"Bobby Kennedy: Democratic apostate, political opportunist, liberal idealist."

Yesterday was the 45th anniversary of Bobby Kennedy's assassination. At the website of The Guardian, Michael Cohen subjects the mythology to examination, with thought-provoking results.

Bobby Kennedy: Democratic apostate, political opportunist, liberal idealist … All of the above: the 45th anniversary of his death is a chance to peel away the myth of RFK and grasp his contradictory character

... Yet, it was precisely this type of apostasy that made Kennedy such a compelling and intriguing political figure: it was not his philosophical firmness, rather his ideological suppleness. He was a politician nearly impossible to pigeonhole with static labels like liberal, moderate or conservative. He was, at various times, all of the above.

Kennedy was the rare figure for whom, as his prospects for higher office grew, so, too, did his political personality evolve – and the two were in conflict until the day he died.