Opinion | RFK Jr.'s surprising VP strategy

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Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has chosen a vice presidential pick: Silicon Valley attorney and entrepreneur Nicole Shanahan. It's a surprising choice. Kennedy's public short list spanned ambitious politicians (former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard), widely known celebrities (New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers) and those in between (former professional wrestler and Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura). As I argued earlier in March, those names suggested that Kennedy was hoping to leverage big pop culture names to draw attention to his conspiracy theories, particularly about the medical and public health establishments. 

By contrast, Shanahan is little known outside Silicon Valley. Nor does she have any experience in government that might have conferred a veneer of credibility on Kennedy. Shanahan is embedded in a California tech scene that has shown a growing appetite for experimenting with radical politics. Her views on vaccines, though inchoate, suggest alignment with Kennedy's conspiracy-minded skepticism. 

Kennedy's running mate may not have broadened his appeal, but it may have strengthened his campaign's longevity.

In short, the selection of Shanahan signals that Kennedy is not interested in trying to play the electoral game the way, for example, former President Donald Trump's selection of Mike Pence did in 2016. What Shanahan can offer Kennedy is quite a lot of cash — and access to a lot of other people who do too. Kennedy's running mate may not have broadened his appeal, but it may have strengthened his campaign's longevity by giving it a bigger war chest.

It's unclear how much wealth Shanahan has, but Forbes estimates it could be as much as hundreds of millions of dollars. Part of Shanahan's wealth comes from founding a company that uses artificial intelligence to help patent holders manage intellectual property. Another source comes from her former marriage to Google co-founder Sergey Brin from 2018 to 2022. The Wall Street Journal reported that the two divorced after she allegedly had an affair with Tesla CEO Elon Musk, though both Shanahan and Musk have denied the claim. After divorcing Brin, Shanahan focused on philanthropic work. She currently serves as the president of a charity called the Bia-Echo Foundation, which focuses on, among other things, "reproductive longevity" and "a healthy and livable planet." 

Even before accepting Kennedy's offer to join his ticket, Shanahan had flexed her financial muscles. Earlier this year, she gave $4 million to a pro-Kennedy super PAC to help pay for a Super Bowl ad. She also helped produce that ad, which, to the chagrin of many in Kennedy's family, likened his presidential bid to his uncle John F. Kennedy's 1960 White House run. 

Moreover, Shanahan's connections in Silicon Valley mean she may have connections to other high-dollar donors of libertarian leanings interested in Kennedy's bid. (Twitter founder Jack Dorsey is a fan.) Shanahan's wealth raises an interesting dynamic wherein she could be a huge financier as a vice presidential pick, as opposed to a wealthy self-funded presidential candidate. As NBC News reports, "There is no obvious precedent for vice presidential candidates bankrolling their campaigns, Federal Election Commission rules exempt candidates funding their own campaigns from contribution limits, so it appears she would be able to contribute or lend as much money as she wants to the Kennedy campaign." 

Shanahan has called herself a "lifelong Democrat" and in the 2020 election cycle she donated to a number of Democratic presidential candidates, including Pete Buttigieg and Marianne Williamson, and efforts backing Joe Biden. But on Tuesday, as she announced her decision to join Kennedy, Shanahan said she's "leaving the Democratic Party" and accused Democrats of having "lost their way and their leadership." 

Shanahan shares a key interest of Kennedy's: skepticism of vaccine safety. Shanahan has rejected the label of anti-vaxxer, but has said, "I do wonder about vaccine injuries" and that "there needs to be a space to have these conversations." Shanahan has an autistic daughter and has funded research into the causes of autism. According to The New York Times, part of her motivation for helping finance Kennedy's Super Bowl ad "was concern about the environment, vaccines and children's health, and her belief that Mr. Kennedy was willing to challenge the scientific establishment." Shanahan has also pushed back against characterizing Kennedy an anti-vaxxer, even though he has said, "There's no vaccine that is safe and effective," and has propagated the debunked claim that vaccines cause autism. Ultimately, given how Kennedy's campaign is so focused on vaccines and public health contrarianism, there's no way she could have joined Kennedy as a running mate without at least being very receptive to his many misinformation-laden ideas on vaccines.

Shanahan's likely ideological harmony with Kennedy underscores how much Kennedy's bid is less about winning over a huge share of the general electorate and more about spreading his fringe messages about public health. And her wealth sends a similar message — that the most important asset to Kennedy in a vice president is how much she can help him stay in the public eye. Shanahan doesn't bring national stature or government experience, but she can help bankroll his campaign, including efforts to get on the ballot in states across the country. Her wealth won't necessarily help broaden Kennedy's appeal, but it does make it more likely he can keep his operation going until Election Day. 

Zeeshan Aleem

Zeeshan Aleem is a writer and editor for MSNBC Daily. Previously, he worked at Vox, HuffPost and Politico, and he has also been published in, among other places, The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Nation, and The Intercept. You can sign up for his free politics newsletter here.