RFK Jr., Jill Stein Excluded From First US Presidential Debate

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Facts

  • CNN announced on Thursday that Donald Trump and Pres. Joe Biden are the only candidates to meet the constitutional, ballot, and polling qualifications for the upcoming US presidential debate on June 27.1
  • Candidates must qualify for enough ballots to meet the '270 electoral vote threshold' necessary to win the presidency and receive at least 15% in four separate national polls in order to qualify, CNN announced in May.2
  • Independent Robert F. Kennedy Jr. met the polling threshold in only three out of the four major polls and is eligible for 89 electoral votes.3
  • In May, RFK Jr. filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) arguing that CNN and the Trump and Biden campaigns violated federal campaign laws by allegedly colluding to exclude third-party and independent candidates from the debate.4
  • Presumptive Green Party nominee Dr. Jill Stein— who also failed to qualify for the debate — previously argued that major polls did not include third-party candidates such as RFK Jr., Cornell West, or herself enough to be fair.5
  • Dr. Stein filed her own complaint to the FEC on June 19, which adopted RFK Jr.'s 'factual and legal arguments' while also arguing that 'the process and selection of' debate criteria constitutes 'prohibited coordinated communications.'6

Sources: 1CNN (a), 2CNN (b), 3Axios, 4CNN (c), 5Jillstein2024 (a) and 6Jillstein2024 (b).

Narratives

  • Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by Jill Stein 2024. CNN’s criteria for debate participation, by its very nature, is designed to prevent alternative voices from being heard and reduce choice for the American people. The media is colluding with the Republicans and Democrats to exclude third-party and independent voices in order to ensure that only Joe Biden and Donald Trump have a realistic chance of success. Most Americans want to hear from outside of the two-party system.
  • Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by CNN. CNN’s criteria for candidates to participate in the first presidential debate are objective and were set before it issued invitations to the candidates. If candidates who don’t satisfy the debate participation requirements were allowed to participate, the democratic process could actually be undermined by reducing the amount of time that those who have a realistic prospect of success have to speak.

Predictions