Friday, October 5, 2007
Monday, September 24, 2007
Monday, September 17, 2007
Dennis Kucinich's Campaign In Georgia (And Why I Joined)
It has been four years since I first learned about Congressman Dennis Kucinich. I remember where I was when I first saw the Cleveland Democrats' fiery spirit.
I was sitting in my American History class in high school (smack dab in the middle of Kennesaw, Georgia -- in the area of the Bob Barrs and Newt Gingriches of the world). My history teacher, who is in no small part responsible for cultivating my civic interest in a serious way, had decided to show us one of the 2003 Democratic Primary debates. She had a wonderful habit of making history connect with current affairs and the world at present, because as she so constantly reminded us of the old adage, "those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it."
I had started to take an interest in the world over the past two years. My first big political debate was arguing with my Biology teacher the year before over whether we should attack Iraq or not (we ended up going at it for the full hour and a half; there was no biology done that day). It was a completely one-sided argument, with everyone against me (something Dennis is no stranger to). However, I've kept up with those people in that room that day, and I can say that more than a few of them have changed their minds about the war and our President since then.
And that takes me back to Dennis. Watching the debate, I saw Senators Kerry and Lieberman and Edwards, and even Governor Dean all continue to equivocate and triangulate about the war. They would never go as far as to say the war was "wrong." Maybe it was mishandled, or mismanaged, or "mistakes were made." But talking morally about war, or US foreign policy in general, that was just too much for these folks.
Then came Dennis. His prophetic voice declared that we were taken into war based on lies, that our presence was making Iraq worse, and that if we don't leave we'll get stuck occupying a country descending into chaos. I was amazed at his brazen calls, and his honesty.
But his demeanor didn't change when the topic was taken off the war (which he was quick to remind us he was the only one to vote against on the stage). When talking about NAFTA, he told touching stories about how he grew up living in the backs of cars because of his dad's infrequent employment status and Teamster family's poverty -- and how Washington politicians like Senator Kerry and Edwards (who went on to win the nomination) didn't extend their leftish rhetoric of the primaries to opposing that trade agreement which globalized the rights of investors but not of working people. He defended the rights of homosexuals and lesbians to marry the person they chose; he stood up against the absurd criminilization of people who choose to use marijuana, and for ratifying the Kyoto Protocols and joining the International Criminal Court.
The other candidates were taken aback by Dennis's positions. They didn't want to sound "too liberal" and risk offending their big business donors. After all, over the last twenty years the money base of the Democratic Party went from being working class people -- unions, women, minority, environmentalists, peaceniks -- to being the Big Money fundraisers and money schemes of the Democratic Leadership Committee and New Democratic Caucus (which the Congressman refers to as "Republican-lite"). Being underwritten by corporations had a devastating effect on the Democratic Party.
Dennis has realized that, saying that the the political struggle for progressives of our time isn't just against the Republican Party:
So back to my high school argument with my Biology teacher. I stuck out as a sore thumb saying that we should stay out of Iraq, that it would be nothing more than an imperial disaster. Congressman Kucinich looked the same way when he went against the Party bigwigs -- like Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, and Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle -- and organized 3/4 of the Democrats in the House of Representatives to vote against the resolution to authorize the President to attack Iraq, a country that had never done us any harm. And for his stance against the Washington establishment, the corporate-run media gave him little media coverage. And when it did, it brandished him as nothing more than a gadfly maverick liberal with no chance of beating the "popular" President Bush.
Flash forward four years. Senator Edwards, considered a frontrunner for the Democratic nomination, says:
Edwards' positions also include a full withdrawal from Iraq (though he is no longer in government and can't actually do that now like Dennis can with his HR 1234), universal healthcare (although not true universal healthcare, single-payer like Dennis has crafted in his HR 676), a scathing criticism of "Washington-lobbyist written trade agreements" (though he won't say he'll repeal NAFTA like Dennis has said), and a general attack on Big Money politics.
If I could give a bit of advice to Dennis, I'd tell him to copyright his policy positions. Then maybe he could sue to get the same kind of money John Edwards has.
I kid, but there's a point to all this: Dennis was saying these things before anyone else. Unlike nearly everyone else running, he didn't repeatedly vote for illegal wars, horrible tax cuts, trade agreements that undercut working people, attacks on the environment, predatory lending bills, and a whole host of other right-wing agenda items -- and then magically turn against those things when he decided to run for President. He has never taken a penny from corporate interests, and he is genuine because of that. He didn't water down his positions in 2004, and he doesn't intend to water them down in 2008. He is the real deal: an honest politician who is responsive to the people.
His positions are held by the majority of people in this country -- the other candidates are to the right of him. But the corporate-run media treats him as an "unserious" candidate. And that's not surprising. Why would a media and political establishment owned by the super-wealthy take someone who comes out of poverty and the working class, who is unafraid to confront the most powerful interests on earth, and who never stands down in the face of right-wing attacks seriously?
Matt Taibbi of The Nation and Rolling Stone asked the national media why they refuse to focus on the issues and give fair coverage to candidates and instead focus on meaningless horse-race details and celebrity-like coverage of a few candidates,like Senator Obama's good looks or Howard Dean's demeanor or who does Senator Edward's haircuts, -- somehow construed under the magical phrase "electability". The responses are telling:
So how do we overcome a national media that sees style over substance and rarely turns its camera lens to a genuinely good man who sticks to his convictions? We campaign and we campaign hard. We get out and tell people that they don't have to vote just for people who are turned into giants by the media; who have the big bucks from Wall Street and the support from Washington. Maybe that strange Congressman from Ohio is worth more than Wolf Blitzer and Chris Matthews are telling us; maybe the fact that he wants to do everything the American people want, with little regard for the concerns of powerful interests -- maybe that's enough. Maybe if we all go to the polls and vote for the person we believe in, who's ideas our ours, who doesn't necessarily fall into the special category of "serious and electable" or whatever phrase the pundits have crafted this election cycle but instead we actually agree with on all the issues and is the most reliable progressive in the Congress -- maybe that's all we need to do to put one of the most compassionate, brave, and just people to ever be in our Government in its highest seat of office.
Maybe we aren't evolved enough as a country yet to do that. But there's no telling if we don't try.
I look forward to working with everyone in this state for Dennis Kucinich, whose courage, compassion, and ideas are mine and millions' of others.
Strength through Peace.
Zaid
I was sitting in my American History class in high school (smack dab in the middle of Kennesaw, Georgia -- in the area of the Bob Barrs and Newt Gingriches of the world). My history teacher, who is in no small part responsible for cultivating my civic interest in a serious way, had decided to show us one of the 2003 Democratic Primary debates. She had a wonderful habit of making history connect with current affairs and the world at present, because as she so constantly reminded us of the old adage, "those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it."
I had started to take an interest in the world over the past two years. My first big political debate was arguing with my Biology teacher the year before over whether we should attack Iraq or not (we ended up going at it for the full hour and a half; there was no biology done that day). It was a completely one-sided argument, with everyone against me (something Dennis is no stranger to). However, I've kept up with those people in that room that day, and I can say that more than a few of them have changed their minds about the war and our President since then.
And that takes me back to Dennis. Watching the debate, I saw Senators Kerry and Lieberman and Edwards, and even Governor Dean all continue to equivocate and triangulate about the war. They would never go as far as to say the war was "wrong." Maybe it was mishandled, or mismanaged, or "mistakes were made." But talking morally about war, or US foreign policy in general, that was just too much for these folks.
Then came Dennis. His prophetic voice declared that we were taken into war based on lies, that our presence was making Iraq worse, and that if we don't leave we'll get stuck occupying a country descending into chaos. I was amazed at his brazen calls, and his honesty.
But his demeanor didn't change when the topic was taken off the war (which he was quick to remind us he was the only one to vote against on the stage). When talking about NAFTA, he told touching stories about how he grew up living in the backs of cars because of his dad's infrequent employment status and Teamster family's poverty -- and how Washington politicians like Senator Kerry and Edwards (who went on to win the nomination) didn't extend their leftish rhetoric of the primaries to opposing that trade agreement which globalized the rights of investors but not of working people. He defended the rights of homosexuals and lesbians to marry the person they chose; he stood up against the absurd criminilization of people who choose to use marijuana, and for ratifying the Kyoto Protocols and joining the International Criminal Court.
The other candidates were taken aback by Dennis's positions. They didn't want to sound "too liberal" and risk offending their big business donors. After all, over the last twenty years the money base of the Democratic Party went from being working class people -- unions, women, minority, environmentalists, peaceniks -- to being the Big Money fundraisers and money schemes of the Democratic Leadership Committee and New Democratic Caucus (which the Congressman refers to as "Republican-lite"). Being underwritten by corporations had a devastating effect on the Democratic Party.
Dennis has realized that, saying that the the political struggle for progressives of our time isn't just against the Republican Party:
"This is a struggle for the soul of the Democratic Party, which in too many cases has become so corporate and identified with corporate interests that you can't tell the difference between Democrats and Republicans."
So back to my high school argument with my Biology teacher. I stuck out as a sore thumb saying that we should stay out of Iraq, that it would be nothing more than an imperial disaster. Congressman Kucinich looked the same way when he went against the Party bigwigs -- like Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, and Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle -- and organized 3/4 of the Democrats in the House of Representatives to vote against the resolution to authorize the President to attack Iraq, a country that had never done us any harm. And for his stance against the Washington establishment, the corporate-run media gave him little media coverage. And when it did, it brandished him as nothing more than a gadfly maverick liberal with no chance of beating the "popular" President Bush.
Flash forward four years. Senator Edwards, considered a frontrunner for the Democratic nomination, says:
"The choice for our party could not be any clearer," he continued. "We cannot replace a group of corporate Republicans with a group of corporate Democrats, just swapping the Washington insiders of one party for the Washington insiders of the other."
Edwards' positions also include a full withdrawal from Iraq (though he is no longer in government and can't actually do that now like Dennis can with his HR 1234), universal healthcare (although not true universal healthcare, single-payer like Dennis has crafted in his HR 676), a scathing criticism of "Washington-lobbyist written trade agreements" (though he won't say he'll repeal NAFTA like Dennis has said), and a general attack on Big Money politics.
If I could give a bit of advice to Dennis, I'd tell him to copyright his policy positions. Then maybe he could sue to get the same kind of money John Edwards has.
I kid, but there's a point to all this: Dennis was saying these things before anyone else. Unlike nearly everyone else running, he didn't repeatedly vote for illegal wars, horrible tax cuts, trade agreements that undercut working people, attacks on the environment, predatory lending bills, and a whole host of other right-wing agenda items -- and then magically turn against those things when he decided to run for President. He has never taken a penny from corporate interests, and he is genuine because of that. He didn't water down his positions in 2004, and he doesn't intend to water them down in 2008. He is the real deal: an honest politician who is responsive to the people.
His positions are held by the majority of people in this country -- the other candidates are to the right of him. But the corporate-run media treats him as an "unserious" candidate. And that's not surprising. Why would a media and political establishment owned by the super-wealthy take someone who comes out of poverty and the working class, who is unafraid to confront the most powerful interests on earth, and who never stands down in the face of right-wing attacks seriously?
Matt Taibbi of The Nation and Rolling Stone asked the national media why they refuse to focus on the issues and give fair coverage to candidates and instead focus on meaningless horse-race details and celebrity-like coverage of a few candidates,like Senator Obama's good looks or Howard Dean's demeanor or who does Senator Edward's haircuts, -- somehow construed under the magical phrase "electability". The responses are telling:
When I asked the reporters on the plane what the value of this kind of reporting was, I got an interesting answer. No fewer than four journalists replied to the effect that unless the electability issue was addressed, "someone like Kucinich" might get the nomination.
"Hell, if it came down to a battle of position papers, Dennis Kucinich might win," laughed Jackson Baker of the Memphis Flyer, incidentally not a horse-racer and one of the true good guys on the plane.
"I think its value is that it helps to explain to the reader why I'm spending so much time with one candidate," said Mark Silva of the Orlando Sentinel. "He needs to know why I'm reporting so much on Howard Dean, as opposed to, say, Dennis Kucinich."
The next day, Silva ran a piece containing a quote from former Washington Governor Booth Gardner, comparing Howard Dean to Seabiscuit.
So how do we overcome a national media that sees style over substance and rarely turns its camera lens to a genuinely good man who sticks to his convictions? We campaign and we campaign hard. We get out and tell people that they don't have to vote just for people who are turned into giants by the media; who have the big bucks from Wall Street and the support from Washington. Maybe that strange Congressman from Ohio is worth more than Wolf Blitzer and Chris Matthews are telling us; maybe the fact that he wants to do everything the American people want, with little regard for the concerns of powerful interests -- maybe that's enough. Maybe if we all go to the polls and vote for the person we believe in, who's ideas our ours, who doesn't necessarily fall into the special category of "serious and electable" or whatever phrase the pundits have crafted this election cycle but instead we actually agree with on all the issues and is the most reliable progressive in the Congress -- maybe that's all we need to do to put one of the most compassionate, brave, and just people to ever be in our Government in its highest seat of office.
Maybe we aren't evolved enough as a country yet to do that. But there's no telling if we don't try.
I look forward to working with everyone in this state for Dennis Kucinich, whose courage, compassion, and ideas are mine and millions' of others.
Strength through Peace.
Zaid
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