Nader considering another try at White House in 2004
By Tom Squitieri USA TODAY
WASHINGTON -- Ralph Nader, still blamed by many Democrats for draining critical votes from Al Gore in the 2000 race for the presidency, says he is seriously considering running in 2004.
His decision has the potential to vex Democrats who worry that he would divert some of their supporters and delight Republicans who think the same thing.
Nader says he has moved closer to a repeat run as the Green Party nominee after concluding that Democrats have no one who can defeat President Bush.
''It is quite clear that the Democrats are incapable of defending our country against the Bush marauders,'' Nader, 69, says. ''They have been unwilling to go all out to stop the destructive tax cuts for the wealthy. They have been soft on corporate crime. They have gone along in almost every issue except judicial appointments. They have cowered, surrendered or divided themselves.
''So what are you to replace Bush with? They won't go after him the way I could,'' says the longtime consumer activist, who won fame as author of an auto exposé titled Unsafe at Any Speed in 1965 and founded an advocacy network under the Public Interest Research Group umbrella.
Nader has not taken any formal steps such as creating a campaign committee or registering with the Federal Election Commission. However, he is doing what he did in 2000: He has told Green Party officials he is interested in running and is encouraging ''Draft Nader'' movements.
Nader acknowledges he could harm the Democrats' chances of winning the White House. But he also maintains that if he runs, and Democrats do not attack him, he will motivate thousands of people to go to the polls and cast votes for him, then mark the ballot for Democratic House and Senate candidates. He says that's what he did in 2000 for successful Senate candidates Maria Cantwell in Washington and Debbie Stabenow in Michigan.
Nader says his candidacy could boost the vote for Democratic candidates by up to 4%, but he doesn't say how he came up with that number. ''It is a question of how badly they want to win,'' he says. ''They know my phone number.''
In 2000, Nader got 2,878,157 votes. That was 2.73% of the votes cast, a distant third place. But he tallied 97,488 votes in Florida and 22,188 in New Hampshire, many of which Democrats said would have gone to Gore to help him carry those states and win the election.
Nader says he is ''carefully watching the situation'' and will decide early next year. The Green Party will pick its nominee next summer at its convention in Milwaukee.
Nader says he would campaign on a strong liberal message that ''is now easier to make'' because of higher unemployment and wider economic pain, ''the more outrageous giveaways'' to the wealthy and corporations and ''the tax cut that forgot 11 million kids.'' But he may not have as easy a time getting the Green nomination in 2004 as he did in 2000. Some party activists say he has become too divisive. Some Greens remain irked that he refuses to join their party; he is an independent.
Ben Manski, national co-chairman of the Green Party, says Nader probably has the most support and momentum, followed closely by former Georgia congresswoman Cynthia McKinney and David Cobb, a party activist from Texas. Manski says Nader ''is still the favored candidate, but that is not to say it is a done deal.''