Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Economic Plan: What You Need to Know

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Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Economic Plan: An Overview

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was an independent presidential candidate in the 2024 election. His campaign leaned on a populist message, often emphasizing the need for policies that prioritized the economics of the general public over that of Wall Street. He announced he was pausing his candidacy on August 23, 2024.

Kennedy’s economic plan included policies that would “free government from the corrupt influence of mega-corporations and Wall Street” and redirect military spending to “rebuilding of America’s infrastructure, economy and middle class.”

Often referred to as RFK Jr., the candidate emphasized his plans to cut inflation, increase wages, provide debt relief for American families, cut tax loopholes for corporations, and more. It remains to be seen what impact his past economic plans and overall campaign may have on the general election in November 2024.

Key Takeaways

• Robert F. Kennedy Jr. paused his candidacy for president in August 2024.
• His economic plan hoped to prioritize Americans’ personal economies over war and Wall Street.
• Key policies proposed by JFK Jr. aimed to address economic issues and promote prosperity.
• Kennedy’s plan included strategies for creating jobs, reducing income inequality, and promoting wealth redistribution.
• Infrastructure investment, education, and workforce development were key focus areas in Kennedy’s economic plan.

Nephew of former president John F. Kennedy and a long-time environmental lawyer, the former presidential candidate left the Democratic primary in October 2023 to run as an independent. Kennedy became well-known during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic due to his vocal opposition to vaccines—a stance he has since retracted. Some have criticized him for inconsistencies in his statements and for promoting conspiracy theories.

Kennedy’s Vision for the Economy and Key Policies

Kennedy’s articulated stance on the economy was grounded in his focus on the personal economy of Americans. He stated that one of his top priorities as president would have been “to dissolve the corrupt merger of state and corporate power,” which he sees as a means to “[free] government agencies from the control of big corporations,” according to his website.

Kennedy proposed policies to address economic issues, including wage increases, lowering housing costs, eliminating tax deductions that he says benefit corporations and the wealthy, relief for student loan borrowers, and more.

To pay for his economic policies, Kennedy proposed cutting military spending, including in Ukraine, and ending “corporate giveaways” and bailouts for corporations. After years of work as an environmental lawyer, many of Kennedy’s economic policies were intertwined with environmental policy suggestions, including requiring companies in the fossil fuel industry to internalize their costs and supporting industries like wind and solar. He advocates for what he calls the “free-market approach to energy and environmental issues.”

Job Creation and Economic Growth

Much of Kennedy’s plan for economic growth centered on labor policies. He has said that he was committed to being “the strongest pro-labor President since the 1960s.” A major aspect of his former presidential campaign included talk of increasing wages and supporting collective bargaining.

The former presidential candidate said he planned to raise the minimum wage to $15 with “automatic further increases to keep pace with inflation” and allow workers to negotiate for fair wages by prosecuting “union-busting corporations.” His labor policy also included a federal tax deduction for union dues and support for the Protecting the Right to Organize Act (PRO Act), which would make it easier for workers to form unions. Kennedy said he would also plan to promote the on-shoring of industrial production—policies that incentivize domestic production—”so that American workers are not pitted in competition against workers from low-wage countries.”

Kennedy said that his increased scrutiny on large corporations would support small businesses.

Income Inequality and Wealth Distribution

In 2020, Kennedy told Yahoo Finance, “I definitely think that the gap between rich and poor in this country is much too large, that we’ve destroyed the middle class, and that the very wealthy people ought to be paying more in taxes and corporations.”

He echoed this sentiment throughout his failed campaign. According to his campaign website, the guiding principle of his economic policies was that “people who work hard should be able to afford a good life.”

Kennedy said his plan was to “restore the American middle class by reversing the missteps of the last 50 years.” In addition to his labor-related policies mentioned above, Kennedy planned to “expand free childcare to millions of families with programs like that pioneered by the state of New Mexico.” In April 2022, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham announced a program that covered childcare for most families in the state for a year. Other proposed policies included cutting energy prices by restricting natural gas exports and cutting drug costs.

The candidate also planned to “clean out the corruption in Washington, D.C., which funnels so much of our nation’s wealth to giant corporations and billionaires,” though there were no details on how exactly this would look.

Taxation and Fiscal Policy

The former independent presidential candidate said that he would reduce the tax burden on the middle and working classes. He planned to do this by “closing loopholes and eliminating deductions that only benefit the wealthy.”

He proposed doubling the child tax credit, which is a benefit for American taxpayers with children under the age of 17. The credit is currently $2,000 for each child that qualifies.

Kennedy planned to restore the personal tax exemption of $5,000, increase the standard deduction and eliminate the carried interest “loophole.” Critics of carried interest say that it lets private-equity managers secure a reduced tax rate.

Infrastructure Investment

Kennedy’s policy priorities included redirecting military spending toward rebuilding America’s infrastructure. The candidate even said he would push to cut military spending in half. However, his policy plan did not outline exactly what infrastructure investment would look like. Or how they would be paid for.

“It is time to end the imperial project and attend to all that has been neglected: the crumbling cities, the antiquated railways, the failing water systems, the decaying infrastructure, the ailing economy,” his website read.

Education and Workforce Development

JFK Jr.’s policies included addressing student debt. Kennedy had said that if elected, he would “galvanize” Congress to pass student debt relief. The policy plan for higher education, outlined on his website, included proposed legislation to make student debt easier to discharge in bankruptcy and abolish interest on student loans. The plan also included putting schools on the hook for defaults rather than loan companies.

Note

In 2023, Kennedy criticized President Joe Biden’s failure to defend his student loan debt cancellation program, which was struck down by the Supreme Court.

Another major aspect of Kennedy’s education and workforce development policies included expanding Americorps. Also known as National Civilian Community Corps, Americorps is a full-time service program for people ages 18 to 26. Kennedy wanted to expand the program to a four-year service program for all people age 18 and older with benefits including food, housing, medical care, a monthly stipend, and assistance with college tuition.

The candidate’s policy plan also included increasing financial support for students who want to pursue non-traditional programs and providing more funding to trade schools.

International Trade and Economic Relations

Kennedy’s policy proposals included negotiating “trade deals that prevent low-wage countries from competing with American workers in a ‘race to the bottom.'”

In May 2023, he posted on X that if elected president, he would consider “tariffs on imports from countries that allow exploitation of workers.” He echoed this sentiment later that year in another post on X, saying he would “renegotiate free trade agreements and impose compensatory tariffs on imports from low-wage countries.”

What Party Does Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Belong To?

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ran an independent candidate after ending his run for a Democratic nomination in 2023.

Kennedy’s campaign website said he “was a lifelong Democrat but became increasingly estranged from the party in the 2010s as it drifted away from its traditional values.” The site also said he would have adopted “policies that are off the radar of either party, and that get drowned out by the partisan bickering.”

What Is the Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Blockchain Budget?

Kennedy has expressed that he wants the U.S. budget on blockchain, which is the distributed database or ledger most commonly known for being the powerhouse of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

“I’m going to put the entire U.S. budget on blockchain so that any American—every American can look at every budget item in the entire budget anytime they want 24 hours a day,” the presidential candidate said during a rally in April 2024.

This wasn’t Kennedy’s crypto-related plans. The failed presidential candidate also said that as president he would have pushed to exempt bitcoin from capital gains taxes when the crypto is converted into U.S. dollars and back the dollar with bitcoin.

What Is Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Plan to Curb Inflation?

Kennedy’s plans to cut inflation included a plan to “keep the dollar strong by restoring industry and stopping the weaponization of the US dollar that is eroding its reserve currency status,” according to his campaign site. The plan also included cutting housing costs via a federally-backed 3% mortgage program and cutting health care costs by “getting pharmaceutical industry corruption out of our regulatory agencies and health policy.” Finally, he planned to lower the government deficits by decreasing defense spending and corporate giveaways.

What Is Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Position on Abortion?

To summarize his position on abortion, Kennedy’s campaign website pointed to the following quote: “My stance is that every abortion is a tragedy, but I’ve spent my life advocating for bodily autonomy and bodily independence. And I don’t think the government is the right entity to be telling women what they should be doing with their bodies.”

The campaign site added that Kennedy “calls for devoting all the resources burned up in the abortion fight to supporting mothers who want to carry their babies to term, who lack the resources to do so.”

The Bottom Line

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was an independent presidential candidate in the 2024 general election until August 2024. Kennedy gained some notoriety for his controversial positions on certain issues, notably the COVID-19 pandemic and vaccines. RFK Jr.’s populist message and economic plan included proposals to support unions, invest in domestic job creation, address the wealth gap, and renegotiate trade deals.

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