Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the most high-profile independent presidential candidate since Ross Perot, may not have the poll numbers to take the debate stage next month. But more and more he had something different. It’s the reputation of being the “X factor” of elections. This means that it is increasingly impossible to ignore what is called his “P factor”. Alternatively, it can also be called “K Factor”.
“P” is for Ready and “K” is for Kennedy. The election was fought partly through images that flooded social media and compared archetypes to archetypes. Donald J. Trump, the red-tie 1980s reality TV sultan, and President Biden, D.C.’s aviator-clad dealmaker (Mr. Kennedy) offer a different kind of Rorschach test, to say the least. Stylistically speaking.
His looks (slim signature tie, button down, shrug suit, shock of gray hair, weather-beaten tan) not only set him apart. The book speaks directly to its connection to the early 1960s, a golden age of promise that represented “vitality, wit, charisma and change” buried deep in America’s hive, said Sean Wilentz, professor of American history at Princeton University. . mental.
And it stems from what Lisa Birnbach, co-author of “The Official Preppy Handbook,” calls “the style semiotics of the OG Kennedy man,” namely Kennedy’s uncle, John F. Kennedy, and his father, a presidential candidate. He hopes they will be named after him, along with all the mythology from the Camelot era. It is better to fit the Irish Catholic clan into the Boston Brahmin tradition, not to mention the classic New England style which they regarded as their own camouflage.
And, according to the association, Mr. Kennedy. Fine-tuning his image to evoke his father and uncle has the effect of making people think they know him and what he stands for. The image lends credence to Kennedy’s more unconventional positions, even when his words say otherwise. He has claimed that chemicals in water cause children to be transgender and believes that Wi-Fi can cause chronic diseases. There’s also his anti-vaccination stance.
As a result, even as the Kennedy family officially rejected him as a candidate and supported Mr. Biden, his image-making served as a counter argument without him saying a word.
“He’s cosplaying like Kennedy,” said Avery Trufelman, producer of the podcast Articles of Interest, which includes a seven-part series on the history of preppy, or Ivy, style. She said she had a deep connection to the Kennedy name. Although the association itself came from a unique form of WASP cosplay. At this point, she said, it had become “a very powerful tool.”
Mr. Kennedy has long known the power of the classic Kennedy image expressed through clothing and how it can benefit him. Until 2006, he was the face of Gant, a stylish sportswear brand that ran an $8.5 million campaign with his family to partially benefit his non-profit organization at the time, the Waterkeeper Alliance. Marylou Luther, then editor-in-chief of the International Fashion Syndicate, told the New York Times: “It was the first time in my memory that someone in politics had formed an alliance with a brand in fashion.
Later, he and his family posed for a Gant catalog photo titled “Decorating the Kennedy Summer Home.” Here he goes boating, fishing and barbecuing in khaki shorts and a navy polo shirt, with a pile of red, white and blue towels nearby.
At the time, Kennedy described his style as ‘jeans and khakis’ and ‘thin tie.’ His image-making is all about “nostalgia,” Mr. Birnbach said.
But the perfume was “refracted through a toy mirror,” Mr. Wilentz said.
For the most part, the intricacies of the Kennedy prep origin story have been lost to history, leaving only legend behind. The Kennedys dressed to represent a generational change and to be the breath of fresh air they promised to bring.
Ms. Trupelman said it was a photo of “a young president with his sleeves rolled up on a boat.”
Soccer is played on the lawn. There are Brooks Brothers button-down shirts, rolled-up shirt sleeves, khaki pants, and suits handed down from your father or brother. School crest and shirt with top button left undone. It is derived from New England private school uniforms that evoke wealth and heritage. It’s a natural comfort and birthright that’s especially appealing when times are tough.
These clothing materials constitute “a set of symbols that represent being friendly, competent and approachable,” Mr. Trupelman said. And it is a representative part of the National Style. Despite the rise and fall of streetwear and the fall of the suit, preppy style still holds its own in the fabric of the American wardrobe, intertwined with America’s romantic history and used as a reference point in movies, advertising campaigns and fashion shows.
“This is part of the legacy he is trying to replicate,” said Mr. Wilentz, the historian.
If you doubt it, consider February’s Super Bowl ad, which is a direct imitation of John F. Kennedy’s 1960 campaign ad. Kennedy later apologized for this after his family complained. Although he said the ad was created independently by a super PAC and not his campaign, the fact that most viewers thought it was his ad reflects the message intertwined with his simple image.
Consider related imitations. He appeared on hip-hop news site VladTV wearing a buttoned yellow shirt, sleeves rolled up, and a skinny navy rep tie. Or the various videos he posted on his Instagram page last summer of Mr. Kennedy wearing jeans and no shirt doing push-ups as if he were on the ground for a workout during a game of Capture the Flag. A hidden effort to contrast his boyish vitality (despite being 70, everything is relative) with that of Trump and Biden.
(The Kennedy campaign did not respond to a request for comment.)
Or the fact that his campaign merchandise store not only has the standard T-shirts and hats with slogans like “Make Earth Great Again” and “The Remedy Is Kennedy,” but also a “Resolute Collection” line. Equipment with a sailboat logo. Perhaps this collection is a reference to the 19th-century Arctic explorer Resolute, a gift to the United States from Queen Victoria. Resolute’s wood later became part of the famous Oval Office desks used by five presidents, including John F. Kennedy. (A replica is housed in the Kennedy Library.)
However, since the picture of the boat looks more like a modern sailing ship than a multi-masted warship, it is difficult to look at it without once again falling down a rabbit hole that brings to mind the famous photo of Kennedy sailing at Hyannisport.
This is not only a striking detail, but also a meaningful one that suggests a calculated button-push approach to visual content. This has been happening since the beginning of President Kennedy’s candidacy.
Long story short, when he announced his candidacy, he enlisted the help of Tom Soluri, a costume designer known for his work on “The Golden Bachelor” and the films “The Storied Life of AJ Fikry” and “West Side Story.” And he’s the one who posted about the job on his Instagram page. Mr. Soluri dressed Mr. Kennedy in his trademark skinny tie, white button-down and dark suit.
“I had the privilege of working with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. during his presidential announcement and candidacy.” Ms. Soluri added the hashtag #americanstyle to her post to highlight highlights of her appearance.
The only problem? According to the tag, President Kennedy was wearing the Italian brand Zegna. I suggest once again that the appeal of this kind of WASP-ready royalty is in the eye and imagination of the beholder.
