Political Tensions Rise as Trump’s Online Criticism of Kennedy Family Follows Personal Tragedy

This week, Trump’s social media assault of the Kennedy family after their death turned political. The posts received international condemnation as the Kennedy family grieved Tatiana Schlossberg, a writer and environmental journalist daughter of Caroline Kennedy and granddaughter of John F. Kennedy.

Tatiana Schlossberg, 35, of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation died, according to family. Beyond a month after her diagnosis, acute myeloid leukemia killed her. Schlossberg announced her illness in The New Yorker on May 25, her second child’s birthday. She talked about her mental and physical struggles and future uncertainty, including months of chemotherapy, a bone marrow transplant, and a therapeutic trial.

Trump blasted the Kennedy family on Truth Social but did not comment on Schlossberg’s death. The family opposed Trump’s name on the Kennedy Center, a famous Washington, D.C. performing arts venue. This sparked political and cultural controversy.

Trump said the Kennedy family ignored the Kennedy Center for years by not supporting or funding it. Another post contrasted the Kennedys’ self-centeredness with Trumps’ arts support. This viral comment infuriated fans and detractors.

Karoline Leavitt, White House communications secretary, said Kennedy Center trustees approved the name change this month. The decision was a step toward the institution’s bright future, she said. Kennedy family members vigorously disputed the vote’s validity and method.

According to Kennedy grandson and political candidate Jack Schlossberg, board meeting microphones were muted and the vote was not unanimous. Former Congressman and Robert F. Kennedy grandson Joe Kennedy III suggested that renaming the Kennedy Center could violate federal law as a living memorial. Renaming other national memorials was inappropriate and possibly illegal, he said.

Some family members had major concerns. Kerry Kennedy, daughter of Robert F. Kennedy and a human rights lawyer, accused the Trump administration of suppressing free expression and targeting artists and journalists. Other Kennedy relative Maria Shriver remarked gently that grief and denial require stillness.

Trump’s social media use was attacked quickly. Critics said the tweets’ tone and timing were unacceptable for a bereaved family. Political observers and media dubbed it another instance of party animosity in dignified settings.

Online, human pain and political hyperbole blend. Content, timing, and tone of political leaders’ replies to public figures and families’ grief are scrutinized. The intersection between a family’s grief and a national political battle has raised civility, leadership, and public service problems.

Sources:
White House
John F. Kennedy Library Foundation
Kennedy Center Board of Trustees