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By Kaitlin Lewis
Night Reporter
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Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told NewsNation that he was "proud" to have Donald Trump's support after the former president referred to him as a "common-sense guy."
Kennedy, nephew of the late President John F. Kennedy, launched his presidential bid in April and has grown to be President Joe Biden's greatest potential challenger for the 2024 Democratic nomination, although the environmental lawyer and anti-vaccine activist still trails the president in double digits, according to preliminary polling.
NewsNation hosted Kennedy's first town hall of the election cycle Wednesday night, where the presidential hopeful spoke about his stance on gun control, LGBTQ+ rights and immigration. Moderator Elizabeth Vargas also specifically asked him about his opinion of Trump after the former president said Monday that Kennedy was "a very smart guy," adding that the Democratic candidate has "been very nice to me."
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"He's a common-sense guy and so am I," Trump told radio talk show host Howie Carr. "So, whether you're conservative or liberal, common sense is common sense."
When asked his opinion on "what kind of man" he finds Trump to be, Kennedy told Vargas that he was "not going to attack other people personally" during his campaign.
"I don't think it's good for the country," he added.
Kennedy went on to speak about his late father, former U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, who was fatally shot during his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1968. According to Kennedy, his father was able to "bridge the divide on people who would otherwise be Republican, but wanted somebody who was common- sense."
"So, I'm proud that President Trump likes me, even though I don't agree with him on most of these issues," he continued. "Because I don't want to alienate people, I want to bring people together. I'm proud that all these people like me and that I have independent supporters and Democratic supporters."
"Every Democrat says, 'I want to end the polarization," Kennedy added. "But how do you do that without talking to people who don't agree with you? How do you do that without appealing to people? My purpose is to find the issues, the values that we have in common other than focus on the issues and the personalities that keep us all apart."
Kennedy has earned the support of some conservative voters for his views on the COVID-19 pandemic and vaccines. Former Trump strategist Steve Bannon has also deemed the Democratic candidate as "an excellent choice" for Trump's vice presidential candidate back in April.
The Super PAC created to support Kennedy's campaign, Heal the Divide, also reportedly shares ties to some MAGA Republican lawmakers, according to a report from Rolling Stone last week, including Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene.
Kennedy was also pressed by Vargas on vowing to support whoever wins the Democratic nomination in 2024. There's a small pool of candidates hoping to halt Biden's reelection plans, including Kennedy and bestselling author Marianne Williamson. But the current president holds a hefty lead above his challengers for his party's nomination, and the DNC does not plan on hosting primary debates ahead of the next election.
"Let's see what happens in this campaign," Kennedy said Wednesday when asked if he would support whoever wins the Democratic nomination.
"My plan is to win this election. And I don't have a plan B," he added.
In an email to Newsweek on Thursday, Kennedy's press team said that he was grateful for the chance to participate in NewsNation's town hall.
"Even though the questioning was sometimes aggressive, Mr. Kennedy is happy to have the opportunity to make the case for his candidacy," read the statement. "He is confident that he will defeat Joe Biden and then win the general election."
Update 06/29/2023, 6:28 p.m. ET: This story has been updated with additional comment from Kennedy's press team.
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