Why Should Greens Vote Kerry?

To send a message to the Republicans: Go too far and we'll even help the Democrats

http://www.liberationlearning.org/loving_and_learning/2004/kerry_nader.html

There are two reasons for Greens to vote Kerry. First, by voting for Kerry this year we become more relevant in presidential politics. We become swing voters. Swing voters matter to politicians seeking elected office. Often called moderate voters, swing voters are actually not middle voters but voters on the margins. Marginal voters who will move will be courted. While I see no panacea for the Left from a Kerry victory, I do see benefits in asserting the relevance of the Left - especially this year.

Dean's rise was a victory for the Left. Gore's series of speeches on civil liberties and the brazen lies of the Bush administration were remarkable. Kerry meeting with Nader was better than the Democratic shunning of Greens since 2000. These changes do not count as a transformation of society, but given how little power the Left has we are best realistic about how much of role we have at this time. Let’s be swing voters this year and so that others will know that we can help Democrats lose (as in 2000) and we can help Democrats win (as in this year).

But the swing voter argument is not the best reason for Greens vote Kerry. More important relates to why we usually vote Green or independent, which is to send a message about what really matters to us. I voted third party in all of the past presidential elections to send a message to the Democrats. Now I want to send a message to the Republicans.

The message is simple: Go too far and you will lose.

There are limits to how far either party can go. Bush went way beyond these limits. Defeating Bush matters because all politicians need to know that even the radical Left will back a Democrat if things go too far. Bush's radical agenda goes beyond anything any recent president has done. Not Nixon, not Ford, not Carter, not Reagan, not Bush's dad, and not Clinton come close to the hugely radical abuse of power and threat to the Republic of this president. That's why this president must be defeated and why it makes sense for Greens to help do it.

Bush invaded a sovereign state in a war of aggression without even pretense of following international law. Bush lied to the Congress and the American people to take our nation to war. Bush used the September 11th tragedy to restrict civil liberties and to massively expand police powers. Bush used fear of foreigners to push forward a radical domestic agenda. Bush was caught leading a government that tortures and ignores human rights with impunity. Bush suspended habeas corpus, locked citizens in secret jails and challenged the basic tenets on which civil society is based. Bush engaged in massive propaganda, abused the power of the Executive, challenged our Constitutional system, violated international law and pushed an unprecedented militaristic and corporate radical agenda.

Sure, other presidents have engaged in other acts that approach those of Bush - but none have been so bold and brazen as has been Bush. He is dangerous to our Republic and to the world. And we, the far Left, must join with moderates and liberals to send a message to radicals of the radical-Right. We will not tolerate anything that approaches Bush, not now and not ever - even if this means that we'll pause from building our own Green Party. Join me in sending this message because the right to vote matters and this year we can employ our right to make a real difference for America and for the world.

http://www.liberationlearning.org/loving_and_learning/2004/kerry_nader.html

I thought their organizing strategy was to run local elections, which are easier to win, and then build the base from that.

Presidents are not really influenced by the people, but they are influenced by other politicians who are in Congress, or in local offices, or otherwise wired into the system. A political party that cannot elect candidates into local offices really can't do much in national politics either.

Vote for peace. Not for war. Kerry supports the war. Kerry voted for the Pat. act. There is no lesser of two evils here, only different evils. And not that different either.

The election will change nothing. Tactical voting never works. Vote for what you want. Vote for peace.

VOTE GREEN

Tactical voting works when the objective is to defeat Bush. We can actually swing the election in one direction given how close things are - and so it does matter how we vote. Even if we don't live in a swing state, it matters what we say and that we push for real Greens to vote Kerry in 2004.

Defeating Bush matters to the radical left because a win by Bush will make the radical right even more powerful. This year matters more than other years - Bush has secured more power than any recent president. Given this, we need to vote Kerry to defeat Bush.

The real choice is not how to vote in this election, but how to get organized and powerful enough to really change American's course. This election is one part of how we do this. We are totally being wiped out by the scale of the right’s propaganda system and their control and use of the world’s most powerful military in human history to further their interests. Given this, I just don’t see any reason to bolster the right by allowing Bush to get reelected. Now is the time to show that what Bush did was totally wrong and unacceptable to Americans.

Supporting a Democrat (and not an independent or Green candidate) may seem counter intuitive – since Democrats generally don’t support the types of changes I seek- but I believe that Bush’s defeat is the right thing for now.

My voting for a Democrat this year does not mean that I am giving up on building a third party movement, or on the ideals of the Green party. It’s time to send a clear message to the Republicans that they went too far.