Rob's Politics Blog

Another election year is upon us, and its a fine time to be reading Harold Myerson. His Our Feel-Good Veep is but one of the excellent columns he's written this year.

Also, MSNBC reports: Bush Bigs Open Their Wallets For Nader

Golly, you'd think they hadn't heard that Nader was running to defeat Bush.

Republicans for Nader / Nader for Republicans

Curious news from Arizona: Nader's effort to get on the ballot there was partly funded by a former executive director of the state's Republican Party. The petitions were collected by a company also gathering petitions for a ballot measure to restrict public services from undocumented immigrants. Oh yes, and 65% of the people signing Nader petitions were Republicans.

Two voters are suing to have 14,000 signatures stricken from Nader's petition. Some are alleged to have come from unregistered voters. Also, it is alleged that felons have been employed as petion-collecters, violating state law. This bears watching closely - the Arizona fight may impact Nader's efforts to access the ballot nationwide. The judge will likely rule on July 2, since Arizona state law requires adjudication of challenges within 10 days.

South Dakota Republicans, angered by their loss in the the June 1 special congressional election, are seeking to move their party to the right to distinguish it from the Democrats.

The impulse to purify is a common one, but somehow I doubt that South Dakotans see their GOP as insufficiently conservative. South Dakota contributes disproportionately to the American armed forces - at least 8 South Dakotans have died in Iraq - roughly one percent of total U.S. fatalities so far, and a share four times South Dakota's proportion of the American population (around .2%). Around 3400 South Dakotans have served in the military in the past two years. When the election cycle began, annoyance over Tom Daschle's criticism of Bush's conduct of the war was thought to pose a vulnerability for the incumbent. At this point, Daschle's concerns look to have been prescient to an electorate where most voters probably know or know of someone in harm's way.

A swing to the right, however gratifying, may not help the Republicans unseat Daschle.

I'm having a hard time forming a coherent opinion about Howard Dean. I really didn't like the holier-than-thou style he had along the campaign trail, but once he signed on alongside Kerry, he's proved invaluable. It's clear from this article - Dean sees Nader support as biggest threat to Kerry - that he's not going to take the efforts of Republicans to boost Nader in silence:

In some of his strongest criticism of Nader, Dean also accused the consumer advocate and former Green Party presidential contender of accepting support from the Republicans -- who could benefit from his success -- to advance his candidacy.

"Ralph Nader is taking money from Republicans and he's now got Republicans -- right wingers -- advocating for him.

They've got people with signs for ballot positions in Oregon, which I find is pretty appalling," the former governor said.

Go Howard, go! (Did I just type that?)

Nader is reportedly sulking about his snub by the Greens. All you have to do is read between the lines of the Washington Post's reporting:

[Nader] described the party as "strange," called the party's national nominating convention "a cabal" and predicted who the big loser in its decision not to endorse him would be.

Good grief. If they don't endorse you it can only be because they're conspiring against you. Is Nader incapable of considering the possibility that the Green Party is tired of being used by him every four years? That it's demeaning for them to be at the beck and call of someone who has not deigned to join them formally? Contrary to Nader's assertion that the Greens would benefit financially from being associated with him, lining up with the rump Reform Party (now abandoned by Ross Perot), and Nader's own Populist Party would mark the Greens as pathetic followers - eager for star power and willing to prostrate themselves for it.

Nader also attempted to play Cassandra, direly forecasting that the Green Party would:

"shrink in its dimension" and "has jettisoned [itself] out of any influence on the Democratic Party."

Uh gee, doesn't he mean both the Democratic and Republican parties? He has been saying that he'll draw votes equally from both. I guess the truth comes out if you fluster him enough.

Dick Cheney's use of the F-bomb marks a relatively new low in Vice Presidential behavior. It also marks the continuing unravelling of the administration. It's not so much the crime as the coverup; most Americans can understand a momentary lapse of decorum, even if it happens on the floor of the Senate. But Cheney's rigid, unapologetic attitude makes him seem like a self-righteous clod. Team Bush can't apologize for anything, and if their self-discipline is this thin by June, it's going to be a long haul for them.

One of my colleagues is perturbed by the apparent willingness of a majority of Israeli voters to support encouraging the state's Arab population to emigrate. This is indeed a worrisome sign, though I wouldn't conclude out of hand that one poll finding somehow nullifies Israel's democratic, constitutional structure. Approval of encouraging emigration is not quite the same as approval of coercive methods.

And as to diagnosing the roots of this particular malady, I fear that he has left out a crucial ingredient - the apparent radicalization of many Arabs living in Israel. The outbreak of violence in 2000 in the West Bank and Gaza coincided with violent action by Israeli Arabs. An unprecedented (if still relatively small) number of them have been implicated in bombing plots against Israelis. One of the community's foremost leaders, Azmi Bishara, had his legislative immunity stripped from him after making speeches supporting Hezbollah and calling upon Arab states to confront Israel.

So it's not just a sense of post-Oslo gloom and economic difficulty at work. More than before, Jewish Israelis feel at risk from their Arab neighbors and worry that the Arab community will reenact the historical role of the Sudeten Germans. This fear is probably exaggerated, but the descent of Israeli Arab leaders into radical, wild rhetoric has much to do with it. This community is well placed to act as a bridge between Israel and the Arab world, or to lead the whole region further toward an abyss. If its leaders play more to Al Jazeera than the interests of their own constituents, expect further panic among Israel's majority population.

Good news from the campaign trail, via the L. A. Times: Close Vote Costs Nader the Green Nomination. That's right, the Green Party has nominated one of its own people for a change, instead of hitching its star to an egomanical celebrity candidate. Good for them. I can respect them a bit more. David Cobb, the Green nominee, is pledging to campaign only in the safe states and stay out of battleground states. Whether he sticks to that is unclear, but as a relatively unknown figure he won't disrupt Kerry very much.

In the meantime, Nader will have to fight tooth and nail to get on the ballot. His endorsement by the ghost of the Reform Party will help somewhat, but otherwise he'll need serious help – from conservatives. Nader's failure to appear at the convention – he's generally found the Greens useful idiots, rather than mature allies – definitely cost him.

Nader supporters are engaging in a delicious bit of teeth-knashing:

After Cobb was officially nominated, many Nader supporters stormed out. Some sobbed. Others cursed and threw their Green Party posters to the ground.

'This is a dark day,' said Robert Nanninga, a delegate from Encinitas, Calif. 'We've just nominated a white lawyer with a car salesman's smile. It might as well be a Republican. This is going to be remembered for years to come.'

Wow those are harsh words: both a "white lawyer" and a "car salesman." You'd think he was talking about a Republican! Who is this Robert Nanninga so scornful of white lawyers? Well I found his photo via Google:



Curious - no Black Panther, he. Perhaps I shouldn't expect him to make too much sense while stewing in his own juices.

By the way, Bob, Ralph Nader is pretty pale too.

Ray Bradbury wants Michael Moore to apologize and change the title of his new film

"It's not a nice thing he has done," Bradbury, 83, said. "My book is known all over the world and that title is my title."

Michael Moore is not otherwise known for his consideration. Whether Mr. Bradbury - one of the living legends of American science fiction - has a case is unclear. As we said of Al Gore though, Moore could have at least made a phone call.

Also:

In an English translation of an interview Ray Bradbury did with the Swedish daily newspaper Dagens Nyheter, published last week, the Web site World Net Daily reported the author of the classic fiction novel "Fahrenheit 451" called Moore a "screwed a------" because he "stole" the title.

"He stole my title and changed the numbers without ever asking me for permission," the 83-year-old Bradbury reportedly said in the interview

Ethics Group Seeks Inquiry on Nader

Where to begin . . . where to begin . . .

Amazing news from Iraq: Foes of U.S. in Iraq Criticize Insurgents

Sadr and Sunnis otherwise prone to supporting anti-Coalition actions are speaking out against Zarqawi and urging Iraqis to work with the police. The toll of Iraqi deaths caused by Zarqawi has finally proved to be too much. This could be a true turning point, enabling the defeat of foreign fighters, and maybe even marking a shift in the philosophy of Iraqi hardliners away from massive violence.

Nader getting support from unlikely voters :

Conservatives in Oregon are mobilizing to put Ralph Nader on the ballot. Below is the text of one of the scripts that volunteers are using to help turn out people for Nader petitions

Ralph Nader is undoubtedly going to pull some very crucial votes from John Kerry, and that could mean the difference in a razor-thin presidential election,' reads a script used by Citizens for a Sound Economy in its phone calls. 'Can we count on you to come out on Saturday night and sign the petition to nominate Ralph Nader?

Naturally, the Oregon Green Party has no problem with this.

This is a pretty perverse coalition. Odds are that the Oregon Green activists so blasé about this now were populating anti-war protests last year, or were at least strongly anti-war. And now they are acting to prolong the tenure of an administration that they allegedly deplore. Are they so mentally defective as to be unable to associate their actions with consequences they deplore? Do they represent some kind of evolutionary cul-de-sac in human development? I'm having a hard time dismissing the possibility.

3 U.S. senators visited Iraq this past weekend. One was Tom Daschle, and he stayed longer than just the duration of a meal. Hopefully South Dakotans will take note of this (Daschle retains the lead in recent polls, but his opponent's campaign has raised a formidable warchest).

I have the sneaking feeling that it would really benefit John Kerry to visit our troops and to make his visit of a serious duration - at least a day or two. The risks are well above those of a normal campaign stop, but the message he would send would be substantial and powerful.

Separated at Birth

"Hunt them down. Do not stop until they are found. You do not know pain, you do not know fear. You will taste man-flesh."

- Saruman, The Fellowship of the Ring

"The flesh of collaborators is tastier than that of Americans"

- A leaflet distributed by Iraqi insurgents

Gollum: "She's always hungry. She always needs to feed. She must eat. All she gets is filthy orcses."
Sméagol: "And they doesn't taste very nice, does they, precious?"
Gollum: "No, not very nice at all, my love. She hungers for sweeter meats..."

- Gollum and Sméagol, The Return of the King

Lebanon's Daily Star is an exceptional newspaper for the Middle East, offering a degree of self-analysis not seen elsewhere in the region. On the question of Darfur, it recently noted - with anger - that the Arab League's last meeting "'reaffirm(ed) ... the Arab states' solidarity with the sisterly Republic of Sudan and their keenness to preserve its territorial integrity and sovereignty and reinforce all peace initiatives started by the Sudanese government with the international and regional parties.' "

The editorial, A word of advice on Darfur for the Arab body politic, continues:

It is time for a word of advice for the Arab League: We are sick of vacuous statements - the time for action is now. In fact, the time for action was yesterday, last week, last month, last year, last decade.

John McCain and fellow senator Mike DeWine have sounded the alarm about genocide in Sudan's Darfur region. Presently the Sudanese government and local Arab militias are intent on murdering or expelling the region's black population.

Rightly, they call on the U.S. to push for action in the UN Security Council. Action in the UN will be necessary - but there will inevitably be difficulty due to the cohesion of the Arab states in that forum. Getting Egypt and other states to break ranks with the Sudan will probably be necessary - to do that, Western countries will have to give the carnage in Darfur a lot more attention and coverage than its receiving.

If not, as McCain and DeWine state, about 320,000 people will be dead by the end of the year.

The Washington Post reports that the renewal of the African Growth and Opportunity Act, which opens US markets to African exports and is responsible for 150,000 jobs in Africa, is stalled in the Senate. There is some hope that both parties want it passed, but it needs to happen soon.

An Extraordinary Weblog

No, not this one. For a terrific perspective on life in Saudi Arabia, read The Religious Policeman, the courageous contribution of one Saudi citizen. It is somewhat anonymous, as the author could get deeply into trouble if authorities linked him to it.

Gore gone haywire

The former Vice President slammed Miami mayor Alex Penelas for being "treacherous and dishonest" during the 2000 campaign. Penelas is running against Florida Rep. Peter Deutsch (who Gore supports) for the nomination in the race to replace Senator Bob Graham.

The charge has real substance to it. As one Miami Herald article notes, Penelas was conspicuously absent from Gore's campaign rallies in Florida in 2000 - particularly in the crucial autumn months. He had just won his own race in the late summer, so his seat was assured for the foreseeable future. Nonetheless, Penelas went on a 2 week vacation to Spain, and skipped Gore's election-eve rally in South Miami.

It all did come down to Miami Cubans in 2000. Gore suffered from his association with the administration's decision in the Elian Gonzalez case. But after Elian was sent back to Cuba, vital months remained in which the Gore campaign sought to rebuild links with the Cuban community. Any efforts to do this required the assistance of Penelas. By sitting this out, Penelas helped to elect George W. Bush. Gore's totals in Miami that night were far worse than Bill Clinton's in either election.

So, is Gore justified in feeling this way? You betcha. Does that make his venting a good idea? Doubtful.

Florida is, once again, going to be a battleground state in the presidential race. Its population has increased by one million since 2000. To win it, Kerry will need to avoid negatively galvanizing the Cuban population - which didn't appear to be a problem. Al Gore could very well change that. Whatever happens in the senate race the winner - and John Kerry - will need Penelas' bloc of voters to win in the fall. Gore might just have destroyed Penelas, but it will be a Pyrrhic victory if this undermines Kerry in Florida. And somehow I doubt that Gore really considered this before venting.

I'm a liberal who has had a decade's worth of frustration with Republicans and the conservative agenda, but that doesn't lessen my disgust with prose like this, which comes casually in a routine theater review in the Village Voice. The arrogant insularity and snobbery of liberals like this is truly disgusting. It makes their political beliefs seem not the product of ideals and principles, but rather of egotism and narrowmindedness. It embarrasses me to think that Michael Feingold and I are anywhere near each other on the same spectrum. Perhaps he's on the far left and I can just consider the bigotry in this paragraph a product of extremism. But I have the disheartening inclination that he's not a Neo-Leninist, but representative of a larger worldview.

The Village Voice: Theater: Foreman's Wake-Up Call by Michael Feingold:

Republicans don't believe in the imagination, partly because so few of them have one, but mostly because it gets in the way of their chosen work, which is to destroy the human race and the planet. Human beings, who have imaginations, can see a recipe for disaster in the making; Republicans, whose goal in life is to profit from disaster and who don't give a hoot about human beings, either can't or won't. Which is why I personally think they should be exterminated before they cause any more harm.

In his A Plea for Enlightened Moderation, Pervez Musharraf offers a reminder of why the U.S. continues to see him as the best of all possible alternatives in Pakistan. To be sure, he hasn't yet matched this lofty rhetoric, and his revolving door policy toward militants is troubling. But Muslim leaders willing to make statements like these are uncommon (and no, Paul Krugman, Mahathir isn't among them). Whatever his flaws, one does wish that there could be more leaders who see the problem like he does:

I say to my brother Muslims: The time for renaissance has come. The way forward is through enlightenment. We must concentrate on human resource development through the alleviation of poverty and through education, health care and social justice. If this is our direction, it cannot be achieved through confrontation. We must adopt a path of moderation and a conciliatory approach to fight the common belief that Islam is a religion of militancy in conflict with modernization, democracy and secularism. All this must be done with a realization that, in the world we live in, fairness does not always rule.

The Case for Tom Daschle

As far as I'm concerned, the most important Senate race in 2004 will be the contest for Tom Daschle's seat in South Dakota, profiled here by the Washington Post.

Daschle is facing a strong competitor - the state's former representative John Thune, who was narrowly defeated in a Senate race two years ago. Thune is running hard and is only trailing by two points - 49-47 in a recent poll (this in a state more pro-Bush than Texas). Thune is getting serious help from the national GOP - Majority Leader Frist visited South Dakota lately in a major breach of protocol.

The White House is obsessed with Daschle. It was two years ago when they feared he'd run for president. It remains so because they correctly regard him as a very dangerous adversary. Daschle avoids the pitfalls of leadership, he has always avoided the hazards of the loud, provocative Newt Gingrich style of party leadership. But once he engages, he is a very committed and capable adversary. He and his lieutenant, Harry Reid of Nevada, successfully masterminded the defection of Jim Jeffords three years ago. Daschle's masterful leadership of the Democratic caucus has been responsible for the successful blocking of a number of judicial nominees.

His almost shy, soft-spoken style has made him a better legislative leader than a national leader. When Howard Dean ran against the party leadership, he certainly included Daschle in that category. Rank and file Dems are not as appreciative of Daschle as they should be, undervaluing his capable leadership of the part, and seeking a more avowedly liberal profile for their party leadership. But the loss of his leadership would be a disaster for the Senate Democrats and for the party as a whole. Tom Daschle is remarkably liberal for a South Dakota senator, and his party leadership reflects his awareness of the dilemmas of Democrats from moderate or conservative states. If the Democratic Party could only win in liberal states, it would be lucky to have 35 Senate seats, never mind the current 48.

I know that the readers of this blog tend to be liberals. If you feel like contributing to John Kerry, consider doing something to help Tom Daschle, whether now or later in the campaign season. Here's a link to his campaign website. I'll be doing what I can to help, and following the South Dakota race right here.