The White House is downplaying remarks made by Jack Schlossberg — the grandson of President John F. Kennedy — in which he strongly criticized his cousin, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Schlossberg, the son of diplomat Caroline Kennedy, announced Wednesday that he is running for a U.S. House seat in New York’s 12th Congressional District in 2026. If elected, he would succeed Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that Schlossberg’s statements aren’t worth a direct response. “Obviously, those things are not true,” she said, adding that Secretary Kennedy is “doing a phenomenal job bringing transparency and the gold standard of silent science back to our health care system.”
During an appearance on MSNBC, Schlossberg claimed former President Trump is “obsessed” with the Kennedy family and suggested that’s why RFK Jr. is serving in the administration. He likened his cousin to a dog trained to spread misinformation on Trump’s behalf.
Schlossberg also criticized Kennedy’s June decision to dismiss advisors from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention vaccine panel while pointing to a recent measles outbreak in West Texas, which state health officials declared over in August. “RFK Jr. is a dangerous person who is making life-and-death decisions as secretary of Health and Human Services,” he said.
He further mocked Kennedy for his recent commercial work, joking that when Kennedy isn’t appearing in ads for fast-food or soda brands, he’s spreading harmful information nationwide.
Schlossberg, 32, graduated from Harvard Law School in 2022 and joined Vogue as a political correspondent in 2024.
