RFK ON CNN
Don’t miss Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Larry King Live tonight, 8pm Eastern on CNN.
Bobby will be on the show to talk about the link between vaccines and childhood autism, along with Jenny McCarthy. (All part of the unprecedented media coverage of World Autism Day this year.)
Kennedy has written and spoken extensively on this subject; most notably his article “Deadly Immunity” sparked a heated debate upon its publication back in 2005, and remains a controversial classic of modern investigative journalism.
Coming on the heels of Jesse Ventura’s appearance on “Larry King Live” last night, this could turn out to be an interesting interview in more ways than one.
Ventura says that if he ran for president, he would want Kennedy to be his running mate on an independent ticket this year. Expect Larry King to ask RFK Jr. what he thinks about that!
And what does Hillary Clinton think of Jesse’s dream ticket, one wonders? Isn’t RFK Jr. supposed to be in her camp?
WHO WOODA THUNK IT?
As we reported back in early January, Jesse Ventura is wrestling with running for President of the United States. And he wants Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as his running mate in `08.
The former pro wrestler and enigmatic Minnesota Governor could be just teasing us, of course. Or maybe not.
In the opening of his forthcoming book, “Don’t Start the Revolution Without Me!,” (due out April 1), Ventura writes: “As I begin to write this book, I’m facing probably the most monumental decision of my 56 years on this planet. Will I run for president of the United States, as an independent, in 2008? Or will I stay as far away from the fray as possible, in a place with no electricity, on a remote beach in Mexico?”
Throughout the book, Ventura seems to go back and forth on the question, pro and con:
Pro: “My outrage knows few bounds. … I can’t live with this apathy. I can’t tell myself it’s not happening.”
Con: “Psychologically, I need to break away from the United States. I also felt it was time in my life to go on an adventure. … And I found that, even in the 21st century, you can still be something of a Kit Carson,” the renowned 19th-century frontiersman.
Pro: He details a conversation he had in Mexico with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. about running together on an independent, third-party ticket.
Con: His wife, Terry, says she refuses to be first lady of anything again.
APRIL FOOL’S JOKE?
It could all be some kind of publicity stunt to promote his new book, of course, but Ventura is set to appear on CNN’s “Larry King Live” Tuesday, April 1st. Presumably Ventura will take that opportunity to announce his independent bid for the presidency.
That is – if he’s really running. Thousands have signed the VotersforVentura draft petition, many of them calling for RFK Jr. to be by his side as the Vice Presidential candidate.
Well, I guess that pretty much decides it. It’s not like Bobby would have much of a choice in the matter, really. After all, if Jesse Ventura decides he’s running for president, comes to you and says you’re going to be his running mate, what are you gonna say? No?
WHY WOULD VENTURA PICK KENNEDY AS HIS VP?
Like readers of this blog need to be told why RFK Jr. should be in the White House, even as Vice President. We know what he stands for and the leadership qualities he posesses. We think he’s already the best man for the top job.
Obviously Jesse Ventura agrees, or he wouldn’t select Bobby Kennedy Jr. to be the man who is one heartbeat away from the presidency. But is there a bigger reason why Ventura chose Kennedy to be his running mate?
The answer may lie in some of the former Minnesota Governor’s comments about the JFK Assassination. In his now-legendary Playboy interview, Ventura said:
‘Name me one person who can verify that the Warren Commission is factual. You’re talking to an ex-Navy Seal here. Oswald had seven seconds to get three rounds off. He’s got a bolt action weapon, and he’s going to miss the first shot and hit the next two?
If Oswald was indeed who they say he was—a disgruntled little Marine who got angry and became pro-Marxist and decided to shoot the president—please explain why everything would be locked in the archives until 2029 and put under national security? How could he affect national security?”
Ventura even went on to outline who he thought was behind the murder and what the motive was. He believed the actual assassins were hired guns, maybe Cubans, maybe Europeans. Who hired them? Agents of the military-industrial complex. Motive? To prevent Kennedy’s impending withdrawal from Vietnam.
Ventura then went on to explain the reason the media hasn’t told the truth about the case:
That’s because every bit of real evidence is ridiculed. The method is to dismiss it by saying: “Oh that’s just those conspiracy nuts.”
With these outspoken, bare-knuckled remarks on a political murder that will not disappear, as well as his comments made since, Ventura has become the highest-level politician to launch a virulent and sustained attack on the official story.
ASK WHAT YOU CAN DO FOR YOUR COUNTRY
Ventura’s candid approach and his bravery in taking of the Kennedy case are admirable. His honesty about the events of November of 1963 proves him a serious man and a forthright one. In fact, Ventura may be able to put the questions of that mystery on the political map if he keeps pressing it. Re-opening the JFK case may become a campaign issue (better yet, make that a promise, will you, Jesse?) if he becomes a candidate for the presidency.
With RFK Jr. at his side, Ventura could make things happen in Washington. We might then finally see a real investigation into the murder of our beloved 35th president, and maybe even some justice served before all of the elderly conspirators leave this world.
SPEAKS OUT ABOUT THE JFK ASSASSINATION AND 9/11
Ventura is quite the Kennedy assassination scholar, as it turns out; he spoke in Dealey Plaza on the 40th anniversary of President Kennedy’s assassination in 2003. Also, the co-author of Ventura’s forthcoming book is Dick Russell, whose list of credits include “The Man Who Knew Too Much,” a much-revered book about the JFK assassination.
Incidentally, Dick Russell also penned a wonderful article about RFK Jr. a few years back, and the two are said to be very good friends. Outside of his JFK research, the primary focus of Dick Russell’s magazine writing and personal activism has been the environment – particularly the crisis impacting the world’s fisheries and oceans, one of the causes closest to Kennedy’s heart.
In his new book with Russell, Jesse Ventura takes a courageous stand in his remarks about 9/11. He questions the official government version of events which lead us into this ill-advised war on terror. Citing previous history – the Battleship Maine, Operation Northwoods, the Gulf of Tonkin incident – he says that the United States is not above staging an attack as a pretext for war. After all, we’ve done it before.
Ventura said that it was via his 25-year research of the Kennedy assassination that he came to learn about the Gulf of Tonkin and Operation Northwoods.
“It was very disappointing to believe in your country that they would lie to you to get into a war – that they would perpetrate a lie and that the media would go along with it – it’s a real eye opener and you realize that if they would do it in the sixties they’ll do it again – and if it works once it will work again – government very much operates that way,” said Ventura.
Ventura said that shortly after he found out the truth behind the Gulf of Tonkin, Robert McNamara (Secretary of Defense to Presidents Kennedy and Johnson) paid a visit to Harvard where Ventura was teaching and he had to be “locked up in a room” so that he wouldn’t confront McNamara.
ONE MIGHTY TOUGH TICKET
When one tries to imagine Jesse Ventura and Robert Kennedy invading Washington together, images of rats scurrying comes to mind. With these two powerful, equally driven reformers joining their considerable forces, Washington might finally become a corruption-free zone again. And we’d probably see a lot of real estate formerly occupied by corporate lobbyists along K Street up for sale.
Anybody in their right mind would have to think twice about crossing the path of a former professional wrestler, especially if he’s the president. Not to mention a vice president who trains birds of prey and keeps live alligators in his home.
One also tries to imagine these two on the campaign trail, moving like a freight train of truth across the country. And just think of the TV ads showing us Jesse and Bobby in all their pumped-up pectoral glory – what kind of message would that send to any potential enemy of the United States? “Don’t even think about it fool, or we’ll kick your ass!”
Message for Osama “Slim” bin Laden: You wanna mess with these guys?????
LET’S GET READY TO RUMBLE
Your thoughts: April Fool’s joke, or is Ventura serious? Would he be the President to re-open the JFK Assassination case and finally declassify all of the documents? What do you think of RFK Jr. on the ticket? Are they compatible on the issues? How much damage would they do to the Democrats, the Green Party, the Ron Paul Republicans and Nader independents?
In this era of political restlessness and revolution, we’re on an unprecedented roller-coaster ride where it feels like literally anything could happen or absolutely nothing could happen. This election year, there’s no way to predict how the voters will react to such a powerful independent challenge as this. Truth be told, I think a lot of people would love to see it happen. In a presidential election where all conventional wisdom is out the window, could a Ventura/Kennedy ticket actually win?
Copyright RFKin2008.com.
“NOW IS THE TIME TO MAKE REAL THE PROMISES OF DEMOCRACY”
Dr. Martin Luther King, from his immortal ”I Have A Dream” speech at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington, DC, August 28, 1963.
“THEY SAID THIS DAY WOULD NEVER COME”
- Barack Obama, Victory Speech in Iowa, January 3, 2008
♥
Last night, Democratic voters in Iowa shocked the world — and the political establishment.
Last night, 12 days before his birthday and in the 40th year since his assassination, the people of Iowa made Dr. Martin Luther King’s dream come true. They judged a man not by the color of his skin, but by the content of his character.
Last night, Iowa Democrats honored the highest ideals that President John F. Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy stood and fought for — the ideals that Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Medgar Evers, and so many other lesser-known but equally brave Americans gave their lives for. They handed Senator Barack Obama a clear and decisive victory in the first caucus of the 2008 presidential race.
Last night, history was made, a massive milestone reached in what JFK once called the long twilight struggle. The struggle is far from over; we cannot for one moment forget the sacrifices it took to get us where we are — right now, right here in America.
Few under the age of 30 who were fortunate enough to grow up in a largely colorblind and desegregated society can imagine a time when their black brothers and sisters could not even sit beside them at a public lunch counter. Not so long ago in this country, a black American simply seeking to attend a state-run university had to be escorted in by federal troops after riots erupted in the streets. The very act of casting a vote was enough to put one’s safety in danger. In 1961 — the year Barack Obama was born – merely asserting a citizen’s right to travel subjected the Freedom Riders to brutal beatings, assault with firehoses, and the teeth of Bull Connor’s unforgiving, bloodthirsty police dogs.
Few of us over the age of 30 could have imagined the reality of an African-American man being a serious contender for President of the United States in our lifetimes. Few could honestly believe that in the American heartland, in a state whose population is nearly 95% white, Iowans would choose a black man as the candidate best qualified to lead our country.
But they did. And it’s wonderful. Somewhere, MLK is smiling.
“WE ARE ONE PEOPLE. AND OUR TIME FOR CHANGE HAS COME.” – OBAMA
While Barack Obama is not the first black candidate to win a presidential primary (that honor goes to the Reverend Jesse Jackson, who won five primaries in 1984 and 11 contests in 1988), he has upped the stakes considerably. Jackson’s wins made history, but his long history as a civil rights activist unfortunately caused him to be labeled as a radical. Many said Jackson was too liberal, too polarizing a figure to be the party nominee, and gave him little hope of winning a general election. By contrast, Obama appeals to mainstream American voters of both parties, giving him a far better chance to compete in November.
Jackson, a former King aide, was standing beside him on the balcony of the Hotel Lorraine in Memphis when MLK was murdered. His presidential bids in `84 and `88 revived the spirit of Dr. King and this helped propel Jackson’s candidacy to victory in several primaries. Jackson carried mostly left-leaning states with large black populations (Louisiana, the District of Columbia, South Carolina, Virginia and Mississippi in 1984, adding Alabama, Georgia, Puerto Rico, Michigan, Delaware and Vermont four years later), and was considered a frontrunner for the Democratic nomination early in 1988.
Can it happen again? Can Obama do even better? Many believe that he can. What made his surprise win in Iowa so remarkable was not just the fact that he pulled it off in a a key early primary state which is almost all white, but the David-and-Goliath aspect of this race made his victory even more interesting. His opponent was a former first lady and the projected winner in nearly every pre-caucus poll. Jesse Jackson did not have to campaign against a former president (stumping for his wife) of his own party – and an incredibly powerful, well-financed political machine.
But perhaps the most critical difference of all is that Obama seems to be bringing the right message for the times in which we live. A message of hope, of change, of unity — and that this message is clearly striking a deep chord with America’s youth, who will be our future.
In his victory speech last night, Senator Obama spoke of hope winning over fear. “We are choosing unity over division and sending a powerful message that change is coming to America.
“We are not a collection of red states and blue states. We are the United States!”
It doesn’t matter if Barack Obama is your candidate or not. At present, he is not my candidate. He is not Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s candidate. What matters is the seismic change in American society and culture Obama’s victory last night represents. And that will reverberate forever.
See this story for more coverage of the Iowa Caucus results, and all candidates in the race.
Copyright RFKin2008.com. All Rights Reserved.
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