RFK Jr. apologizes for ‘pain’ caused by Super Bowl campaign commercial. Who made it?
Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. apologized for a Super Bowl campaign commercial that aggravated members of his extended family. However, he clarified he was not responsible for it.
The 30-second video — aired during one of the most-watched television events of the year — appeared similar to an ad used by RFK Jr’s uncle, President John F. Kennedy, during the 1960 presidential campaign.
It featured the same “Kennedy for me” jingle and identical cartoon symbols as the original ad, which is listed by Time Magazine as one of the top 10 campaign commercials.
In response, Bobby Shriver, a Kennedy family member, took to X, formerly Twitter, to criticize the commercial.
“My cousin’s Super Bowl ad used our uncle’s faces- and my Mother’s,” Shriver wrote. “She would be appalled by his deadly health care views. Respect for science, vaccines, & health care equity were in her DNA.”
“I agree with my brother,” fellow Kennedy family member Mark Shriver wrote in reply. “Simple as that.”
Several hours later, RFK Jr. replied to his cousin’s post, offering an apology.
“Bobby,” he wrote on X. “I’m so sorry if that advertisement caused you pain.”
“The ad was created and aired by the American Values Superpac without any involvement or approvals from my campaign,” he added.
What is the American Values Super PAC?
The American Values Super Political Action Committee (PAC) is dedicated to supporting RFK Jr’s independent bid for the presidency, according to its website.
The PAC was founded by Tony Lyons, the head of Skyhorse Publishing — which published RFK Jr.’s 2021 book on the COVID-19 pandemic.
Just two days before the Super Bowl, on Feb. 9, the Democratic National Committee filed a complaint against the organization, alleging it is illegally assisting RFK Jr.’s campaign in efforts to get on the ballot in multiple states.
“RFK Jr. offers us real change along with freedom, trust and hope,” the organization stated in a post on X. “Like his uncle and his father, Kennedy is a corruption-fighter, and it’s no wonder the DNC is trying every old trick and inventing new tricks to stop him.”
The organization, like all super PACs, is banned by federal law from coordinating with candidates or their campaigns.
RFK Jr. noted this in his apology to Bobby Shriver, stating “Federal rules prohibit Superpacs from consulting with me or my staff.”
“I send you and your family my sincerest apologies,” he concluded. “God bless you.”
RFK Jr. has polled in the double digits in multiple recent surveys, and outstripped both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump in favorability in a November CAPS-Harris poll.
This story was originally published February 12, 2024 at 12:24 PM with the headline "RFK Jr. apologizes for ‘pain’ caused by Super Bowl campaign commercial. Who made it?."