Democrat presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr announced Friday that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) denied his request for Secret Service protection, even though he’s running with “unique and well-established security and safety risks.”
“Since the assassination of my father in 1968, candidates for president are provided Secret Service protection. But not me,” Kennedy said on X, the platform previously known as Twitter.
Kennedy Jr said the Department of Homeland Security ignored his request for 88 days, and after several follow-ups by his campaign Secretary Mayorkas finally responded: “I have determined that Secret Service protection for Robert F Kennedy Jr is not warranted at this time.”
According to the 2020 Secret Service guidance, the Homeland Security secretary determines which candidates are eligible for protection after consultation with an advisory committee of House and Senate leadership.
The committee is comprised of the speaker of the House, the House minority leader, the Senate majority leader, the Senate minority leader and one additional member chosen by the others.
The Secret Service authorizes protection for “major presidential and vice presidential candidates and their spouses” within 120 days of a general presidential election, the 2020 guidance states.
To be considered a “major candidate,” presidential hopeful’s most recent average in established national polls should be at 15 percent for more for 30 consecutive days.
While the 2024 election is more than 460 days away and Kennedy’s polling average is currently about 10 percent, his request “included a 67-page report from the world’s leading protection firm, detailing unique and well established security and safety risks aside from commonplace death threats.”
Since the assassination of my father in 1968, candidates for president are provided Secret Service protection. But not me.
Typical turnaround time for pro forma protection requests from presidential candidates is 14-days. After 88-days of no response and after several…— Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) July 28, 2023
The 2020 guidance lists specific threats toward the candidate as one criterion for determining whether he qualifies for Secret Service protection.
A threat assessment conducted by the Secret Service of general or specific threats directed towards the candidate. (for these purposes, “threats” should be defined as explicit threats of bodily harm to the candidate or indications of inappropriate behavior towards the candidate suggesting potential bodily harm).
RFK Jr. is the son of former Attorney General Robert Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1968, and the nephew of former President John F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1963.
RFK Jr., who believes the CIA assassinated his uncle, has expressed concern about his own safety in the recent past.
In an interview with podcaster Joe Rogan in June, he said, “Well, I gotta be careful. I’m aware of that, you know, I’m aware of that danger. I don’t live in fear of it at all.” He added: “But I’m not stupid about it, and I take precautions.”
Former presidents Donald Trump and Barack Obama both received Secret Service protection well before the suggested 120 days before a general presidential election, NBC reported.
Then-candidate Donald Trump received Secret Service protection almost one year prior to the 2016 general election, after being approved in 2015, along with fellow GOP contender Ben Carson, in the lead-up to the Iowa caucuses.
Barack Obama received Secret Service protection in May 2007 — an “unusually early step,” the New York Times noted, amid broader concerns about Obama’s safety as he campaigned to be the nation’s first Black president.
In the 2024 race, however, Kennedy Jr. has been deemed persona non grata by Democrats.
Relying on the analysis of a left-wing dark money group in Great Britain, the Biden regime in early 2021 denounced the candidate as one of the so-called “Disinformation Dozen,” due to his opposition to the risky and experimental COVID-19 shots. The regime worked with social media platforms to have his posts censored.
During a House Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government hearing on the government’s censorship enterprise earlier this month, Democrats smeared Kennedy Jr as a racist, anti-Semitic conspiracy theorist.
In a post on X, Friday afternoon, Senator Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) condemned the Biden administration for rejecting RFK Jr’s request for Secret Service protection.
“Not only is there a dual system of justice, now we have a dual system of protection,” Johnson wrote. “RFK Jr., along with any other presidential candidates facing real threats need Secret Service protection. Denying him protection is simply wrong.”
Not only is there a dual system of justice, now we have a dual system of protection.
RFK Jr., along with any other presidential candidates facing real threats need Secret Service protection. Denying him protection is simply wrong.https://t.co/WBUMzjb74A https://t.co/qHw8Cond2K
— Senator Ron Johnson (@SenRonJohnson) July 28, 2023