Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s running mate, California lawyer Nicole Shanahan, is not shying away from the revelation that Kennedy once suffered from a brain-eating parasitic worm. The health issue—first reported by the New York Times—was discovered in 2012, two years after the independent presidential candidate began experiencing memory loss and mental fogginess.
A doctor reviewing scans believed the tumor-like appearance “was caused by a worm that got into my brain and ate a portion of it and then died,” Kennedy said in a deposition reviewed by the Times.
The reports of Kennedy’s brain worm immediately caused a stir on social media, with some questioning his health and others chalking up his policy takes to apparently losing part of his brain.
Kennedy has sought to portray himself as a fit and healthy alternative to Biden—posting shirtless workout videos and calling on Biden to prove his “mental acuity” to the American people.
“Our children’s lives are dependent on that 3:00 a.m. call, and we need to know that we have a president who can wake up in the middle of the night and who is on his feet and thinking about those things,” Kennedy said in February.
While Biden, who is 81, has repeatedly brushed off concerns about his health and avoids spotlighting the issue—it seems that Kennedy, 70, is taking a different route.
“I have just purchased the domains for http://brainworm.ai and http://brainworm.com,” running mate Shanahan posted on Sunday. “What should they be used for? An uncensored scientific research platform?”
The latter idea is likely a reference to Kennedy’s promotion of dubious anti-vaccine rhetoric and controversial fringe medical theories. Kennedy has, among other things, falsely linked vaccines to autism, claimed COVID-19 targeted people based on their ethnicity, and linked antidepressants to school shootings.
Currently, neither domain bought by Shanahan is live.
But the idea has been widely applauded by Kennedy’s supporters, who dubbed the proposal as “brilliant” and “amazing.”
“Use it to document Donald Trump and Joe Biden’s cognitive decline,” suggested one X user.
“Put together clips of the three main candidates on a series of issues – like a virtual debate,” offered another.
“Use it as a network for family owned farms to consolidate their power and protect our food sources,” recommended someone else.
According to an average of recent national polls, Kennedy sits at 10.8%—the commanding outlier among third-party candidates challenging Biden and Trump.
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