'Will say anything to get votes': RFK Jr slammed as he pledges $5B in reparations for Black farmers despite unconstitutional ruling

WASHINGTON, DC: Robert F Kennedy Jr, an independent presidential candidate, has declared that, if he wins, he will back the component of President Joe Biden's American Rescue Plan declared illegal by a court. According to the New York Post, this reparations package would amount to $5 billion for black farmers.

In a recent podcast, Kennedy said to the National Black Farmers Association founder John Boyd Jr, "When I’m in the White House, I’m going to get rid of those people in USDA and get that money. That $5 billion is not money, that is an entitlement. It’s money that was a loan that black farmers were entitled to way back when and was stolen from them through discrimination."

RFK Jr states he would give black farmers $5B in reparations

Notably, a loan aid scheme of about $5 billion was suggested by Biden's American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 for 'socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers', those who 'have been subjected to racial or ethnic prejudice', who suffered financial losses as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak.

However, white farmers in Texas, the Midwest, and Florida swiftly contested the provision, and it was eventually put on hold when federal judge Marcia Morales Howard in Jacksonville granted a preliminary injunction, stating that the measure 'appears to create an inflexible, race-based discriminatory program'.

Kennedy's backing for the $5 billion package was expressed on Monday, May 20, by America First Legal, one of the parties to the case at the time.

AFL Executive Director and General Counsel Gene Hamilton informed the New York Post, "Any public official who thinks it is the government’s role to pick winners and losers based on the color of their skin does not belong in public office. This is the 21st century, and we need to stop living like we are in the 19th century before the Civil War."

Notably, despite making up just 1.4 percent of farmers nationwide, Black farmers, like Boyd, maintain that they have traditionally faced discrimination and should be compensated for their mistreatment.

Moreover, Kennedy's backing of the $5 billion initiative is consistent with his other reparations-related campaign pledges.

Internet slams RFK Jr for saying he would give black farmers $5B in reparations

Many internet users took jibes at RFK Jr. He said if he won, he would back the component of President Biden's American Rescue Plan as the reparations package would amount to $5 billion for black farmers.

A user posted on X, "Gotta buy those votes!" while one added, "I always found it laughable how conservatives actually saw this guy as an alternate choice. He’s further left than Biden."

A person also stated, "RFK is just saying anything he can to get enough votes for a contested election," whereas one mentioned, "Five billion of his own family's money? What's stopping him from doing it now?"

A user also wrote, "Anything to get a vote then bail. Politicians. People will take the bait tho," while one added, "Exactly why he’s not getting my vote."

 

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.