Robert F. Kennedy Jr., in a recent public address marking the end of his independent bid for presidency, offered an erroneous interpretation surrounding the number of times President Joe Biden was alluded to at the Republican National Convention in July. In his speech, Kennedy criticized the Democratic National Convention in Chicago this week for its lack of substantial discussion, resorting instead to flowery rhetoric and an unhealthy obsession with former President Donald Trump, who Kennedy openly backed. Kennedy stated, ‘In Chicago, Democratic representatives invoked Donald Trump’s name 147 times solely on day one. … Why concentrate on policy and practical work when you’re engrossed in disdain for Trump? In stark contrast, during the RNC convention, Biden’s name was only raised twice over a four-day period.’
Regrettably, these assertions from Kennedy about the lack of mentions of Biden at the Republican National Convention dramatically deviate from reality. An analytical report from The New York Times on speeches from the RNC revealed a whopping total of 393 mentions of ‘Biden.’ The Republican Party’s vice-presidential candidate, Sen. JD Vance, mentioned ‘Biden’ on no less than 12 occasions in his own speech.
It is worth noting that even Trump himself used the word ‘Biden’ twice in his own public address at the convention. Nevertheless, Kennedy didn’t accurately represent the presence of Biden’s name across the entire span of the Republican convention. Interestingly, a fallacious notion that Biden was alluded to only twice during the four-day duration of the Republican convention has started trending on social media platforms.
It is hard to pinpoint exactly where this inaccurate claim was born, but a simple skim through transcripts of speeches from select RNC speakers shows that it is patently false. For instance, previous House Speaker Newt Gingrich mentioned Biden nine times in his convention address, which outperforms Kennedy’s claim by seven on its own.
Then comes former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who invoked Biden’s name eight times in his own remarks at the convention. Nikki Haley, the former US ambassador to the United Nations, also didn’t lag behind, mentioning Biden seven times in her public address. Another significant individual to mention here is Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York who, along with Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, showed Biden’s name the same favor.
Furthermore, Donald Trump Jr. wasn’t shy about using ‘Biden’ four times in his speech, which complemented the same number by U.S. Senate candidate Kari Lake of Arizona. Evidently, these occurrences far surpass the paltry ‘two mentions’ as claimed by Kennedy. This tally includes only explicit instances where Biden’s name was brought up.
There were also a myriad of instances where different convention participants lambasted Biden without directly using his name. Such indirect jabs at Biden, although not directly mentioning his name, were evident in the underlying tone of a considerable number of speeches.
Regrettably, it seems Kennedy either was not privy to these details or chose to ignore them to push a narrative that favored his viewpoint. As we know, accuracy in representation is important, and Kennedy’s oversight in this situation represents a gross misrepresentation of the facts.
Kennedy’s attempts to downplay the extent of Biden discussions at the RNC seems clearly oriented towards creating a singular narrative, painting Biden and his policies as inadequate and unfavorable. More concerning is the propagation of such incorrect information in the essential political landscape.
While Kennedy’s speech and subsequent criticisms were largely focused on Biden and the Democratic party, the undeniable fact remains that Biden and his policies were a topic of significant discussion among Republican speakers. This fact blatantly contradicts Kennedy’s assertions, casting a shadow of doubt over the entire narrative he attempted to present.
We can only speculate about the reason why an erroneous idea that Biden was barely mentioned at the Republican convention has been gaining traction on social media. However, through fact-checking it’s clear that Kennedy’s claim is not only disingenuous but flat-out wrong.
Despite the amplification of this incorrect information, it does nothing to change the actual situation on the ground – the Democratic party, and more specifically President Joe Biden, was indeed a recurrent theme of speeches given by prominent Republicans throughout the convention.
While the original focus of the Chicago convention may have been criticized for an excessive focus on Trump, attempting to propagate the idea that the Republican National Convention hardly mentioned Biden reads less like an accurate reading of events and more like a strategic attempt to mould public perception.
Kennedy Spins Inaccurate Tale of Biden’s Absence at RNC appeared first on Real News Now.