Consider This from NPR - Is Kennedy heir Jack Schlossberg ready to lead?

Episode Date: May 18, 2026

Is Kennedy heir Jack Schlossberg ready to lead? We ask him.Schlossberg seems to be trying to follow the path his grandfather John F. Kennedy took when he was elected to Congress almost eight decades ago.And his campaign has momentum. Lots of attention, favorable press and the endorsement of Speaker of the House emeritus Nancy Pelosi.But now after the New York Times article – he’s speaking out – a lot.  For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at [e-mail] episode was produced by Mia Venkat, with audio engineering by Ted Mebane.It was edited by Courtney Dorning.Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

It's consider this, where every day we go deep on one big news story. Today, the heir to a political dynasty tries to take his place. A little less than a year ago, John Bouvier-Kennedy Schlossberg, better known as Jack, was hosting a YouTube show from his van. And I saw a dolphin yesterday. In the East River. No, in Hudson. I couldn't believe it. And trolling his Kennedy cousin, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s history of anti-vaccine activism.

Lifelong anti-Semite RFK loser who claimed that COVID was caused by Oskanazi Jews announces another baseless claim. But when New York Democratic Congressman Jerry Nadler decided not to run for re-election to New York's 12th congressional district, the son of Caroline Kennedy, the grandson of President John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis decided to throw his hat into the ring. I'm not running because I have all the answers to our problems. I'm running because the people of New York 12 do. Schlaasberg is selling himself as an unconventional candidate who has the media savvy to break through the 24-7 den of social media. But this new media candidate from one of the oldest political dynasties in America has gotten attention from

traditional media that most first-time congressional candidates can only dream up. I was also a Senate page for my Uncle Teddy. There was the lengthy profile and interview with Mo Rocca on CBS's Sunday morning. There's a lot of misinformation now and iconography being used about the Kennedy family, my family, at a time when we really can't afford to confuse people. Then the diner lunch and tour of New York's Grand Central Station with CNN's Dana Bash. An American landmark still standing largely thanks to his grandmother, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. She helped to save Grand Central Station. She's Upper East Side, Born and Brett. So she's from the district I'm running it. And the 4,000-word profile in the New York Times

ahead of his campaign announcement. But now, that same newspaper has published a detailed behind-the-scenes story about Schlensberg's campaign that has people questioning his credentials and readiness to serve. He defended himself against the claims of that article in an interview last week on the brief with Jen Saki. So you didn't skip meetings early on in the campaign or in the first couple of weeks. Who would I be meeting with? Who is this person? I have no idea what they're talking about. And they said that I took a nap in November. And if that's their idea of a scandal, then I think that that is evidence to everyone in New York that I'm running a basically flawless campaign.

Consider this. Jack Schlossberg wants to join the ranks of this family's political dynasty. Is he ready? Coming up, I ask him. From NPR, I'm Juana Summers. It's Consider This from NPR. On June 23rd, New York Democrats go to the polls. Those in Manhattan's 12th congressional district, one of the richest in the country, will pick the candidate who will most likely succeed 17-term Congressman Jerry Nadler. One of the men competing for this reliably Democratic seat is Jack Schlaasberg. Schlesberg seems to be trying to follow the path as grandfather John F. Kennedy took when he was elected to Congress almost eight decades ago. And his campaign has momentum, lots of attention, favorable press, and the endorsement of Speaker of the House Emeritus Nancy Pelosi. But now after the New York Times article, he's speaking out a lot. I spoke to him on Monday afternoon. Hey, how are you? Thanks so much for having me. Thanks for being here. Okay, we'll get to the New York Times story, but for people outside of New York who know your family, they may not know. you make the case. Why do you want to serve in Congress? Well, our campaign slogan is believe in something again. This is our country's 250th birthday as a nation, New York City, where the Bill of Rights was signed. And I think about a past where America became the greatest country on earth because people

believe in government. And right now, it's really hard to believe anything that is coming out of our president's mouth, is cabinet officials mouth. They lie to us. We know it. And it's easy to get to this illusion. But I'm running because I'll never stop believing in politics as a noble profession. And we've got a lot of work to do to make life better here in New York and around the country because the Democratic Party is in trouble. We're on the ropes. We've got no power on a federal level. And we need to shake things up and do things differently because we're running out of time. I want to push on this a bit if I can as to why someone with the background that you have, a law degree, a business degree, social media savvy, why someone like that would want to go to Congress? I mean, Congress has a 10% approval rating right now. So why do you, or frankly, would anyone want to serve in a body that so many Americans just don't respect and that they don't feel like is working for them? People ask me why I want to run for Congress. And I always laugh a little bit because I want to pass laws. That's why I want to go to Congress. As you said, I've got a law degree. I have worked in policy. I work at the State Department and on campaigns. And I think that I have a lot to contribute to our party and to advocate on behalf of New York 12, the place where I was born and raised.

I want to make sure this district, which is like the center of the universe, you know, the whole world starts counting time every New Year's Eve from our district. I want to make sure that we are heard loud and clear in Washington. And politics in 2026 is different than it has been in the past. I know how government works and I can read and understand legislation as well as anybody. that's not enough anymore. You've got to also run a mini production company to get your message out there and become more persuasive as a party. I do have to ask, though, I mean, right now momentum does seem to be turning towards Democrats, but anything is possible in politics. And the way that redistricting is playing out across this country means you could likely be headed into an often gridlocked body as a junior congressman in the minority party.

So I do want to ask, do you think it's actually possible to implement a progressive agenda? I absolutely do. Of course I do. First of all, you know, things are bad right now. I understand this is a dark moment in political history, and it's easy to give up and be dissolution. But things have always been very difficult in American politics. And some of the most important progressive pieces of legislation, the post-war reconstruction amendments, the New Deal, these came after moments of intense struggle in our country and division. I mean, Trump has shown us exactly who he is. He is not popular. He is not for the people that he said he was for. And the economy is not doing well for.

for working families. I think we have a huge opportunity here to show people that the Democrats are a party of effective governments. And I think that that also means being more persuasive and making sure that we explain to people why we're the ones who are fighting to keep their health care. We're the ones who are fighting for sane immigration policy. We're the ones who are trying to lower their costs on their rent and their gas and their groceries. And we live in a polluted media ecosystem. And I know how to breathe in that environment. And I want to lend my voice and my energy and skills to that effort. We do need to take a couple of minutes to talk about the New York Times story that I mentioned.

It describes erratic behavior, a high staff, turnover, and missed meetings. And you have come out aggressively to refute the reporting in that article. And I don't want to spend a lot of time litigating everything. You've done that in other interviews. But I want to ask you about the sort of big question that the article poses. Are you ready for this job at this moment of political divisiveness? Absolutely. I have a lot of life experience and a lot of experience in breaking through.

in advocating for the things that I believe in, speaking treat to power. And, you know, I'm so proud of the campaign that we run. People may not know this, but I'm running an insurgent campaign as an outsider. It might be hard for people listening to believe that Kennedy is an outsider. Kennedy is an outsider who went to Harvard in Yale. Exactly. I am. I am running against political machines here in New York, and they don't want to change.

And the same people I'm running against are the same people behind that article. And they quoted anonymous sources and said that I miss meetings. Look, I got started running campaigns in. November. I decided after a couple weeks that I didn't want to have all the consultants, everybody has. I didn't want to do everything by the book like everybody was telling me. And I have a core group of people who have been with me since the beginning, and we're doing things really differently. We don't have a super PAC. We don't take money from corporate packs, from AI companies. And we've released more policy plans than any other campaign. And we do

more events than any other campaign. We've shaken more hands than any other campaign. And we're outraising every other campaign. We were happily being underestimated for the first six months the campaign, but about a month ago, we were declared the frontrunner, and so now everybody's got something to say, and the attacks are coming. And the best that they've got is that maybe I took a nap back in November, and I think that that's the kind of evidence that we're running a flawless campaign. Just to push you a bit, degrees from Harvard and Yale and knowing how to deliver a message and your social media acumen, those are all impressive things, but what do you say to some of the people in your district who wonder whether that's enough to get things done or who

were uneasy with the fact that at 33 years old, you haven't really settled into a single job. Well, I would say that I've been working my entire life on the things that I care about. I've worked jobs abroad in Japan at the State Department. As you mentioned, law and business degree. And I also work for the Biden campaign as one of the top surrogates for the Biden-Harris campaign, getting more young people, especially excited about our party than basically anybody else, definitely the people that I'm running against. So I've got experience breaking through and getting the very voters that we need to

excited about politics, excited about politics. I would also say that none of the people that I'm running against knows how to be a congressman. The other two, one has completed one full term in the State Assembly. The other is in his first, has completed zero full terms. And I don't have the same experience that they do, but I have a lot of life experience. And I've spent time studying politics, history, and law. And above all, because of my energy, creativity and also the unique circumstances of who I am and my family, I come to Washington with something that all. politicians want, and that is the ability to get attention for issues that they care about. And lastly, Jack, your sister Tatiana died late last year, and you've talked openly about her loss.

You've said she was your best friend and how deeply you feel her absence that her death has made you realize how important it is to act. If you win in a little over a month from today, what would you say to her? What would she say to you? I think she would be laughing her head off and giving me a huge hug. We would be smiling. about all of the success we had, the team we built, all the different kinds of people in funny situations that we found ourselves in. That's the thing I miss most is being able to tell her about the funny things that only she would understand. But she's still with me all the time. She taught me a lot in life, but her final lesson was how to walk a single path in victory or defeat and to make sure that you carry your head high and to make use of every precious moment that we have on earth.

and it's given me all the strength I need to keep going. We've been speaking with Jack Schlaasberg, Democratic candidate for New York's 12th Congressional District. Thanks for the time. Thank you very much. I appreciate it. This episode was produced by Mia Venkat with audio engineering by Ted Mebain. It was edited by Courtney Dorney. Our executive producer is Sammy Yenigan. It's Consider This from NPR.

I'm Juana Summers.