Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suspended his presidential campaign on Friday and threw his support behind Donald Trump.

Does it matter? Can Kennedy’s endorsement actually influence what appears to be an incredibly tight race between Trump and Kamala Harris?  More on that in a moment.

But isn’t it utterly bizarre, and even maybe a little sad, that the people closest to Kennedy — his own family — are madly fleeing in the other direction? Trump is welcoming RFK’s endorsement, saying, “That’s big. He’s a great guy, respected by everybody.”

But is it big to get an endorsement from a guy whose famous family not only disagrees with him, but publicly admonishes him?

Kerry Kennedy, RFK’s sister, released a statement with four of her siblings, saying, “We want an America filled with hope and bound together by a shared vision of a brighter future. We believe in Harris and Walz. Our brother Bobby’s decision to endorse Trump today is a betrayal of the values that our father and our family hold most dear.”

They are all children of former Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1968 while making a bid to become president.

Kerry Kennedy appeared on Jen Psaki’s MSNBC show on Sunday and said, “If my dad were alive today, the real Robert Kennedy would have detested almost everything Donald Trump represents — his lying, his selfishness, his rage, his cynicism, hatred, racism, fascism, these deliberate misinformation about vaccines, criminal felony convictions.”

About her brother endorsing Trump, Kerry Kennedy said, “I’m outraged and disgusted by my brother’s gaudy and obscene embrace of Donald Trump. And I completely get out and separate and dissociate myself from Robert Kennedy Jr. in this flagrant and inexplicable effort to desecrate and trample and set fire to my father’s memory.”

Even members of Kennedy’s staff have spoken out. In an email to The New York Times, Jay Carson, a Hollywood writer and producer who has been producing ads for RFK, said, “I helped Bobby in this race because I believed he was the best option to beat Trump, and that he had the guts and wits to really change Washington. So this is saddening to me for two reasons: Trump puts himself above everyone and everything else, including his country. And this removes a choice for the millions of Americans who are unhappy with both major parties.”

Meanwhile, Kerry Kennedy said she not only disagrees with her brother’s endorsement of Trump, but that she will be out campaigning for Harris, telling Psaki, “This one is particularly important because I think that our country’s institutions are at stake. I think that Donald Trump is incredibly dangerous to us. And I think what Bobby has done here is anathema to everything. Not only (for what) our family stands for, but what Bobby has given his life to.”

So what does Kennedy’s endorsement of Trump mean?

The Wall Street Journal’s editorial board wrote that the Kennedy endorsement is a “double-edged sword” for Trump — that it could help Trump a bit in battleground states, but that “the price could be high if it includes putting Mr. Kennedy in a second Trump Administration.”

They concluded, “Mr. Trump’s best response is to thank RFK Jr. for his support, make no promises about the future, and by all means avoid joint campaign appearances.”

Then again, maybe the endorsement doesn’t mean much of anything.

Elliott Morris and Mary Radcliffe of ABC News’ 538 wrote, “Our analysis of the polling data suggests Kennedy’s endorsement of Trump will have a minimal impact on the race. Kennedy, who has consistently polled around 5 percent since Vice President Kamala Harris became the presumptive nominee, was drawing roughly equally from both Trump and Harris, with that support coming from both traditionally Democratic and traditionally Republican groups. His endorsement of Trump may marginally help the Republican among white, male, and older voters. But the effect of his departure on overall support for either candidate will be small.”

The New York Times’ Ruth Igielnik wrote, “And while it is hard to foresee the effect his decision might have on the election, his endorsement of former President Donald J. Trump is unlikely to change the nature of the race, even if it is well-received by Mr. Kennedy’s supporters. This is in part because it is hard to know how many of Mr. Kennedy’s supporters will vote in November. They are less likely than others to have voted in 2020, and are also less likely to say they will vote come November.”

Morning moments

Vice presidential candidate JD Vance, right, is interviewed by “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker. (Courtesy: NBC News)

While Kerry Kennedy’s appearance on Psaki’s show made headlines, so did NBC’s “Meet the Press,” which featured an interview with Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance, who told moderator Kristen Welker that he thinks Trump would veto a federal ban on abortions.

“I think he would,” Vance said. “He said that explicitly that he would.”

Before that, Welker had asked, “But can you commit, senator, sitting right here with me today, that if you and Donald Trump are elected that you will not impose a federal ban on abortion?”

Vance said, “I can absolutely commit that, Kristen. Donald Trump has been as clear about that as possible.”

However, Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren isn’t buying it. Appearing on “Meet the Press” after the Vance interview, Warren said, “American women are not stupid, and we are not going to trust the futures of our daughters and granddaughters to two men who have openly bragged about blocking access to abortion for women all across this country.”

By the way, Welker had a strong show on Sunday, pushing Vance on several topics with pertinent follow-ups and tough questions.

Collins defends CNN

CNN’s Kaitlan Collins appeared on HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher” and the two had an exchange over CNN’s political coverage, with Maher challenging Collins on whether the network is biased towards liberals. Maher pointed out that during Collins’ recent appearance on Stephen Colbert’s CBS late-night show, the audience laughed when Colbert referred to CNN as “objective.”

Collins told Maher, “CNN is the place where both sides can watch, and I think my show is evidence of that. We have lawmakers on from both parties. We’ll have Elizabeth Warren on one night and we’ll have Ted Cruz on another night. I think lawmakers from both parties should take questions, and you should push both of them.”

Collins then talked about the network’s recent Democratic National Convention coverage, saying, “On CNN being a place of credibility, look at what just happened in Chicago. We had 300 people from CNN on the ground covering that convention, there were several reporters from just our team alone on the floor bringing it in real time to people, and I think CNN puts resources behind things and just brings a level of news that you don’t get anywhere else.”

She later added, “I’m from Alabama, I’m from a very red state, I have a very conservative family, a lot of them who are Trump voters, they watch my show every night, and they know that they can trust me, that we call (BS) on every side.”

Speaking of Collins …

During the aftershow of Maher’s “Real Time” — an online show called “Overtime” — Collins said her sources are saying Trump is not looking forward to the debate against Harris on Sept. 10.

She told Maher, “I think Trump is nervous about it. I talk to a lot of sources in his world. I think he has really struggled with it. It’s not just a narrative or a talking point from Democrats. He really has struggled with how to combat her. And I think going into that debate, he does not really want to do it. I think it’s difficult, if not impossible, for him to pull out because his campaign manager had cards printed that said ‘any where, time, any place’ for President Biden. And it would look weak. But I don’t think he’s looking forward to it at this point.”

Trump’s mean tweets return to X

Trump returned to X earlier this month after having not really engaged on the platform since his account was suspended in the days following the Jan. 6 insurrection. Elon Musk took over X in late 2022 and lifted Trump’s ban, but it wasn’t until Aug. 13 that Trump made his return, which included Musk’s embarrassingly sycophantic conversation that same day.

Back in the days before his account was suspended and while he was president, Trump was a prolific tweeter, sometimes firing off dozens of tweets a day, many of them angry rants aimed at his critics and perceived enemies. But in the past couple of weeks, including during the Democratic National Convention last week, Trump saved most of his insults for his own social media platform — Truth Social.

But over the weekend, Trump launched a bunch of tweets, using old insulting standbys such as “Sleepy Joe,” and “Comrade Kamala” “Tampon Tim” to lash out at Democrats.

He also posted his mugshot from Aug. 24, 2023, and wrote, “HAPPY ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY! #MAGA”

Mediaite’s Kipp Jones wrote, “It is too soon to tell if Trump’s return to X is permanent or if he will retreat back to the confines of the echo chamber that is Truth Social. That is a place where his chances for large-scale engagement are slim.”

Jones added, “It was peculiar that some of Trump’s posts were not shared on Truth Social while others were. Perhaps Trump sought to make a few waves and grab some attention by returning to his old stomping ground for a few hours — a place where he used to harness the ability to drive news cycles for days. Trump’s power to reach people directly and to control the narrative has been diminished if not completely overtaken in recent weeks by the Harris campaign, which has seized media attention.”

Prime bullying

Colorado head football coach Deion Sanders speaks during the Big 12 NCAA college football media days in Las Vegas in July. (AP Photo/Lucas Peltier)

University of Colorado football coach Deion Sanders was a heck of a player. He’s having more difficulty as a coach. Since taking over the Colorado program before last season, he has had nearly as many controversial run-ins with the media as he has had wins. (Colorado went 4-8 in his first season.)

The latest dust-up is his ban of Denver Post sports columnist Sean Keeler from asking questions of Sanders during press conferences. The University is backing Sanders, saying Keeler has made “sustained, personal attacks” against Sanders. They pointed to columns in which Keeler referred to Sanders as a “false prophet,” “Deposition Deion,” “Planet Prime,” and the “Bruce Lee of B.S.” among other things.

The Athletic’s Jim Trotter wrote, “I can understand Sanders being bothered by such characterizations, but I also know the skin of an FBS head coach has to be thicker than one-ply toilet paper.”

The school said Keeler has not been banned from games or other “football-related activities” and that other Post reporters can ask questions of football personnel, adding, “Keeler is still permitted to cover and ask questions of other CU athletics programs and athletics administrators.”

“Disappointing, but not surprising,” Keeler told The Athletic.

Sanders cannot be forced to answer questions from anyone he doesn’t want to talk to, but this is a bad look for him, the football program and the school, which is clearly too scared of Sanders to do anything but back him. Sanders comes off as petty and a bully, and the school comes off as weak.

ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio wrote, “It really is a bunch of crap. Deion doesn’t want to be scrutinized, by anyone. He thinks the media covering the team should support the program, too. Without expressing any criticism or asking any tough questions. Even when criticism or tough questions are required.”

This isn’t the first time Sanders has had beef with the media. A few years ago, back when he was coaching Jackson State, Sanders refused to answer a question from a reporter who called him Deion instead of hush preferred “Coach Prime,” even though it’s common for reporters to call coaches they cover by their first names. Just a couple of weeks ago, he refused to answer a question because the reporter worked for an affiliate of CBS. (Sanders has since patched things up with that reporter.)

Trotter wrote, “The man who once refused to ignore a petty verbal slight from an opposing coach because ‘my momma taught me that you ain’t just gonna attack me, and I ain’t gonna sit back and say nothing,’ is refusing to take questions from a local columnist because he doesn’t like what the person has written about him and the program. From my vantage point, that doesn’t look like character. Rather, it resembles cowardice.”

Media tidbits

• The Democrats have beaten the Republicans in one race: TV convention ratings. The Democratic National Convention averaged 22 million TV viewers, while the Republican National Convention averaged 19.1 million. Does that give us a hint as to what could happen in November? The Associated Press’ David Bauder digs into that with “Are convention viewing numbers a hint about who will win the election? Don’t bet on it.”
• The Guardian’s Dan Sabbagh with “British man on Reuters staff killed in strike on hotel in east Ukraine.”
• Awful Announcing’s Sam Neumann with “Nick Saban’s ‘College GameDay’ debut was a hit.”

Hot type

• The New York Times’ David A. Fahrenthold with “Would a Group Opposed to Police Blow the Whistle on Its Founder?”
• Actor-writer-producer Larry David in a bitingly satirical guest essay for The Washington Post: “My post-birth abortion.”
• The Athletic’s Matthew Futterman with “How Black American tennis players built U.S. stardom: ‘Serena and Venus said I can be myself.’”

More resources for journalists

• Lead With Influence is for leaders who manage big responsibilities but have no direct reports.
• Check out our dynamic, in-person workshop for new newsroom managers.
• Try our free Grant Writing for Journalists self-directed course.

Have feedback or a tip? Email Poynter senior media writer Tom Jones at tjones@poynter.org.

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