Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has ruled out Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as a potential running mate, although he would consider the Democratic presidential hopeful for a health position in his administration if elected president.
In an interview with Clay Travis on OutKick on July 26, Mr. DeSantis said he and Mr. Kennedy shared the same views on Dr. Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The two also agreed “100 percent” on the “corruption in the health bureaucracies,” the governor added.
“If you’re president, stick him on the FDA if he’d be willing to serve, or stick him on CDC,” Mr. DeSantis said, referring to the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Both presidential hopefuls share a similar view on how Dr. Fauci should be held accountable. During the interview, Mr. DeSantis emphatically said “yes” when asked if he would prosecute Dr. Fauci if elected, before adding that the former director “is guilty of lying before Congress.”
Earlier this month, Mr. Kennedy told Fox News that he would prosecute Dr. Fauci as president if “there were crimes that he committed.”
Running Mate
Mr. DeSantis also dismissed the idea that Mr. Kennedy could potentially be his running mate, saying he “is more liberal.”
“In terms of being veep, there’s 70 percent of the issues that he may be averse to our base on; that just creates an issue,” Mr. DeSantis added.
The governor pointed to Mr. Kennedy’s opposition to the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down affirmative action policies at U.S. colleges and universities.
The Florida governor also mentioned a now-deleted article that Mr. Kennedy wrote in 2014 for EcoWatch, saying: “He used to say—and I don’t know if he still believes this—that if you deny climate change, you should go to jail. Things like that.”
By Frank Fang
