Nader's advice to Kerry (Wm Raspberry)

Ralph Nader, according to many who say they used to admire him, has become the self-centered star whose press clippings have gone to his head, the dog in the manger, the skunk at the Democratic garden party.

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Well, the advice here is that the Democrats — very much including presumptive nominee John Kerry — would do well to pause in their brick-throwing long enough to listen. Because what Nader is offering, he genuinely believes, is a road map to a Kerry victory.

"A part of the problem," Nader said in an interview last week, "is that the Democrats have become too cautious — too indentured to the same money the Republicans are dialing for. Kerry's consultants and handlers are telling him to tone it down, and he has. For example, he's now saying 'I'm not a redistributionist, I'm a centrist,' and that speaks volumes. Because the issue isn't redistributing wealth in the old-fashioned sense but stopping the redistribution that's already going on through corporate welfare."

In fact, ending corporate welfare is one of 10 elements of what Nader is certain would be a winning campaign. "Democrats would like it, but so would lots of conservatives, liberals and progressives who don't like the way wealth is being redistributed in this country."

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http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2001924926_raspberry11.html

Which is what you have to be to take campaigning advice from your opponents.

could activate progressive base and reach out to some of those disaffected (idiotic) progressives who are threatening not to vote because they think Kerry isn't good enough for them.

I'm more worried about Kerry taking some of the poisonous advice "for Democrats" from the rightwing columnists (who have been dishing it out regularly) than from Nader, whose policy views seem principled and who may have some insight into how we could craft a winning coalition.

Some Republicans would jump ship. There's a rift between the ones who are generally down with the whole GOP and those who are civil libertarians who like small business. These are the disaffected "leave me alone" Republicans.

A lot of Democrats would come back and vote too. Re-opening a conflict between the owners and the workers is a good strategy to get votes. Right now, the wage situation is miserable, with more poor people in dead end jobs than in recent history. More potential voters!