The White House denounced comments by Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. that falsely claimed Jewish and Chinese people were “most immune” to Covid-19.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre called the remarks an “attack on our fellow citizens” that fuel antisemitism and racial bias.
“The claims made on that tape is false. It is vile. And they put our fellow Americans in danger,” Jean-Pierre said at her Monday press briefing.
Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison also condemned Kennedy’s comments, saying “they do not represent the views of the Democratic Party.”
Kennedy, the son of Robert F. Kennedy — a former US attorney general and senator assassinated during his 1968 campaign for president, has become a vocal anti-vaccine activist. Kennedy has promoted conspiracy theories about the dangers of vaccines and has become more prominent for his views since the coronavirus pandemic.
An article published in the New York Post last week included video that appears to show Kennedy at a dinner saying that Covid-19 “attacks certain races disproportionately.”
“Covid-19 is targeted to attack Caucasians and black people. The people who are most immune are Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese,” Kennedy said.
In a tweet, Kennedy claimed the Post story was “mistaken.”