Joe Kennedy III has recently taken a public stance against his cousin Robert F. Kennedy Jr., following a contentious Senate hearing. In a social media post, Joe denounced RFK Jr. as ‘a threat to the health and wellbeing of every American.’ This rare public rebuke comes a day after RFK Jr.’s Senate hearing, which deepened the family feud that has fractured one of America’s most famous political dynasties.
Joe’s post, which has been viewed over 1.2 million times, has shed light on the internal rift within the political dynasty. While once known for Democratic unity, the Kennedys are now divided over RFK Jr.’s close ties to President Donald Trump and his appointment to the role of Health and Human Services Secretary under the Make America Healthy Again agenda. Joe’s demand that his cousin resign marks a notable escalation in this already bitter feud.
In 2024, five of RFK Jr.’s siblings issued a joint statement condemning his endorsement of Trump as ‘a betrayal of the values that our father and our family hold most dear.’ Caroline Kennedy, another prominent member of the family, later urged senators to block her cousin’s cabinet nomination, writing in a January 2025 letter that he was a ‘predator’ who was ‘addicted to attention and power’ and ‘unqualified’ to lead HHS.
On Sept. 4, RFK Jr. appeared in a hearing before the Senate Finance Committee. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., accused him of firing CDC scientists and replacing them with ‘cranks’ and ‘conspiracy theorists’ who were ‘endangering children, leaving parents confused and scared.’
As Joe Kennedy wrote in his post, ‘None of us will be spared the pain he is inflicting… Those values are not present in the Secretary’s office. He must resign.’ His cousin Jack Schlossberg, President John F. Kennedy’s grandson, piled on in real time, mocking RFK Jr.’s testimony: ‘RFK LOSER is choking so badly LIVE.’
With Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s controversial tenure in Trump’s cabinet, the Kennedy dynasty’s divisions are now spilling into public view with some of the sharpest blows coming from within.