Jack Schlossberg Says Donald Trump Is ‘So Obsessed’ with the Kennedys That He ‘Caged’ a ‘Rabid’ One to Put in His Cabinet

Jack Schlossberg says Donald Trump‘s “obsession” with his family is the reason he has his cousin, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., in his presidential Cabinet.

While appearing on the MS NOW (formerly MSNBC) program The Weekend, Schlossberg, the only grandson of President John F. Kennedy and first lady Jackie Kennedy, discussed his view of Trump’s dynamic with the Kennedy family.

In the interview with Jackie Alemany, Schlossberg, 32, compared RFK Jr., 71, to a “rabid” animal that the president has “caged.”

Alemany, 36, sparked the conversation surrounding Trump’s “obsessed” behavior toward the Kennedy family and legacy — citing the politician’s decision to release the remaining “JFK files,” reshape the Kennedy Center, eliminate Air Force One’s “Jackie Kennedy color,” alter the Kennedy-era Rose Garden and demolish the nearby Jacqueline Kennedy Garden, named after Schlossberg’s grandmother.

Specifically, she asked Schlossberg, a now-congressional hopeful, “What do you think Trump’s trying to accomplish here? And does it make your decision to run for this seat that much more urgent?”

“My grandfather’s legacy of service means a lot to me,” said Schlossberg, who announced that he is running for Congress and launched his campaign in New York City earlier this week. “He was the youngest person ever elected president. He sent a man to the moon. His White House drafted the Civil Rights Act. And I’m protective over that.”

Schlossberg went on to clarify, “It’s not just my family’s legacy.”

“It’s generations of Americans and New Yorkers who fought and sacrificed to build this country,” he continued, adding that Trump, 79, is “dismantling that legacy.”

The Kennedy heir said that Trump is “obsessed” with his family. He told Alemany that the president’s decision to make his cousin the secretary of health and human services was influenced by this obsession.

“He is so obsessed with the Kennedys and the Kennedy name and the Kennedy brand that he caged one and put it in his Cabinet, a rabid dog in his Cabinet, put a collar on my cousin, RFK Jr.,” said Schlossberg, adding that Trump “has him there barking, spreading lies and spreading misinformation.”

Schlossberg, who was the first member of his family to publicly criticize RFK Jr., also called the health secretary a “dangerous” person.

“I don’t think there’s anything anyone can do to change what JFK, my grandparents, my mom, my uncle [John F. Kennedy Jr.] stood for. Nobody is that powerful,” Schlossberg said, still calling RFK Jr. “a dangerous person who is making life-and-death decisions as secretary of health and human services.”

Schlossberg cited the health secretary’s record of cutting jobs and research at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, as well as his controversial anti-vaccine activism and the growing number of measles cases in the U.S.

“I mean, when he’s not making infomercials for Steak ‘n Shake and Coca-Cola, he’s spreading misinformation and lies that are leading to deaths around the country,” Schlossberg said of the health secretary. 

When asked whether he thinks RFK Jr. is profiting off of his current position in the Trump administration, the congressional hopeful said, “I don’t know who’s paying him, but I know that what he’s saying isn’t making anybody healthier or safer and that the American people should know when he barks, who’s actually talking.”

Schlossberg’s criticisms of his cousin date way back before his turn as Trump’s health secretary.

In July 2023, shortly after RFK Jr. began campaigning for the 2024 Democratic presidential nomination, the Kennedy heir shared a video addressing a speech in which the then-presidential hopeful shared conspiracy theories about vaccines and public health, including misinformation about the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the time, Schlossberg also affirmed his support of Joe Biden. Years earlier, he had also recorded a message in support of Biden’s candidacy with his mother, Caroline Kennedy.

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After news of New York Rep. Jerry Nadler’s plans to retire broke, the son of Caroline and Edwin Schlossberg announced on Tuesday, Nov. 11, that he will be running for his seat in Congress in the hopes of restoring a Democratic majority in the House of Representatives.