Yet despite the simplicity of the argument that a Democrat running as an independent will hurt Biden in 2024, Kennedy is no ordinary Democrat. His views on issues like Covid and Ukraine, expressed at length in countless appearances on Fox News and right-wing podcasts, align neatly with the beliefs of the current Republican Party.

That fact has led Trump supporters in the media to fret that he could pose a greater threat to the former president than Biden. As a Kennedy campaign insider put it to Mediaite: “MAGA folks are upset over this news.”

Indeed, TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk argued on his podcast last week that an independent Kennedy run is so damaging for Trump that it must be the result of a media “plot” to encourage Kennedy to defect from the Democratic Party.

[I doubt it will cut much one way or the other. The concern over the No Labels effort is different, because that already has some organization that could be deployed for a campaign. Kennedy doesn’t have that, and his fundraising is weak even for a major-party primary. It takes TONS of work to get on the ballot for a general election outside of the major parties. RFK hasn’t shown anywhere near the resources or personnel needed to accomplish that task. — Ed]