RFK Jr. Defends Family's Decision to Wiretap MLK Jr.

Presidential Candidate Argues Wiretapping was a Political Necessity Amid Civil Rights Movement

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., running for president as an independent, defended his family's decision to wiretap Martin Luther King Jr., arguing it was a political necessity at the time.
The wiretapping was approved in 1962 by then-Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy and President John F. Kennedy, following claims by FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover that King was a national security threat.
Kennedy Jr. stated that his father and uncle were 'making big bets on King, particularly in organizing the March on Washington,' and knew that Hoover was out to ruin King.
The surveillance did not reveal any communist ties to King, but did expose extramarital affairs, which were used to blackmail the civil rights leader.
Kennedy Jr.'s comments have drawn criticism, as they seem to contradict his image as a defender of civil liberties. His presidential campaign has been marked by controversy, including his stance against vaccinations and his belief that his uncle was killed by the CIA, not Lee Harvey Oswald.