ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) – Robert F. Kennedy Jr. keno volley sometimes heated from Tuesday’s questions from lawyers challenging the claim of living in New York and seeking to keep its candidate from the state presidential ballot.
Kennedy testified that his address was in the New York City suburb of Katonah, and he said he only moved to California temporarily in 2014 to be with his wife, the “Curb Your Enthusiasm” actor. Cheryl Hines. A lawsuit filed on behalf of some voters seeks to overturn New York’s ballot petitions.
In one tense exchange in an Albany courtroom, attorney Keith Corbett produced a July 2 affidavit from Kennedy saying his driver’s license was registered to a Katonah address. But Corbett said government documents show the registry didn’t list the address until the next day.
“You are familiar with the term ‘perjury’?” Corbett asked.
“Of course I am,” Kennedy replied, adding that his assistant handled the paperwork.
“I will definitely correct this. I was wrong for 24 hours,” Kennedy said.
“I’ve lived in New York for 50 years,” he said.
Corbett raised doubts about Kennedy’s residency claims on several fronts. He gave Kennedy his federal candidacy statement with a Los Angeles address and the candidate admitted that he had moved his memorabilia, books and pets from New York to California.
“Dogs come, eagles stay,” Kennedy said, referring to the raptors.
Kennedy, dressed in a blue suit, confidently answered many questions but seemed less confident with some questions related to a series of trusts and real estate transactions. He objected when Corbett produced documents showing Kennedy voted in 2016 with a list of addresses for a suburban New York home his sister had sold a year earlier. When Corbett bought into voter fraud, Kennedy replied: “My testimony here is that I have never lied to anybody.”
Kennedy’s testimony continues Wednesday.
The suit states that Kennedy’s New York election nomination petition lists his residence in Katonah while he has lived in the Los Angeles area since 2014. The suit is supported by Clear Choice PAC, a super PAC led by supporters of Democratic President Joe Biden. Judges are set to decide the outcome without a jury.
Earlier in the day, the woman who owns the Katonah property testified that Kennedy rented a room from her for $500 a month, but admitted that the payment began the day after a news article questioned the claim of the candidate living in New York.
Barbara Moss has owned property in Katonah since 1991 and lives there with her husband, Timothy Haydock, an old Kennedy friend, according to court papers.
Under questioning from Kennedy’s attorney William F. Savino, Moss said Kennedy was her tenant who paid $500 a month for the room. There was no written lease, he said.
“As long as Bobby needs the room, it will continue,” he said, “That’s our understanding.”
A lawyer for the petitioners, John Quinn, noted that the first payment to Moss was made on May 20, the day after the New York Post story casting doubt on Kennedy’s claim to live at that address. And Moss insisted that the initial payment was $6,000, the same amount as a year’s rent.
The lawsuit alleges Kennedy “mostly only visited” the home about 40 miles (65 kilometers) north of midtown Manhattan.
In a video posted on his Facebook page Tuesday, Kennedy, 70, said he has lived in New York since his father moved there in 1964 to run a successful campaign for the US Senate. This is after his father’s sister, John F. Kennedy, killed. His own father was also shot dead in 1968 when he was president.
“I moved to California in 2014 … to support Cheryl, who couldn’t move at that time. One of us had to,” said Kennedy, who led a New York-based environmental group for decades. go back to New York and maybe he’ll do Broadway or something.
“But I stay in New York because I love New York,” he said. “It’s a part of me. It’s a part of my identity, and it’s important for me to keep it.”
Kennedy has said in court papers that he moved to the Katonah address after being asked last year to leave his nearby home. That account was disputed in court Monday by the home’s owner, who said Kennedy never rented it.
While an independent presidential candidate like Kennedy faces long odds, he has the potential to do better than any other candidate in decades, helped by his famous name and loyal base. Democratic and Republican strategists worry it could affect their candidates’ chances.
Kennedy’s campaign says he has enough signatures to qualify in 42 states so far. His vote has faced challenges and lawsuits in several states, including North Carolina and New Jersey.
