Dems Call Ralph But Is Nader's Raid on the Race Really So Bad? by James Ridgeway
WASHINGTON, D.C.—If the DLC wonks, unimaginative leftists, and others devoted to the "Beat Bush" agenda can manage to stop gnashing their teeth over Ralph Nader's "betrayal" long enough to really think about it, they might just find that the consumer advocate's candidacy can help, rather than hurt, their cause.
As a practical matter, until Nader gets on the ballot, his independent bid for the presidency doesn't have much potential to affect those all- important electoral votes. That's not to say, however, that Nader won't affect the overall political debate. Just as Michael Moore ignited the issue of Bush's National Guard service with his "deserter" joke at a Wesley Clark rally in New Hampshire last month, Nader could bring attention to bear on another damaging angle: On Sunday, during his Meet the Press interview, he raised the question of whether Bush should be impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors—lying the nation into war in Iraq.
>From both within and outside a presidential run, Nader has the ability
to push issues into the limelight when they are ignored by other
politicians. For example: Universal health care has been spearheaded by
the Nader groups since Hillary Clinton made her famous flop. Likewise
corporate crime—it was the Nader groups in Washington and their allies
in California who were most responsible for exposing Enron. It wasn't
anybody in the Democratic Party, that's for sure.
The mainstream Democratic insiders in Washington, maintaining camaraderie with Republicans who are shredding the Constitution, have attacked Nader over the past four years as the man who cost Al Gore the election. Meanwhile, Nader has been developing and handing them the real political issues for the campaign.