Senator Sanders' spokesman smacks down Nader

[ProSense]

<...>

A Sanders spokesman said the senator is proud of the work he’s done on issues like Social Security, financial regulations and veterans affairs and that while Nader once played an “important role” in protecting consumers’ interests, his influence has waned.

“It is sad that many decades later he’s shadowboxing with someone that’s one of the leading progressive voices today. The personal attack on Bernie is unfortunately how he operates and why he no longer has much influence on Capitol Hill,” the spokesman said of Nader.

http://www.politico.com/story/2014/03/ralph-nader-bernie-sanders-letter-104376.html

[JoePhilly]

1. Nadar is basically calling Sanders powerless and ineffectual.

Hey Kettle, its the pot on line one, he says you're black.

[mucifer]

2. Bernie added some very important things to the ACA

that would not be there now!

I love Bernie!

[riqster]

3. Nader, who has had fuck-all in the way of impact for a decade now,

...tells one of our most important Senators how to have an impact? Dafuq?

[KauaiK]

4. I will never forgive Nader for siphoning votes from Gore

He believes his own PR.

[calimary]

9. Neither will I.

If it weren't for him in there, in my opinion, anyway - we would have more than four thousand Americans still alive and walking the earth and being with their families. We would still have thousands upon thousands more - with both legs intact, both arms still attached, vision intact, hearing still normal, wheelchairs, crutches, counseling, physical therapy, medical treatment not needed, and PTSD treatment not needed. We would still have more than four thousand families intact. And more than four thousand sets of children being kissed good night by both parents. There'd be more than four thousand fewer triangular-folded flags framed and hung on the wall or displayed on the family room mantlepiece. Because I firmly believe President Al Gore would NOT have brought battalions of PNACers and other chickenhawks with hard-ons for war in Iraq into office with him, crammed into his National Security Advisor offices or his Defense Department or his State Department. Al Gore did not have that same kind of agenda, OR that same kind of worldview going in. Al Gore did not come in itching to pick a fight with some foreign leader to settle some old family score or perceived affront or get revenge or assert his Alpha-Male status for all to see and then worship.

That's something we all need to watch. WHO'S SIGNING ON AS CAMPAIGN ADVISORS with these future candidates. Are they hawks? And worse - are they chickenhawks? Are they the never-served-but-still-have-a-big-fat-hard-on-for-war types? Are they the-Vietnam-War-wasn't-finished types? Are they Empire-Is-EVERYTHING types who feel the need to assert "American exceptionalism" around the world - by force if necessary? We need to have a very keen awareness of who's advising on foreign policy, who's coaching the candidate for the the foreign policy debates. Because those same people will ride in on the victorious candidate's coat-tails and inhabit the Defense Department, the State Department, and the National Security Advisor's offices, and indeed, possibly even be nominated or confirmed as Cabinet-level officials and other sorts of department heads.

Just one example: randy scheunemann - was lurking in the shadows throughout the bush/cheney machine as a senior advisor, then went on to coach the hapless sarah palin on foreign policy (wound up tearing his hair in frustration as I recall), and I believe he also slithered into mitt romney's foreign policy cabal as a senior advisor - and you better believe that if romney or mccain had gotten in, folks like randy scheunemann would just go back to their bush/cheney offices and turn the computer back on and pick up where they left off.

Let's not forget - it's not just the candidate. It's ALSO all the behind-the-scenes people that candidate brings into office with him/her.

[KauaiK]

19. Kudos to you calimary for the excellent detail....

on why Nader is such a douche bag.

[SunSeeker]

10. +1

[freshwest]

14. Never grasped the intense hatred of Nader in some quarters here. Now I do. Thanks. Oughta be an OP.

[dreamnightwind]

23. Might want to look at that a little closer - eom

[dreamnightwind]

20. That article doesn't support your statement

Unless you're basing your statement on something else. I read that article and the only thing it contains that relates to the Kochs and the Nader campaign is the following:

” … CSE has found itself in hot water in recent weeks over charges it has been working illegally to get consumer activist Ralph Nader on the presidential ballot in Oregon. On June 30, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission alleging that groups, including Citizens for a Sound Economy, the Bush/Cheney campaign and the Nader campaign, had violated federal campaign laws through the use of prohibited in-kind contributions.”
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“In its complaint, CREW said CSE directed employees to call members, using prepared scripts, to encourage them to sign a petition that allowed Ralph Nader to put his name on the November ballot in the presidential election. According to CREW, CSE’s script stated ‘Liberals are trying to unite in Oregon and keep Nader off the ballot to help their chances of electing John Kerry. We could divide this base of support.’”

CSE is Citizens For A Sound Economy, apparently a Koch-affiliated group. CREW is the most excellent Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

There's a back-link in the article to a Citizens For Public Integrity article (http://www.publicintegrity.org/oil/report.aspx?aid=347) that comes up "page not found", so I don't know if there was info in there that supports your statement. But nothing in this article does. This article says only that CSE worked to get Nader on the ballot in Oregon, and makes no claim that Nader had anything to do with what CSE was up to.

edit to add: my intent is not to support Nader, I thought he was beyond idiotic to run again in 2004. But if you're going to say Nader was accepting campaign funds from the Kochs, there better be something more than this article to support such a statement.

[rosesaylavee]

22. You are right...

I hadn't read it as thoroughly ... that article only applied to the 2004 campaign in one state. I am trying to find something I read tho that linked him and them to the 2000 campaign but not yet finding it on google. Thanks for pointing that out.

[dreamnightwind]

24. And even in that one state in that one campaign

there is nothing that ties or implies a connection to Nader. It's a conservative group spending their own money to help get Nader on the ballot, hoping to siphon votes away from Gore. Unless he put them up to it (doubtful), there's no blame whatsoever to lay at Nader's feet for this, other of course than the folly of him running for President in the first place.

Thanks for acknowledging my point rather than continue to argue it, many here persist despite evidence to the contrary.

Re Nader, I am probably in agreement with you (not sure where you are coming from is why I hedged that). I like him, a lot, as a consumer advocate and as a powerful voice against corporate fraud and greed. I never thought he'd make a good President even if he won, and he didn't wage any real campaign, just used the election to advance his own name and to give him a forum in which to discuss the corporate takeover of our nation.

If Sanders runs (and I hope he does) I really hope he does so as a Democrat, and that he wages a full and vigorous campaign, rather than the silly Nader/Kucinich token candidacies. People are ready to get behind someone who has real solutions to our real problems.

[wryter2000]

5. He attacked Bernie Sanders?

I hope he's finally lost the last shred of credibility here.

[Ikonoklast]

6. You mean 1%'er Ralph Nader??? Anti-Union Ralph Nader?????

Fuck that guy.

Run, Bernie, run!

[freshwest]

15. Koch funded (see above) and anti-union, too? WTH? Media disinfo struck hard in 2000. Damn him. nt

[Ikonoklast]

18. Refused to bargain with employees that wanted to unionize.

They were tired of working long hours, uncompensated, St. Ralph told them to quit if they didn't like it.

[Major Nikon]

7. Once again Nader proves why he is and should be irrelevant

Fuck Ralph Nader.

[Auggie]

8. Nader turned 80 two weeks ago ...

February 27th. Guess no one celebrated here.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

12. That's OK. I like both of them.

[Luminous Animal]

21. Me too.

[RufusTFirefly]

13. Good ol' Politico. Doing it's usual "divide and conquer" shit-stirring. I wonder why.

Given the contempt that a prominent poster to this thread has heaped on The Guardian for its past association with Glenn Greenwald, perhaps it would be helpful to know something about Politico's Founding CEO and President, Fred Ryan. Ryan served as Ronald Reagan's first post-presidency chief of staff and in addition to being the President and COO of Allbritton Communications is the Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation.

[ProSense]

17. Politico didn't force Nader to attack Sanders.

"Good ol' Politico. Doing it's usual 'divide and conquer' shit-stirring. I wonder why."

Politico certainly had nothing to do with the response from Sanders' spokesperson. The better question is why the hell is Nader attacking Sanders?

It has nothing to do with who owns Politico. That's simply obsfucation from the topic at hand: Nader's shitty letter.

[Bobbie Jo]

16. Obligatory

*Fuck Nader*

"The personal attack on Bernie is unfortunately how he operates and why he no longer has much influence on Capitol Hill,”

[dionysus]

25. what a looney tunes...

[Cha]

26. Okay, we fucking heard it here from Sen Sanders' spokesman..

“It is sad that many decades later he’s shadowboxing with someone that’s one of the leading progressive voices today. The personal attack on Bernie is unfortunately how he operates and why he no longer has much influence on Capitol Hill,” the spokesman said of Nader"

It's over Nader fans.

[Tarheel_Dem]

27. Since I'm not in love with either one of 'em, I say duke it out fellas.

[dionysus]

28. Bern is the real deal, fuck Nader... is all i'm sayin... wait.. are you karate choppin at me?

thems fightin woids! time for some kickboxing!

<-- kickboxing

[Tarheel_Dem]

29. Bernie lost me when he suggested someone primary the president in 2012. Not a fan.

And I ain't kickboxing, cuz I just won an award at work. I'm full of love & joy!