What I learned from RFK Jr event this weekend (security, Trump)

By Jason Williams
Taxpayers Association of Oregon

This weekend I attended a libertarian/conservative conference called Freedom Fest, where Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spoke as one of the keynote speakers last Friday.

The first thing I noticed and commented to others at the time was that security for the event was very weak.  This was less than 24 hours before the Trump assassination.  I would share about the holes in the security in this article, but I do not wish to broadcast these security lapses to future troublemakers.  Needless to say, these lapses stood out.

What we learned from the Trump assassination is that security appeared lacking and woefully dangerous. Just look below how close the gunman was.

RFK Jr has said in the past that  he cannot get proper security because he is not considered a a major candidate — he polls at 15%.   To me, we should afford such protection for minor candidates in the name of safety.  15% is not that small — nearly 1 out of 6 voters in support.

One thing I noticed from the Trump security incident and the RFK Jr. security example from the weekend is that the security officials were smaller than the people they were protecting.  You can see the security team struggle to fully envelope Trump, and struggle to move him as he resisted.   If you have security that represent the biggest people in the crowd, this won’t be a problem in the future.

The other thing I learned from the RFK Jr speech, was how much he is riding on the populist wave that Trump, in fact, created.   RFK Jr. admitted in his speech that Trump was right in his call to drain the swamp, but then criticized Trump for having cabinet members who were former CEOs, lobbyists and elected officials.   In this, RFK Jr pledged to be the one who would REALLY drain the swamp.  It was a crafty move to claim the greater “outsider” status, but in reality, we all know, RFK Jr., will hire the same type of people with the same backgrounds as presidents do.

RFK Jr. is stuck in the polls at 15% because Trump dominates the populist/outside/reformer sphere.  RFK Jr. is not proposing bold ideas, but rather recycling criticisms.   This is another place where Trump is way ahead — actual proposed solutions.  People know Trump wants to make tips tax-free, close the border, return more local control over schools and other high profile proposals.   Not only is RFK Jr. stuck in the criticism stage, but so are many Republicans who speak about about crime and inflation but do not complete the argument by offering bold and noticeable solutions.  This was the disconnect Republicans had in 2022.  This is why the conservative party in the United Kingdom suffered the biggest setback in their history this summer.    Voters were tired of complaining, weak solutions and lackluster results.

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