Nicole Shanahan, the East Bay mega-donor turned vice presidential running mate of independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., accused Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna in recent social media posts of privately supporting her political aspirations before “flipping the switch” and publicly urging her through the media to drop out.
Shanahan, a lawyer with Silicon Valley connections as the ex-wife of Google co-founder Sergey Brin, said she was contacted by CBS about a letter to her from Khanna urging her to drop out of the race to avoid pulling votes from President Biden and helping former President Donald Trump return to the White House. She indicated that she hadn’t personally received the letter, and she posted on the social media platform X that the congressman initially encouraged her to run.
“In my conversation with Ro he congratulated me on the position and encouraged me to run, stating that every American has the right to run in this country,” Shanahan posted Tuesday. “He stated that we live in a democracy, and it was wrong for anyone to threaten me against running. Clearly, Ro has changed his stance based on pressure from the party. I hope he understands how anti-democratic it is to ask someone to step down from a race that empowers the American public to make their own decisions. I am very disappointed that he has been pressured into issuing this letter to me publicly. He could have called me privately. He has my direct line.”
.@CBS just sent this to me:
“I have received a letter from Rep. Ro Khanna, intended for Nicole Shanahan, urging her to step down as RFK Jr.’s running mate. In the letter, Rep. Khanna warns Shanahan that supporting Kennedy could aid Trump’s return to the White House and have…
— Nicole Shanahan (@NicoleShanahan) April 9, 2024
Kennedy joined in with a post that said he’d “always admired Ro Khanna” and that “his flip flop here is disappointing.”
“The party has power to bludgeon men of character into wavering,” Kennedy said.
Im so grateful for your courage and grace Nicole. I have always admired RoKhanna. His flip flop here is disappointing. The party has power to bludgeon men of character into waivering.
— Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) April 10, 2024
Khanna in a posted response said that while he’d indicated Shanahan had a right to run, he’d also cautioned that doing so would jeopardize issues she’s championed.
“Nicole has every right to be on the ticket,” Khanna posted. “My point to her both publicly and privately has been that RFK’s ticket threatens the very issues she cares about — such as climate and abortion rights.”
The congressman included an image of a text message to Shanahan in which he congratulated her on her selection as Kennedy’s running mate, and said “I want to be very respectful because I believe everyone has the right to run.”
“But I would hope you might consider joining the Biden efforts at some point to do and push for bold things on regenerative agriculture and climate,” Khanna’s text continued. “Let’s keep the lines of communication and dialogue open. Warmly, Ro.”
Nicole has every right to be on the ticket. My point to her both publicly and privately has been that RFK’s ticket threatens the very issues she cares about –such as climate and abortion rights and to welcome her into the Democratic Party. https://t.co/MDE15wONHU pic.twitter.com/tPzsU4IZWH
— Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) April 9, 2024
Kennedy, the son of former Democratic New York Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, who was assassinated during a presidential bid in 1968, and nephew of former Democratic President John F. Kennedy who was assassinated in Dallas in 1963, is an environmental lawyer who also has criticized vaccine safety. His independent campaign has appealed mostly to many left-leaning voters who feel alienated by the Biden administration and Democratic Party.
Polls have indicated a tight presidential race in November between Biden and his Republican rival Trump, but according to The Hill, Kennedy is the highest polling third-party presidential candidate since businessman Ross Perot in 1992. The RealClearPolitics national average on Wednesday put Trump at 41.9%, Biden at 40%, Kennedy at 10%, independent candidate Cornel West at 1.7% and the Green Party’s Jill Stein at 1.5%.
Khanna, who’s represented the South Bay’s 17th Congressional District since 2016, is a lawyer who aligns with the Democratic Party’s progressive wing, and co-chaired Rep. Barbara Lee’s unsuccessful U.S. Senate run.
His communications director Marie Baldassarre said Khanna had spoken with Shanahan by phone before he sent her the text message but insisted he never encouraged her to join Kennedy’s campaign. He later sent the open letter to encourage her to drop out.
“He never encouraged her to join the ticket,” Baldassarre said. “They had a phone call and immediately after the phone call he texted her. He said you have the right to run but I certainly don’t encourage this.”
Shanahan countered Khanna’s response Wednesday with a post calling his letter urging her to drop out “performative.”
“You have my phone number and could have called instead of going to the press,” Shanahan said.
.@RoKhanna you have my phone number and could have called instead of going to the press. This is performative. https://t.co/znc7uhrLuw https://t.co/ZSZiSAVyW5
— Nicole Shanahan (@NicoleShanahan) April 10, 2024