The Knoxville News Sentinel reports:

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has declared his independence, and he's taking his message through Tennessee.

The presidential candidate took aim at the U.S. government in his Oct. 15 appearance in front of approximately 200 people at the Relix Venue, saying the country's leadership is betraying Americans' freedom.

"Democracy has become sort of a film set," he said. "We have all these little things that tell us we're a democracy, elections and things. But none of us really feel like we have any impact about what the government does."

The 69-year-old announced a run for the Democratic primary nomination in April, then said Oct. 9 that he was "declaring his own independence" from the country's two-party system.