequently captured media attention for peculiar reasons.
Here are seven of the most bizarre moments from Kennedy’s campaign.
**He said a worm ate his brain**
In May, The New York Times reported that Kennedy had previously believed he had a brain tumor, but later claimed it was caused by a parasite. During a deposition from a contentious divorce in 2012, he told attorneys that a doctor had indicated an abnormality in his brain scans “was caused by a worm that got into my brain and ate a portion of it and then died.” He attributed his severe memory loss and mental fogginess to this incident. The story captured widespread online interest, and Kennedy even joked about it, stating, “I offer to eat 5 more brain worms and still beat President Trump and President Biden in a debate.”
**He admitted to dumping a dead bear in Central Park**
In a bid to preempt a New Yorker article, Kennedy shared a video on social media in which he confessed to comedian Roseanne Barr that he had left a dead bear in Central Park a decade earlier. He explained that after another driver killed the bear, he placed it in his car, intending to skin it and keep the meat. However, since he was unable to go home, he ultimately decided to leave the bear in the park and staged it to look like a bike accident. This incident had been shrouded in mystery for years, with Kennedy's cousin Tatiana Schlossberg even writing about it for The New York Times in 2014. In response to the New Yorker’s report featuring a photograph of him with the bear, he quipped, “Maybe that’s where I got my brain worm.”
**He denied eating a dog**
A July report from Vanity Fair featured a striking photograph of Kennedy holding what appeared to be a barbequed animal, which many speculated was a dog. In an interview with NewsNation, Kennedy refuted this claim, asserting that the animal was actually a goat from Patagonia. He remarked, “I’m a very adventurous eater. I’ll eat virtually anything. There’s two things I wouldn’t eat — well, three. I wouldn’t eat a human, I wouldn’t eat a monkey, and I wouldn’t eat a dog. I think I’d eat anything else.”
**He said he ‘won’t take sides on 9/11’**
In a somewhat unexpected declaration last month on X, Kennedy stated that he “won’t take sides on 9/11 or any of the other debates,” a position he argued would “usher in a new era of transparency.” His comments referenced a “60 Minutes” report regarding a theory about the Saudi government’s prior knowledge of the 9/11 attacks. Kennedy, who has previously entertained other conspiracy theories regarding vaccines, AIDS, and his uncle’s assassination, added, “It’s hard to tell what is a conspiracy theory and what isn’t.”
**He apologized to his family for a Super Bowl ad comparing him to JFK**
A Super PAC supporting Kennedy’s campaign aired a $7 million Super Bowl advertisement that drew direct parallels between him and his famous uncle. The ad mimicked a 1960s campaign commercial of John F. Kennedy, complete with the same jingle: “Kennedy, Kennedy, Kennedy.” Family members of Kennedy reacted strongly, with cousin Bobby Shriver expressing on X that he was offended, stating, “My cousin’s Super Bowl ad used our uncle’s faces- and my Mother’s. She would be appalled by his deadly health care views.” That evening, Kennedy distanced himself from the ad, claiming it had been aired “without any involvement or approval from my campaign.” He expressed regret for any distress it may have caused his family.
**He blamed a campaign staffer for commenting on an OnlyFans creator’s post**
Kennedy faced scrutiny when a TikTok account associated with him commented “Wow” on a post made by an OnlyFans creator. He attributed the comment to “one of the campaign’s young social media managers” who managed the account prior to his involvement.
**He debated himself**
As the public tuned into a highly anticipated live CNN debate between former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden in June, which ultimately hurt Biden’s campaign, Kennedy streamed a “real debate” on YouTube. Notably, he did not qualify for the CNN debate. In his livestream, he stood alone in front of a moderator and an audience, projecting the Trump-Biden debate on a screen, pausing it to offer his own responses. The pseudo-debate lasted nearly two and a half hours.
Camille Lefevre contributed to this report for TROIB News
The independent candidate, the son of former Senator Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of former President John F. Kennedy, ran a long-shot campaign filled with conspiracy theories. Despite consistently low polling numbers, Kennedy frequently captured media attention for peculiar reasons.
Here are seven of the most bizarre moments from Kennedy’s campaign.
**He said a worm ate his brain**
In May, The New York Times reported that Kennedy had previously believed he had a brain tumor, but later claimed it was caused by a parasite. During a deposition from a contentious divorce in 2012, he told attorneys that a doctor had indicated an abnormality in his brain scans “was caused by a worm that got into my brain and ate a portion of it and then died.” He attributed his severe memory loss and mental fogginess to this incident. The story captured widespread online interest, and Kennedy even joked about it, stating, “I offer to eat 5 more brain worms and still beat President Trump and President Biden in a debate.”
**He admitted to dumping a dead bear in Central Park**
In a bid to preempt a New Yorker article, Kennedy shared a video on social media in which he confessed to comedian Roseanne Barr that he had left a dead bear in Central Park a decade earlier. He explained that after another driver killed the bear, he placed it in his car, intending to skin it and keep the meat. However, since he was unable to go home, he ultimately decided to leave the bear in the park and staged it to look like a bike accident. This incident had been shrouded in mystery for years, with Kennedy's cousin Tatiana Schlossberg even writing about it for The New York Times in 2014. In response to the New Yorker’s report featuring a photograph of him with the bear, he quipped, “Maybe that’s where I got my brain worm.”
**He denied eating a dog**
A July report from Vanity Fair featured a striking photograph of Kennedy holding what appeared to be a barbequed animal, which many speculated was a dog. In an interview with NewsNation, Kennedy refuted this claim, asserting that the animal was actually a goat from Patagonia. He remarked, “I’m a very adventurous eater. I’ll eat virtually anything. There’s two things I wouldn’t eat — well, three. I wouldn’t eat a human, I wouldn’t eat a monkey, and I wouldn’t eat a dog. I think I’d eat anything else.”
**He said he ‘won’t take sides on 9/11’**
In a somewhat unexpected declaration last month on X, Kennedy stated that he “won’t take sides on 9/11 or any of the other debates,” a position he argued would “usher in a new era of transparency.” His comments referenced a “60 Minutes” report regarding a theory about the Saudi government’s prior knowledge of the 9/11 attacks. Kennedy, who has previously entertained other conspiracy theories regarding vaccines, AIDS, and his uncle’s assassination, added, “It’s hard to tell what is a conspiracy theory and what isn’t.”
**He apologized to his family for a Super Bowl ad comparing him to JFK**
A Super PAC supporting Kennedy’s campaign aired a $7 million Super Bowl advertisement that drew direct parallels between him and his famous uncle. The ad mimicked a 1960s campaign commercial of John F. Kennedy, complete with the same jingle: “Kennedy, Kennedy, Kennedy.” Family members of Kennedy reacted strongly, with cousin Bobby Shriver expressing on X that he was offended, stating, “My cousin’s Super Bowl ad used our uncle’s faces- and my Mother’s. She would be appalled by his deadly health care views.” That evening, Kennedy distanced himself from the ad, claiming it had been aired “without any involvement or approval from my campaign.” He expressed regret for any distress it may have caused his family.
**He blamed a campaign staffer for commenting on an OnlyFans creator’s post**
Kennedy faced scrutiny when a TikTok account associated with him commented “Wow” on a post made by an OnlyFans creator. He attributed the comment to “one of the campaign’s young social media managers” who managed the account prior to his involvement.
**He debated himself**
As the public tuned into a highly anticipated live CNN debate between former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden in June, which ultimately hurt Biden’s campaign, Kennedy streamed a “real debate” on YouTube. Notably, he did not qualify for the CNN debate. In his livestream, he stood alone in front of a moderator and an audience, projecting the Trump-Biden debate on a screen, pausing it to offer his own responses. The pseudo-debate lasted nearly two and a half hours.
Camille Lefevre contributed to this report for TROIB News
