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DEL.ICIO.USSomething for those turned off by the conservatism of Barack Obama
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader comes to Georgia on Friday, for a rally at the University of Georgia.
(It’s a 5 p.m. gig at Master’s Hall on South Lumpkin Street.)
In honor of the event, and to drum up much-needed attention, Nader gave a quick call on Wednesday — pointing out differences he has with both Green Party nominee Cynthia McKinney and Democratic presidential presumptive Barack Obama.
Here’s a large portion of the exchange:
Insider: You’re not going to be on the ballot in Georgia.
Nader: No. Georgia’s one of the worst obstructive states in the country, as some litigation in Georgia has tried to point out from time to time.
Insider: If you’re not going to be on the ballot, what’s the purpose of the Athens meeting?
Nader: The write-in. It is a fund-raiser, actually. There are actually only two states that say write-ins are not counted at all. That’s Oklahoma and Oregon.
We’ll get a write-in in Georgia, and it’s important to go into a state and point out how undemocratic it is for independent and third-party candidates rights. It’s comparable to a Jim Crow law, it’s so obstructive…..
So it’s a very difficult state, and we’re not the only candidacy that’s pointed that out.
Insider: You’re walking into both Cynthia McKinney and Bob Barr’s territory.
Nader: Are they going to be on, do you think?
Insider: Barr will definitely be on. Cynthia will not be on. Libertarians met the threshold two years ago. What are the differences between you and Cynthia?
Nader: Our campaign goes into issues she doesn’t usually go into, like taxing security derivatives — basically, taxing first the things that our society likes the least, or dislikes the most, before you start taxing human labor and necessities.
I don’t think she gets in there at all. Then there are military budget issues that, I think, we go further than she does in specificity. Then there is consumer protection, which has been my bailiwick. So basically, if you put our issues over her issues, they would go beyond her issues.
There are more of them, and a different emphasis…I don’t know if she talks about corporate personhood much. Or has our record of trying to challenge the debate commission, which is a private company created by the two parties, and dominated by them.
She doesn’t talk about Taft-Hartley, I talk about Taft-Hartley. It’s not that she doesn’t cover these issues, but she has a different approach. If you listen to her speeches, they use different language than I use. But generally, both progressive agendas…..
Insider: If you are a liberal or progressive, and you see Barack Obama on a ticket, why in the world would someone vote for Ralph Nader?
Nader: Because he’s a corporate Democrat….Look at FISA, look at his back-tracking on Supreme Court decisions, his supporting the credit card industry. No one in Washington associates Barack Obama with a major, serious, energetic agenda to deal with the abuses and exploitations of the lower 100 million Americans on the income ladder.
Never mind going into the areas of exploitation in the ghettos — predatory lending and all that. He’s probably said some things on this, but look at Jim Webb. Jim Webb is a freshman senator [from Virginia]. He really did it seriously on veterans’ education. That’s what I mean, you know?
I’ve talked to thousands of Obama supporters, obviously, going around the country. Almost none of them associate any major policy initiative with him in Congress. And as a state senator, he even voted to cap pain and suffering damages of medical malpractice victims to $250,000. That’s pretty inexcusable.
He’s weak on the civil justice system, which is the principle way defrauded and wrongfully injured people challenge corporate power….
He’s never met a weapons system he didn’t like. He’s not challenged the military-industrial complex at all. And he gets a huge amount of money — more than [Republican John] McCain has got — from corporate interests and corporate attorneys….
For him, nuclear power is still on the table — which is very insensitive, given that some of his major backers are nuclear power executives in Chicago.
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Comments
By Fruitless Objections
July 24, 2008 10:21 AM | Link to this
Ralph Nader defends his role in electing Bush in 2000 by saying that there is no difference between GOP or Democratic candidates, and that HE was the only alternative.
But that doesn’t take into account that one man can make a difference. He disrespects our power as human beings to create good or evil.
Bush was one man. What a difference he made. Ralph Nader is complicit in the Iraq War, and all the great things that have happened as a result.
Ralph Nader, Tear down your poll! Take a six month charity tour to raise money for the widows and children of 911 or Katrina. One man can make a difference. Make that difference, but get out of my sight.
Go after GM again. Get the cafe standards up. Do something useful instead of this self agrandizing “I can be president” nonsense. No you cant. You cant be president. You blew you chance for greatness in 2000.
By Jessica V. Cortez
July 24, 2008 11:57 AM | Link to this
It’s very dangerous when people like Fruitless Objections get all of their information from the mainstream TV media. I know, because I used to think that was the only way of learning about present-day politics. By and large, Nader supporters are purposely and intimately informed about the issues that affect our country and its people. It does require a personal effort to research and find the Truth about what’s going on - - not conspiracy theories - - but learning about the organizations like AIPAC, CFR, the Commission on Presidential Debates and, issues like oil speculation, for example, that are behind a majority of the ugliness we see in our society. There’s no way that Fruitless Objections visited votenader.org and read the issues section, for starters. Let’s step out of the confines of how we’ve always done things, people. This is our country and we can’t blindly assume that the likes of an Obama or a McCain is going to even ADDRESS our everyday problems. WE are the missing link.
By PacificGatePost
July 24, 2008 1:21 PM | Link to this
ARE REPUBLICANS REALLY DETERMINED TO WIN THIS ELECTION?
http://pacificgatepost.blogspot.com/2008/07/john-mccains-peculiar-path-along.html
… perhaps not.
By George Tatevosyan
July 24, 2008 1:32 PM | Link to this
Dear Fruitless, afraid and confused. You are confused about being afraid, about what you are confused about. Deep down inside, you know the score: 2 stolen presidential elections in a row, now make USA the laughing stock of the free world. Nader running or not, wouldn’t have made a bit of difference in 2000 or 2004, as far as election theft goes. No guarantee the 2008 presidential election won’t get stolen either, but just on case it does get stolen - there’s always an easy scapegoat around: Ralph Nader. No one is buying the moldy 8 year old DLC lies in 2008, not even the water-carrying ‘loyal democrats’ who repeat them, like youself. You should leave the Democrat Party, because it is a disfunctional cult of self-censoring, serial propaganda repeaters. Is it comforting, getting high on hate, by engaging in socially acceptable political bigotry? Ranting about Nader won’t resolve anything. Confronting political reality takes courage, it’s alot more difficult than pretending to believe convinient political lies. You’ll reach your breaking point eventually, hopefully, someday. GT
By betterthannader
July 24, 2008 3:09 PM | Link to this
Nice article. To ‘Fruitless’—Nader doesn’t say there are ‘no’ differences, but the differences they’re willing to fight for are tiny compared to the huge similarities. The corporate media tries to get us to focus on those tiny differences and forget about what’s really at stake in the election, and about the easily hundreds of thousands of innocent American lives that will be needlessly lost (forget the millions around the world) regardless of which corporate candidate is elected. For just a tiny bit more specifics, look here: http://betterthannader.blogspot.com/2008/05/whats-at-stake.html
By powerob
July 24, 2008 4:28 PM | Link to this
Please think for yourselves rather than spewing party talking points. Party loyalist amuse me with their sheepishness.
The latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll
“Obama’s lead over McCain expands to 13 points when third-party candidates Ralph Nader and Bob Barr are included, with Obama at 48 per cent, McCain at 35 per cent, Nader at 5 per cent and Barr at 2 per cent”
link: http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2008/0724/breaking78.htm
By The Truth Comes Out
July 24, 2008 4:40 PM | Link to this
Yes Powerob there are a lot of uninitiated first time voters out there. As I said however when it comes to the debates Nobama will be exposed as an uninitiated candidate. America will see the light! McCain 08!
By Alpha Omega Morgannica
July 24, 2008 10:21 PM | Link to this
queer Repubs enough of your bs you screwed all of us over, except for you wacko bible thumping anti-Darwinism, sister sleeping, motor boating douchebags sean hannity lovin’, creationism apple eating flag flyin grocery baggin dip chewin ged a brewin’ losers die out do to your own ignorance. Obama foreshadows the doom for you no more white sheets no more fiddlin playin tooth losing homosapiens take your burpin the constitution wind bag drup popping mega dittos dork limbyg with yeah ye hear .. Get er done God
By katiec
July 24, 2008 11:06 PM | Link to this
Why anyone would waste a vote voting for Nader is puzzling. This is such an important election. Our vote decides the future of our country or the destruction. We cannot survive the path we are on. We cannot survive another four years of the present policies and mindset. We cannot survive WW111.
By Tim Matthews
July 25, 2008 3:50 PM | Link to this
The only way to avoid living in the corpocracy is to vote for someone that rails against that control. Nader has ALWAYS pursued that end for the benefit of the constitution, and all of the people in this country. I’m not proud to be american, I’m shocked by how this country has ignored the transformation to ignorance. Dwight Eisenhower tried to warn us, control of this country is no longer the peoples’, and if we don’t vote our conscience now, when will we? We as a people, should display a society that believes in and promotes fairness and justice in this country as an example for other governments to emulate. This is America’s responsibility. Beware the military / industrial / corporate complex. Vote Sanity, Vote Nader.
By Trueliberal
July 25, 2008 4:07 PM | Link to this
Yes!!! Anyone who has been thinking about voting for Obama because he says he is against corporate control is fooling themselves. Nader is the only candidate that really wants to change this country. I dated Obama, now I am marrying Nader. Send a message to the Democratic party. We do not want to guy running to the center to represent us.
NADER 08
By Bullfrog Johnson
July 26, 2008 8:13 AM | Link to this
Nader smells like moth balls and a ventless retirement community in Palatka, FL., he is a caricature of a character cut from moldy cheese, his time has past and never was, love the cheap suits, he should go get bent
By Homelessandwireless
July 26, 2008 9:17 PM | Link to this
What is the big deal about some brother like Obama going on about change? I know some black dudes that axe for and talk about getting change everyday.