Robert F. Kennedy Jr. struggles to gain traction amid unification on both sides

Former President Donald Trump has solidified Republican support in the wake of an assassination attempt and unity-building national convention, while Vice President Kamala Harris has seamlessly stepped into the Democratic nomination after President Joe Biden withdrew his candidacy.

But Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is nowhere to be seen.

Instead of campaigning, the independent challenger has canceled multiple campaign events and discussed dropping out of the race and backing Trump. Instead of raising serious donations, he’s continuing to rely on his running mate, Nicole Shanahan, and set up a joint fundraising committee with the Libertarian Party. Instead of moving up in the polls, where he’s been stagnant for months, Kennedy has called for himself to be picked as the Democratic nominee to replace Biden.

Kennedy, who was once seen as a historic outside disruptor to the presidential race, remains a threat — if he can be a spoiler in a few key states in a close presidential race.

“One would think that any well-heeled, well-known independent or third party challenger should have been able to gain some momentum, and it almost seems that the Kennedy campaign went backwards during the post-debate coverage,” said Christopher Thrasher, a ballot access attorney and political consultant who has advised multiple independent and third party campaigns.

But far from trying to capitalize on the moment of upheaval, Kennedy had to issue a statement on social media during the Republican National Convention last week to deny he was leaving the race — after he took a private meeting in Milwaukee with Trump to discuss dropping out. Officially, his campaign continues to insist he’s “surging,” including in an email to supporters on Tuesday morning.

The campaign did not respond to a request for comment and list of questions for this story.

But new details about the meeting, which was facilitated by Tucker Carlson, suggest that Kennedy was considering suspending his campaign in exchange for a potential job in a second Trump administration. The two discussed the possibility of a job with a health-related portfolio in exchange for the political family scion’s support, according to a person familiar with the conversation granted anonymity to discuss the private meeting. The Washington Post first reported the readout of the meeting.

The position floated for Kennedy was undetermined, but the idea fell apart, the person familiar with the conversation said.

“There was a widespread expectation in the Kennedy camp that Trump was going to make the deal, which was why he stayed in Milwaukee for several days,” said Ben Braddock, a health commentator close to the campaign. “As of last Thursday morning the buzz was that there would be an appearance on the final night. Maybe the Trump campaign decided it was better for Kennedy to stay in to bleed votes from Biden.”

Trump and Kennedy also had a phone conversation on Sunday before the in-person meeting in Milwaukee, according to a second person familiar with how the call came together. In a leaked video revealing part of that phone conversation, Trump expressed concerns about the side effects of infant vaccines — an area of Kennedy’s advocacy before he ran for president last year.

This isn’t the first time Trump and Kennedy met about a possible job opportunity. They had a similar discussion during the transition period at Trump Tower in 2017. After the meeting, Kennedy told Science magazine that he was under consideration to oversee a vaccine safety review commission. A Trump spokesperson at the time declined that any decisions had been made.

While Kennedy did not ultimately secure a job offer, it did result in Trump’s team brokering a meeting between then-NIH head Anthony Fauci and Kennedy.

The most recent conversations with Trump came as the campaign struggles financially and is carrying $3 million worth of debt, according to its most recent financial disclosures. Kennedy has spent more money than he has raised in the last four consecutive months in the race, when excluding the self-funding contributions from Shanahan.

In a new attempt to raise cash, Kennedy set up a joint-fundraising committee with the Libertarian Party, according to a campaign press release. That would allow both Kennedy and the Libertarians to raise more money from individual donors, potentially helping the campaign’s money woes. But the plan was immediately met with pushback from within its ranks and is being appealed on the basis that it violates its bylaws.

Kennedy has also canceled a series of campaign events in the last two weeks, including a press conference at the National Press Club in Washington, a live-audience interview at the CNN-POLITICO Grill at the RNC and a farm visit in Wisconsin.

His last campaign rally was on May 19 in Denver, Colorado, though he has secured speaking slots at conventions and with other hosts in the interim. The next event on his public schedule is a private reception and an address at a Bitcoin conference later this week.

To promote his viability, Kennedy’s team released new internal polling numbers that showed him performing well in a head-to-head matchup against Trump on Sunday .

“Kennedy is in no way dropping out. That's not going to happen,” Larry Sharpe, a third party political consultant who works with the super PAC backing Kennedy, said on Monday. “There is a higher chance of the Democrats putting him on their ticket than him dropping out. And Democrats are not going to put him on a ticket.”

Alex Isenstadt contributed to this report.