Robert F Kennedy has slammed CNN for barring him from the first presidential debate

Robert F Kennedy has slammed CNN for barring him from next week’s first presidential debate, arguing the network set criteria that he couldn’t possibly achieve.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks during a campaign event. Picture: AFP.

Independent presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy has slammed his exclusion from next week’s presidential election debate as “undemocratic, unAmerican, and cowardly,’ as he accuses debate host CNN of breaking federal election campaign laws.

Mr Kennedy, the only independent candidate who has polled above 10 per cent in successive surveys, will not appear alongside Donald Trump and Joe Biden during next week’s debate, after failing to meet CNN’s criteria by the deadline on Thursday (Friday AEST).

“Presidents Biden and Trump do not want me on the debate stage and CNN illegally agreed to their demand,” Mr Kennedy, 70, said in a statement on Thursday.

Debate candidates were required to achieve above 15 per cent support in at least four national polls approved by CNN, and have obtained ballot access in enough states to be eligible to win 270 electoral college votes (a majority) in the November election.

Mr Kennedy achieved over 15 per cent support in three approved polls and has so far formally obtained ballot access — an arduous, costly process for third party challengers that requires amassing thousands of signatures that state election officials must then approve — in around half a dozen states, well short of the 270 vote requirement.

“Americans want an independent leader who will break apart the two-party duopoly. They want a president who will heal the divide, restore the middle class, unwind the war machine, and end the chronic disease epidemic,” Kennedy’s statement added.

Bumper ratings are expected when up to three quarters of American households and millions of others around the world tune in to watch the first of two presidential debates scheduled for 9pm local time on Thursday, June 27, in Atlanta Georgia. The second is to be held September 10, and hosted by ABC.

Joe Biden, 81, defied widespread predictions last month that would seek to avoid a public clash with his predecessor, owing to his increasingly feeble and infrequent public speaking performances, challenging Mr Trump, 78, to at least two debates, which the latter eagerly accepted, a request the Biden campaign has so far jettisoned.

The first debate promises to be less fiery than the last time the two men faced off in 2020, when Mr Trump frequently interjected, based on the rules CNN laid out last week.

Microphones will be muted during the 90 minute debate, which will include two commercial breaks, when it’s the other candidate’s turn to speak.

The two candidates will be given a pen, a pad of paper and a water bottle, but barred from bringing pre-written notes, to a debate that won’t have a studio audience.

Kennedy’s campaign has complained to the Federal Election commission, arguing CNN has broken federal campaign finance laws that require “pre-established” and “objective” criteria for any presidential debate to avoid such forums’ being deemed corporate campaign contributions, which have strict limits.

The public clash could be decisive for the two candidates, and especially President Biden, whose recent public performances have raised eyebrows about his physical and mental fitness. Most national polls give the former president a small lead in most battle ground states, although typically within the margin of error.

Around a third of US voters according to a recent Gallup survey say they want to see neither Biden nor Trump as president.

Kennedy’s campaign argues that neither Trump nor Biden has formally gained ballot access in any state given neither has formally achieved the nomination of their Republican and Democratic parties respectively, which are scheduled to occur in July and August.

CNN says the two leaders are ‘presumptive nominees’, a designation the FEC, which has begun considering a complaint by Kennedy, has said previously it doesn’t recognise.

Reporting, including by CNN, has indicated neither the Democrat or Republican campaign would agree to a debate if Kennedy, a former Democrat with an eclectic mix of policy positions who analysts say pulls voters from both major political parties roughly evenly, was also on the stage.

“This means CNN, and every member of CNN who is participating in planning, executing, and holding this debate, is at risk of prosecution, as happened to Michael Cohen, for violating campaign finance laws,” Kennedy’s campaign, which can’t file a lawsuit until the FEC has ruled on his complaint, said in a statement.

Joe Biden, will head to his presidential retreat at Camp David this weekend to begin debate preparation with his top advisers.