Robert F. Kennedy Jr. received applause on the Libertarian Nationwide Conference by criticizing authorities lockdowns and deficit spending, and saying America should not police the world.
It made me need to interview him. This month, I did.
He mentioned clever issues about America’s rising debt:
“President Trump mentioned that he was going to stability the funds and as an alternative he (elevated the debt extra) than each president in United States historical past—$8 trillion. President Biden is on observe now to beat him.”
It is good to listen to a candidate really discuss our debt.
“When the debt is this huge…you need to minimize dramatically, and I am going to do this,” he says.
However taking a look at his marketing campaign guarantees, I do not see it.
He guarantees “reasonably priced” housing through a federal program backing 3 % mortgages.
“Think about that you just had a wealthy uncle who was prepared to cosign your mortgage!” gushes his marketing campaign advert. “I’ll make Uncle Sam that wealthy uncle!”
I level out that such giveaways will not scale back our debt.
“That is not a giveaway,” Kennedy replies. “Each greenback that I spend as president goes to go towards constructing our economic system.”
That is massive authorities nonsense, like his different declare: “Each million {dollars} we spend on youngster care creates 22 jobs!”
Give me a break.
After I pressed him about particular cuts, Kennedy says, “I am going to minimize the army in half…minimize it to about $500 billion….We aren’t the policemen of the world.”
“Cease giving any cash to Ukraine?” I ask.
“Negotiate a peace,” Kennedy replies. “Biden has by no means talked to Putin about this, and it is legal.”
He by no means answered whether or not he’d give cash to Ukraine. He did reply about Israel.
“Sure, in fact we should always,”
“[Since] you do not need to minimize this spending, what would you chop?”
“Israel spending is somewhat minor,” he responds. “I’ll decide probably the most wasteful applications, put them multi functional invoice, and ship them to Congress with an up and down vote.”
After all, Congress would simply vote it down.
Kennedy’s proposed cuts would hardly decelerate our path to chapter. Particularly since he additionally needs new spending that activists fake will scale back local weather change.
At a live performance years in the past, he smeared “disaster” skeptics like me, who consider we will modify to local weather change, screaming on the viewers, “Subsequent time you see John Stossel and [others]… these flat-earthers, these company toadies—mendacity to you. That is treason, and we have to begin treating them now as traitors!”
Now, sitting with him, I ask, “You need to have me executed for treason?”
“That assertion,” he replies, “it is not a press release that I might make immediately….Local weather is existential. I believe it is human-caused local weather change. However I do not insist different individuals consider that. I am arguing without spending a dime markets after which the bottom price suppliers ought to prevail within the market….We should always finish all subsidies and let the market dictate.”
That sounds good: “Let the market dictate.”
However wait, Kennedy makes cash from photo voltaic farms backed by authorities assured loans. He “leaned on his contacts within the Obama administration to safe a $1.6 billion mortgage assure,” wrote The New York Occasions.
“Why ought to you get a authorities subsidy?” I ask.
“When you’re creating a brand new business,” he replies, “you are competing with the Chinese language. You need america to personal items of that business.”
I suppose which means his authorities would subsidize each business leftists like.
But when a wind farm firm proposed constructing one close to his household’s residence, he opposed it.
“Appears hypocritical,” I say.
“We’re exterminating the best whale within the North Atlantic via these wind farms!” he replies.
I believe he was extra trustworthy years in the past, when he complained that “generators…could be seen from Cape Cod, Martha’s Winery… Nantucket….[They] will steal the celebs and nighttime views.”
Kennedy was as soon as a Democrat, however now Democrats sue to maintain him off ballots. Former Clinton Labor Secretary Robert Reich calls him a “harmful nutcase.”
Kennedy complains that Reich will not debate him.
“No one will,” he says. “They will not have me on any of their networks.”
Nicely, clearly, I’ll.
I particularly needed to confront him about vaccines.
In a future column, Stossel TV will put up extra from our hourlong dialogue.
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