White House breaks silence on Robert F. Kennedy Jr: 'Incredibly dangerous'

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre denounced on Monday comments made by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a Democratic challenger to President Joe Biden's reelection efforts.

Kennedy claimed in a recently unearthed video that COVID-19 was genetically engineered to protect Chinese and Jewish people. The White House has thus far avoided commenting on statements by Kennedy by invoking the Hatch Act, which prevents official personnel from commenting on elections and candidates.

During Monday's briefing, however, Jean-Pierre directly refuted Kennedy's claims.

"I think if you look at the last two, three years since 2020, since this pandemic hit, there are countless Americans, American families who are seeing an empty seat at the Thanksgiving table," she told reporters when asked about Kennedy's comments. "So the claims made on that tape are false. It is vile, and they put our fellow Americans in danger."