The People's Choice

[klook]

The People's Choice
from The Progressive Populist - http://www.populist.com
Sept. 1, 2004 issue

Some on the Left are not happy with John Kerry as the Democratic nominee. They complain that the onetime war protester now wants to be a war president. He's too close to Wall Street. His statements tend to be equivocal. And, for conspiracy buffs, he's a member of the same Yale secret society, Skull and Bones, as George W. Bush!

Well, progressives and populists need to get over it. They had their options in the Democratic primary. The choices ranged from our own favorite, Dennis Kucinich, left of center, to Joe Lieberman on the right. The candidates -- including Kucinich -- were included in a series of debates around the country. Any voter who was paying attention could figure out that Kucinich and Dick Gephardt were promoting progressive populist agendas -- with Kucinich opposing the war and Gephardt embracing it.

And remember that Howard Dean appeared to be in good position to win the nomination last January. His progressive reform agenda promised to check the corporate influence on the media. He proposed to protect communities from corporate excesses. He also was among the first to criticize Bush's foreign policy mistakes when centrist Dems, including Kerry and John Edwards, were falling in line behind the invasion of Iraq.

It is also true that the national media ganged up against Dean when the former Vermont governor heated up his populist rhetoric. If Dean's rise displayed how the Internet could be used to organize a national populist campaign, his sudden fall exposed the limitations of such a campaign. Voters could have stuck with Dean despite the corporate media barrage, but it required a leap of faith they were not prepared to take. Instead they decided Kerry was a safer choice to put up against Bush this fall. So Kerry overtook Dean in Iowa and New Hampshire. After that, nobody was able to catch up with the Massachusetts senator. The race was over by the second week of March.

At some point in a democracy you have to respect the will of the people. In the Democratic primaries the people chose Kerry. To say progressives should not support Kerry because he is not progressive enough is arrogant -- and a losing strategy.

There are significant differences between Kerry's Democrats and Bush's Republicans. While the differences in some areas, such as trade and foreign policy, might seem subtle, in other areas, such as labor and the environment, they are stark. That is why progressive activists in Boston were falling into line behind Kerry, who at least is willing to talk with them. They simply have no access under Bush, whose administration, along with Republican allies in Congress and the courts, are systematically closing doors in Washington to liberal as well as centrist Democrats.
more: http://www.populist.com/04.15.edit.html

[trotsky]

1. EVERYBODY who's nitpicking on Kerry should read this.

That last paragraph you quoted is key:

That is why progressive activists in Boston were falling into line behind Kerry, who at least is willing to talk with them. They simply have no access under Bush, whose administration, along with Republican allies in Congress and the courts, are systematically closing doors in Washington to liberal as well as centrist Democrats.

[Moderator]

2. Good article...but please remember DU copyright rules when posting

Excerpts from copyrighted materials are limited to four paragraphs.

Thanks
Moderator

[klook]

3. Oops, sorry...

I was going to edit it down but the editing period has expired. I'll be mindful of the 4-paragraph rule in the future.