Biden invites RFK’s son Maxwell Taylor Kennedy, his wife Vicki and son Max to a state dinner as his brother RFK Jr. leads a primary campaign that could embarrass him in New Hampshire
- Biden hosted Indian Prime Minister Modi for a state dinner
- Maxwell Taylor Kennedy, his wife and son were on the 400 list
- RFK Jr. is a vaccine skeptic with 14% in presidential polls
Maxwell Taylor Kennedy was a guest at the White House on Thursday as his brother Robert F. Kennedy Jr. issues a primary challenge to President Joe Biden.
There were three Kennedys on the list of around 400 guests for the lavish state dinner honoring Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi – for a gathering of notables including Hunter Biden, who is set to plead guilty to a pair of tax crimes, and longtime Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin.
Kennedy is the ninth child of the late Robert F. Kennedy Jr. He was accompanied by his wife, Vicki S. Kennedy, according to a guest list provided by the White House.
Max Kennedy was also listed as a participant, a likely reference to the couple’s son.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. challenges President Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination. Biden invited his brother Maxwell Taylor Kennedy to a state dinner on Thursday
Maxwell Taylor Kennedy (RFK Jr.’s brother) and Vicki S. Kennedy arrive for the State Dinner
Max Kennedy arrives for the State Dinner
It was another Kennedy, RFK Jr., who recently grabbed the headlines after winning as many as 20% of the vote against the current president. He was 14% in the latest Real Clear Politics average.
Few political pundits view the COVID vaccine skeptic as a threat to the incumbent president winning the nomination. But he risks hurting Biden by undermining the momentum of the early primaries.
Part of that is because New Hampshire, due to its first nation tradition and state law, can break new Democratic National Committee rules and try to outrank South Carolina.
Max Kennedy, grandson of Robert F. Kennedy, was on the list for Thursday’s state dinner. Earlier this week, he spoke at a reception to celebrate the 60th anniversary of his founding at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
Robert Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy with their newborn Matthew Maxwell Taylor Kennedy
Maxwell Taylor Kennedy is a lawyer and writer
If Biden decides not to compete there after lending his support to the DNC’s efforts to diversify the schedule, it could allow RFK Jr. to deliver a black eye to his campaign.
Incumbents who avoid tough primary challenges tend to do much better in general elections. It was another Kennedy, friend of Biden and brother of Bobby Kennedy, Senator Edward Kennedy, who inflicted lasting damage on President Jimmy Carter with his own campaign in 1980.
Max Kennedy Jr. served on the administration’s coronavirus task force during the Trump administration and became a whistleblower after seeing what he called incompetence in the initial response amid efforts to procure protective gear.
Three other siblings of RFK Jr. write an article calling him “tragically wrong” on vaccines where they lambasted his “campaign to attack institutions committed to reducing the tragedy of preventable infectious disease”.
