Why Dennis Kucinich Matters Still

Several months ago I wrote an article that appeared on the Huffington Post called "Why Not Dennis?" and received an email from his campaign staff to thank me for the posting and for the sentiments expressed in the article. They also offered me work and I took it, gladly.

Now after spending several months thinking about and writing about the things that Kucinich ran on, we are looking at the choice we are left with between Tweedle-Dum and Tweedle-Dee in the Democratic twosome ready and able, they assure us, to get to work on the first day in office. Well, I sure hope so or else why bother even getting into the race? I listened on the radio to their debate from Cleveland last night, the home of Dennis and Elizabeth Kucinich and where an awful fight is going on in the primary for Dennis' seat in Congress. He is up against a man who doesn't live in his district and is supported by the same moneyed interests that have always been opposed to Dennis because of his stand against them. Fair is fair, if you are not with us you are against us. But there are reasons on both sides and what gets lost in all these debates are the reasons for things.

While Hillary and Barack were going after each other about the ways in which they had campaigned against each other, one of the comments Barack made struck me. While defending his campaign's use of a smear against Hillary in his campaign literature, he said that this is the way he has learned things are done in a campaign and therefore it was okay for him to do it too. Oh really? Is that so? First of all, that no one called him on this blatantly disingenuous statement and that he is just given this free pass to say the most insipid things as if he had come here from Mars and never been involved in politics before this run for the presidency is just a laugh we should all share together because we can.

Then from the other side of her mouth, Hillary goes on and on about how she is always picked first to speak. How that is really okay with her, she is up to the task but she wants to call attention to it. Yeah, Mrs. Clinton, they are saying two things to you: Ladies first and then of course, stick your foot in it and let's see what Barack does with it. We know that play and have seen it over and over, because they have been doing it over and over.

But you know what? It matters so little in the scheme of the real world in which the voters live if Hillary is called on first, if Barack is just learning how campaigns work. What matters are things like the rally in DC on Monday for the first responders to the attacks on September 11th and Mrs. Clinton, the Senator from New York, was not there. She was not there to speak up for her constituents who are getting screwed by this government and denied health care along with the men and women in the Armed Services who are also being denied coverage. Dennis Kucinich was there. He left Cleveland in order to stand with those who had gone in and risked everything and now have nothing.

Listen up, you two front runners; the world really can't be bothered with your bickering. It has got to stop or our current president will look out of his window as he flies overhead and decide we are not ready for an election. He will decide that we don't yet know what a democracy is and he will cancel them. Oh yeah, he may have some excuse at hand like calling for a war with Iran and thus a national emergency that these same people voted for in allowing him his Military Commission Act which they don't talk about because the matter of who has to answer questions first takes precedence and they probably didn't read it before voting on it.

It may be time to pay a little more attention to the warnings of what is happening to our Democracy and Democratic Party here at home by paying more attention to what Kucinich was saying when he was allowed to participate in the debates. Wouldn't you rather have a president who gets it right the first time and read this Act and voted against it?

Tweedle-dum and Tweedle-dee are too busy worrying about the things the kids in high schools worry about this time of year. Who is the most popular and has the most friends. Right now the country needs a leader like Kucinich who acts like a caring empathic soul ready to support those people and ideas that will restore this country's economy, health and education. Rid us of this militarism and corporatism and make life a little bit easier for us all whether we are gay or straight, black, brown, white and whether our original homes are within these borders or elsewhere. We all live here and work together here and that is what counts for Dennis Kucinich and that is what should count for all of us.

Hillary, do you want to respond to this?

Comments

[WorkingClass]

Dennis could be the leader of The American Labor Party. Dennis is a smart guy and he's got balls. I would like to see him play to win.

[liveandlearn]

unfortunately, playing to win means missing the first responders' rally in order to campaign. both obama and clinton missed the opportunity to support dodd's filibuster against giving the telecoms immunity for breaking the law--you know, the one that says someone who wants to listen in on your phone calls needs a warrant--the law that bush and crowd broke repeatedly and massively.

[Storm]

Bravo.

I have often marveled at my inability to convince my Obamamaniac friends that he is not the progressive person they think he is, and wonder where on earth all of this froth and fervor was when real progressives, like Dennis, were in the race.

It's not that I won't vote for the Democratic nominee, but I can tell you this much, you could blow me down in a whisper if Obama pulls out of NAFTA and gets the troops out of Iraq in a year, or gets us universal healthcare.

I "hope" I'm wrong.

[fairwitness]

It doesn't make Dennis case for you to call them fairy tale characters. They have gotten the most votes, deal with it. Of course Dennis is smarter on policy, but we have to take the remining choice seriously, and your childish disparagement of they who WILL be the next president helps not at all.

That's how Nader managed to throw the election in 2000 to Bush--with serious results.

[jdm58]

Frankly I was mad as hell that Dennis couldn't get on the ballot here in Texas. His candidacy was the true CHANGE that everyone clambors for, but it got smothered under the change of gender,race,and age. Healthcare, the war, the economy, trade, global warming- on every issue Dennis led the pack with ideas on how to move forward to a better tomorrow, only the press wouldn't let it be heard. Without Utube and emails, his would have been the invisible candidacy. I hope that Dennis is able to hold onto his seat in Congress. The country needs him now, more than ever.

[AlButerol]

Who gives a damn about the issues or about someone who actually does something about them. I have to choose between the two Tweedles. One of them hasn't got the backbone to oppose anything the opposition does because it might make her look bad. The other one wants to end the diviseness and join together with the opposition who have been screwing everyone in the country except the rich for decades. Who needs someone like Kucinich who really fights for us rather than just talks about it. Goddamn but we Americans are the stupidest most gullible people.

[DoninJoisey]

Disagree with the dissing of Obama. War between the parties is what we are suffering from. I would like Obama to incorporate many of Kucinich's ideas, not confrontational tactics.

[AlButerol]

Are you kidding me? What planet have you been dwelling on? I don't even have the energy to explain it to you. You really are looking forward to working with the people that brought us torture, preemptive war, a complete trashing of the constiution, a dictatorial executive branch, invasion of privacy on a grand scale, detainment without due process (can you say Night and Fog decrees!), seizure of the executive branch without democratic process (Bush has never been elected), turning a war and occupation into the world's biggest money laundering scheme in history, completely neglecting a major US city's reconstruction, perverting the justice department to proactively deny people civil rights and every day we learn about more and more of this shit. Unending lies, lies, lies. Yeah I see now that Republicans are really good people and I look forward to working with them. Obama sounds frighteningly naive when he talks about ending the diviseness. I want divisiveness. I want to strip away as much power and influence that I can from the Republicans and their corporarte cronies.

[Sciguy]

Thank you!

[Beelzebufo]

I agree with your position completely!! In line with this, you need to push Mondale's and Gore's unfulfilled political issues!

[PhillyQuaker]

Thanks, I needed a dose of Dennis!