Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s presidential campaign has hired a former top spokesman for the hard-right Republican candidates who called the January 6, 2021 riots at the U.S. Capitol “Democrat misdirection.”
Campaign finance notes to show Kennedy’s independent campaign first hired Zach Henry’s Total Virality firm for “influencer engagement” in March, two months after Republican Vivek Ramaswamy dropped out of the race for the party’s presidential nomination. Henry was Ramaswamy’s deputy director of communications.
“J6 wasn’t a MAGA rebellion, more misdirection by the Democrats” Posted by X in March 2023it seems hugger a conspiracy theory that the riot was instigated by left-wing antifa campaigners, not Donald Trump supporters.
“I’m mentally preparing myself for the goddamned ‘I’m having traumatic memories of January 6th’ tomorrow” Henry was published in 2022 Before the annual demonstration against abortion rights in Washington.
After just one week, he had called A House committee is investigating the attack as a “witch hunt by patriots who must face accountability.”
In other posts, he has expressed his opposition to vaccine mandates and he wrote“Alex Jones is a national treasure,” says the famous conspiracy broadcaster.
Henry declined to comment, while the Kennedy campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
Kennedy’s hiring of Henry comes as he struggles to attract experienced political operatives from both major parties to work for his independent campaign. Henry represents a rare escape from the world of professional politics to an outsider candidate.
Kennedy’s recruits, however, have caused headaches for his campaign lately by going off-message, including on Jan. 6.
Kennedy’s campaign earlier this month rejected the fundraising email It lamented that “J6 activists” are “sitting in a Washington jail deprived of their Constitutional freedoms.” Kennedy’s campaign said the email was sent “in error” by a “marketing contractor.”
But there were other errors in Kennedy’s subsequent statements that he had to address, and the controversy drew attention to his views on January 6. There’s Kennedy was questioned On January 6, he said he would consider pardoning the “harsh treatment” of the defendants, and questioned whether it was a real “rebellion”.
Kennedy buyetcoshelp He would appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the treatment of those accused of crimes related to January 6.
Both parties have stepped up their attacks on Kennedy, fearing that he will waste the election by stealing the votes of their candidates.
Trump and his allies are increasingly portraying Kennedy as a far-left radical environmentalist, hoping to block voters who might be attracted to the populist conspiracy theories espoused by both.
But the Democrats They were especially aggressive towards Kennedydescribing the former Democrat as Trump’s trail horse and citing his support from some key conservative donors, among other things, his Jan. 6 rhetoric.
Earlier this month, the Kennedy campaign a Republican consultant based in New York After a video surfaced of him urging GOP voters to consider Kennedy, saying they share the “No. 1 priority” of stopping President Joe Biden.
Henry is part of a group of young online conservative activists who have seen their stock rise in the GOP. online influencers and advertising stunts designed to “trigger” competitors.
In Ramaswamy’s campaign, he traveled frequently with the candidate and helped manage supportive online influencers, including off-color comedians and controversial YouTubers.
Prior to working with Ramaswamy, Henry served as communications director for Blake Masters’ 2022 Senate campaign in Arizona and spokeswoman for the Arizona GOP and its controversial former chair Kelly Ward, who was recently among the “fake voters” indicted in Arizona. charged with fraud, forgery and conspiracy to nullify the results of the 2020 election.
All three are conservative culture warriors with a libertarian tinge who like to annoy the left. Henry’s recent social media posts show support for Kennedy and frustration with Trump for accepting Covid-19 vaccines developed during his presidency.