It's certainly a match made in hell: Anti-vaccination conspiracy theorist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has announced that he's considering New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers to be his running mate for his, uh, "presidential" campaign. Scare quotes because there's little reason to believe Kennedy thinks he can even get on the ballot as an independent candidate in all 50 states, much less that he can win. Instead, the goal here appears to be twofold: First, to gin up interest and therefore money for Kennedy's conspiracy theory empire. Second, to siphon off enough votes from President Joe Biden to throw the election to Donald Trump. Unsurprisingly, the Republican-affiliated donors funding Kennedy's campaign have a laser-like focus on getting his name on ballots in swing states, while ignoring deep red or blue states where his presence won't affect the outcome.
When I first saw Kennedy's hype around a potential Rodgers pick, I, with much eye-rolling, read the story to my partner. He responded, "Ugh, everyone hates Aaron Rodgers." To which I said, "No, most people hate him," and he, with a heavy sigh, agreed. Rodgers, whose outstanding career and movie star-good looks, was once a popular enough figure to be considered as a replacement for Alex Trebek on "Jeopardy!" But as he's dived deeper into the world of conspiracy theories and anti-vaccine vitriol, the majority of Americans are sensible enough to be grossed out by Rodgers.
