Ralph Nader Re-emerges

By Jeralyn, Section Elections 2008
Posted on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 11:39:22 AM EST
Tags: Ralph Nader (all tags)

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Ralph Nader says he's "on track" to be on the ballot in 45 states in November and now polls at 5%. I just received an e-mail from his campaign advising he'll be speaking in Toronto tonight to promote the new documentary about him, The Unreasonable Man, and tell Canadians "what's at stake "for them in the election. He lists his positions on issues:

Ralph Nader is the only major candidate for President of the United States standing up to implement Canadian-style universal healthcare, a Dion-style Carbon Tax, and ending the war in Iraq with a full 6-month withdrawal.

Over ten million Americans say they will vote for him, and another 20 million say they would if they thought he had a chance of winning. He's on track to be on the ballot in 45 states, and has a shot at getting in the Google Presidential Debates to be held in New Orleans this September.

With 5% and 10 million votes, he can't win. I wouldn't mind seeing him debate Bob Barr, but he's surplusage when it comes to McCain and Obama. I doubt he'll have the spoiler effect he had on the 2000 elections.

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Ralph Nader Re-emerges | 55 comments (55 topical)

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Nader? (5.00 / 1) (#2)
by txpolitico67 on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 11:48:05 AM EST

I thought Cynthia McKinney was on her way to be the nominee for the Green Party?

: Correct but irrelevant (none / 0) (#4)
by andgarden on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 11:49:26 AM EST

Nader will run as an I or on various other minor party tickets, as he did in 2004.

: Not on her way (none / 0) (#37)
by sj on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 02:31:26 PM EST

She IS the Green Party candidate. And looking more attractive to me by the day.
Yikes!
I'm an active Party member! I would never, ever have imagined that I could be here. I would never have imagined that I would be able to conceptualize changing my affiliation. This is all just so sad.

Nader is a choice (5.00 / 0) (#5)
by Prabhata on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 11:50:06 AM EST

for those who would otherwise not vote. Now I understand why some will vote for him. The last I looked, the "none of the above" percent in Gallup was 5 percent and "other" was 1 percent. Nader is a choice for these voters. It's not Nader's fault, but the Democrats that have given him the opportunity to be a spoiler. Those who are so enthusiastic about Obama believed that it was Obama who was creating the huge voter turnout in the primaries. It was Hillary. She's the one who mostly created the enthusiasm and the increase in voter registration.

: it was both of them... (5.00 / 2) (#23)
by LatinoDC on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 12:39:51 PM EST

: I wouldn't phrase it that way. (none / 0) (#45)
by lentinel on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 09:39:27 PM EST

I don't think that the democrats gave Nader the opportunity to be a "spoiler".
The democrats have abandoned their base.
Nader is the only place that they can go.
Nader has said that all the democrats have to do is adopt some of his positions.
Nader sounds like what I used to think of as a democrat.
Obama sounds like a republican.
McCain sounds like a nut.

I disagree (5.00 / 0) (#6)
by cmugirl on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 11:52:10 AM EST

This election is going to be within 5%. If people like Nader and Barr cancel each other out, there still is McKinney and all those Dems (and former Dems) who will not vote for Obama - this could swing the election.

This election is going to be no more than 52-48. Every vote is gonna have to count.

why is he campaigning (5.00 / 0) (#9)
by TimNCGuy on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 11:57:24 AM EST

in Canada? Did he get the idea from Obama campaiging in Germany?

: Nah (5.00 / 0) (#12)
by Lahdee on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 12:09:25 PM EST

He just didn't want to be seen as going south.

It's an excellent documentary (5.00 / 2) (#18)
by fafnir on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 12:28:17 PM EST

You should watch it.

BTW, if every candidate has a constitutional right to run for the office of the presidency, then each candidate has a right and a responsibility to earn as many votes as they can to win. Therefore, either all candidates (Obama, McCain, Nader, Barr, McKinney, etc) are spoilers, or non are spoilers.

The constitution doesn't establish one standard of participation for "major" party candidates and a different one for "third-party" candidates.

I have signed-up to help gather additional signatures over the 10K gathered so far in Virginia to get Ralph on the ballot. (We need 20K in anticipation of petition challenges by the Democratic party.)

I will vote for a candidate this year, rather than holding my nose to vote against a Republican.

Nobody is questioning (5.00 / 0) (#31)
by eric on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 01:14:55 PM EST

Nader's right to run for office. I just happen to think that he is a self-righteous ego maniac for repeatedly doing so.


: Keep self-righteous egomaniacs out of politics? (5.00 / 1) (#33)
by Ellie on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 01:32:30 PM EST

That oactually blew up my browser.

: Sounds like the definition of a politician (none / 0) (#36)
by fafnir on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 01:58:00 PM EST

Good for you. (none / 0) (#22)
by Prabhata on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 12:32:43 PM EST

He will not win 5% (none / 0) (#1)
by andgarden on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 11:42:38 AM EST

and if Dems have their way, he will once again be kept off the ballot in Pennsylvania, among other places.

: Nader or not (5.00 / 1) (#7)
by Prabhata on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 11:52:23 AM EST

Some voters will not vote or pick a third option, but these voters will not vote for McCain or Obama.

Although, with the new Georgia crisis (none / 0) (#3)
by Dadler on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 11:48:59 AM EST

If he starts speaking the truth about the underlying issues -- American addiction to wasting and squandering resources as a lifestyle, which results in our reliance on death and destruction abroad to fuel it -- then he will certainly be doing something no one else is. And when gas hits seven or eight bucks a gallon, which is certainly will on this road, all prognostication can go out the window. Not that he will win, just that he may end up being the only one with the courage to say what needs to be said and suggest the sacrificial measures all of us will need to make to ensure some kind of future for our children.

Where Nader and Sharpton (5.00 / 1) (#8)
by txpolitico67 on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 11:55:31 AM EST

are alike: they say things that NEED to be said/addressed but will never be taken seriously. Being a long-shot candidate gives them room to say things that are a bit more populist in rhetoric and makes the ones who REALLY feel on the outside think that SOMEONE out there agrees with them.

Oh, and I thought that Nader would run as a Green candidate, I guess I was wrong. Google search came up with him addressing the Greens but not as being their candidate.

I don't know about what kind of impact Nader will have. I know a handful of people who voted Nader before. And with all these anti-war types, Nader and company are saying voting for BHO would be a wasted vote, considering the senator's voting record for funding the conflict.

I say we should ALWAYS be weary of Nader, considering the FL 2K vote. But then again, the Dems neglected to cater to FL this election cycle, so that may be a lesson NOT learned by the D's.


I agree with almost everything you said... (none / 0) (#46)
by lentinel on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 09:48:12 PM EST

Except I don't agree with your statement that we should be wary of Nader because of the vote in 2000.

The vote counting in FL was corrupted. Kathleen Harris.
The Supreme Court stopped the vote counting.
The election was erroneously called for Gore by the networks.
How many Gore voters didn't bother to vote - thinking it was all over?

Gore lost his home state, Tennessee.
Gore chose the most unattractive person in the world as his running mate.
Gore distanced himself from Clinton.

In short: Gore lost because he ran an absolutely stinking right-of-center campaign. He acted like a snob. He was a terrible candidate.

It should not have even been close.
Bush was nobody from nowhere.
But Gore managed to lose.

If you blame Nader, you are not taking in the mistakes that the democrats made in 2000 by veering to the right. And they are about to do the same thing again.


I agree (none / 0) (#47)
by txpolitico67 on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 10:08:53 PM EST

with EVERYTHING you have said. BUT, doncha think that if Nader would not have been on the FL ballot it would have made something of a difference?

I once read that Gore showed his lack of skill to be "beaten" by the likes of Bush. I just think that if Nader had NOT been on the ballot we would be seeing the end of President Gore's second term by now.

Democracy...gotta love it!


: Democracy...gotta love it! (none / 0) (#49)
by lentinel on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 10:42:19 PM EST

It's just that I think what we saw in Florida and in the Supreme Court was the killing of democracy.

ok, did i miss something? (none / 0) (#10)
by cpinva on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 11:58:33 AM EST

has canada officially become part of the united states? otherwise, it seems like mr. nader could make better use of his time speaking to potential voters below the 49th parallel.

He's opn my short list (none / 0) (#11)
by cawaltz on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 12:00:02 PM EST

of what I do should Obama fail to choose Hillary. If I am going to be called a Naderite, I might as well be one. It'll be my protest vote against a Democratic party that fails to actually support and defend democracy and chooses to game a primary to get their candidate of choice.

: This kind of attitude (5.00 / 2) (#14)
by txpolitico67 on Mon Aug 11, 2008 at 12:14:14 PM EST

is what I talk about all the time. How the HECK did we get to THIS place? Man for all practical purposes the Dems should be STEAMROLLING the likes of Nader, McCain, et al. BUT here we are. With John Mc and BHO neck and neck. Unbelievable.
The media got the horse race they wanted. Has to be a horserace to the very end. Nader will certainly be interesting fodder though, considering his history. Well, I for one will