It should have been the younger Joe Kennedy III, 42, the former Congressman from Newton, challenging President Joe Biden and not the controversial Robert F. Kennedy Jr., 69, of New York.
He would have been a natural given the slim bench of Democrats willing to take on tottering Biden, who nobody wants to run again, in a Democratic primary.
But Joe Kennedy lost his way when, in a huge political mistake, the four term Congressman ran against fellow Democrat Sen. Eddie Markey in the 2020 Democrat primary. He was defeated, becoming the first Kennedy to lose an election in Massachusetts.
He has since been appointed by Biden as Special Envoy to Northern Ireland for Economic Affairs
Had he remained in the House and easily been reelected in 2020 and 2022, Democrats concerned with Biden’s age and bumbling leadership would have been begging Kennedy to challenge him.
Joe Kennedy running for president would have been about the same age Massachusetts Sen. John F. Kennedy, his great uncle, was when he was elected president in 1960.
Would he have been up to the challenge is another question. After 12 years in the House, he would have been more seasoned and the vulnerabilities on display in his race against Markey would never have surfaced.
But we will never know. Running before he could walk — politically speaking — Joe Kennedy stumbled badly.
So, instead of Joe Kennedy running, we have Robert Kennedy, Jr., the controversial anti-vaccine environmentalist, and leading critic of Dr. Anthony Fauci, who will officially announce his candidacy in Boston next week.
When he does so he will become the second Kennedy to challenge a sitting Democratic president.
The first was his uncle, the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, who ran against President Jimmy Carter in the 1980 Democratic presidential primaries. While many liberals supported him and gave him a chance to win, he lost.
Carter, weakened by the Kennedy challenge, was defeated in the election by Republican Ronald Reagan.
Carter may not have been much of a leader, but compared to feckless Joe Biden, Jimmy Carter looks like Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
The times now may be different, but the scenario is similar.
Now it’s Ted Kennedy’s nephew, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. of New York, the eldest son of slain U. S. Senator and presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, and nephew of President John F. Kennedy, as challenger.
Unlike Ted Kennedy back then, who had a groundswell of support among Democrats disenchanted with Carter, there is no such sign of support for Robert Kennedy.
At this point he is a fringe candidate along with fellow fringe Democratic candidate author and activist Marianne Williamson.
Neither one presents a problem for Biden even though he is a failed president who nobody in their right mind, including many Democrats, want to see run again. Especially not at age 82
But Biden and his advisors believe that he can be re-elected if Trump is his opponent. They are delighted that Trump was indicted, not because of any interest in justice and fair play, but because it strengthens Trump’s base of support and will help him with the GOP nomination.
Trump has surged in the polls upon news of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s political and pathetic Trump indictment. And since then, Trump has raised $12 million from it. He is the center of media and political attention, which is where he wants to be. So, he is most likely will be the GOP nominee for president.
But Joe Biden and his advisors should be careful with what they wish for.
Biden did defeat Trump in 2020. Biden got 81.2 million votes to 74.2 million for Trump.
The difference this time around is that Trump can count on his 74.2 million voters to vote for him again. And as a result of the outrage over his persecution, he can add millions more to his cause.
Biden will not get 81.2 million votes again.
Peter Lucas is a veteran Massachusetts political reporter and columnist.