Politics

FLASHBACK: Filthy Rich Kennedy Family Lived Behind Walls And Armed Protection For DECADES

REUTERS/Brian Snyder

Julian Gillespie Contributor
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Beside saliva malfunctions and reminders of his Uncle Ted’s role in Mary Jo Kopechne’s death, Joe Kennedy III’s rebuttal to the State of the Union address had other issues.

The congressman used lofty rhetoric regarding what would happen if he were in charge of border integrity.

In a statement meant to dare the Trump administration, Kennedy declared, “Build a wall and my generation will tear it down.”

The quote, he said, was witnessed on posters at recent political rallies that promote more porous borders.

Yet the young congressman failed to mention that generations of Kennedys preceding him have enjoyed the protections and sanctity provided by walls and extra security at compounds stretching from Cape Cod to Palm Beach.

When the Kennedy family sold the estate in Palm Beach, Florida in 1995, the walls and gate were the only part of the two-acre oceanfront compound to be legally protected, according to The New York Times. The family had fought for years to keep the estate from historical designation to help resale value and make remodeling less complicated for a new owner.

The estate, which is only six miles from Mar-a-Lago, sold again in 2015 for $31 million. Meanwhile, the famed six-acre Kennedy compound with three homes on the Hyannis Port waterfront often had extra layers of police protection due to tourist curiosity surrounding the Kennedys. The estate was bequeathed to the Edward M. Kennedy Institute after the senator’s death in 2009.

It’s unclear if these walls and border protections were immoral in the eyes of the 37-year-old Kennedy. He added last evening, “We choose the thousands of American communities whose roads aren’t paved with power and privilege, but with honest effort, good faith, and the resolve to build something better for their kids.”

Building “something better” apparently doesn’t include walls we all can use.