Nader’s In The Race And My Father’s Rolling Over In His Grave

Politically, my father was an interesting man. He wasn’t one to get hot under the collar, to throw his glass of scotch at the TV every time he saw Bush on one of the stations or ever be beholden to just one party. Yet, in his docile, deliberative and simple way, he could debate the state of the world with the likes of Kissinger or Albright and offer up some profound opinions without the appearance of taking a side. He was always more of a listener and a reader who absorbed the words around him, all the while processing the information, then storing it away for passive discussion at a later date.

In the 80s, my father did the Reagan thing, and then kept it in line when it came time to vote for Bush Senior. In the ’92 primaries, however, he voted (as did I) for Jerry “Moonbeam” Brown. Then, when it came time to choose between Bush (Jr.) or Gore, my dad chose . . . . . . . Ralph Nader! In Florida no less!! Yes, my father was one of those voters most of America wanted to scream at, to shake violently, all the while whimpering, “why, why, (sniff, blow nose, wipe tears) why?”

Not that my father has the chance to make up for past mistakes now, but with the announcement this morning of Nader’s bid for the White House, it’s fair to say that my father (turning in his grave at this announcement) would not be suckered a second time into supporting Nader (fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me) and risk dividing the Democratic vote to the benefit of the GOP. And neither should the rest of the “disenfranchised” voters buy the “it’s all about sticking it to corporate American” rallying cry.

Sure, Nader has good ideas that parallel the philosophies of most of those on the left, but the focus on this year’s election has to be more about returning this country to sound and reasonable leadership than about simply making a point. We all know of the corruption, the unbalance, the waste, the deficit, the pollution, and the economic, social, personal, and ideological decimation that will be the legacy of this administration. Let’s not put the icing on the cake by dignifying Nader’s announcement.

Yes, I am adamantly opposed to a Nader candidacy. I’m sickened by the thought that we might have to live 2000 all over again and suffer yet another four or eight years under a totalitarian regime. I’m even more sickened that Huckabee has already said that Republicans welcome his entry into the race. I’m sickened by Nader’s selfishness and hubris. And, yes, I partially hold him accountable for much of the pain that the Bush Administration has inflicted on this country and the world.

I hope this development will energize the Democratic base even more and bring an abundance of otherwise resistant voters to the street in a unified front to support either Hillary or Obama.

I honestly do not think Nader will fair near as well as he thinks. In fact, I predict his candidacy will tank before we have a Democratic nominee.

I never got a chance to ask my father why he voted for Nader or if he ever regretted his decision. I never wanted to put him on the spot. But what I do know is that, like most Americans (69% at last count) my father was well aware of the critical damage the Boy King was doing to our country and that this country could not survive a continuation of the Bush policies by the election of another Republican president. Since Nader does not seem as concerned about the Bush-lite presidency of John McCain, it is up to the Democrats to work that much harder to assure a future for this country.

An addendum: Hemming Plaza, as offended by a Nader candidacy as I am, forwarded this link showing just how much the GOP has supported The Spoiler in the past. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/07/09/MNGQQ7J31K1.DTL