In what could be a disagreement with Pat Lynch's evaluation, I think Ralph Nader is likely to be the Y2K of the upcoming election. That's the latest wisdom on how the much-ballyhooed Nader will effect the November elections: namely, not at all. So many people are abandoning him that there is now a Repentant Nader Voter site. As an on-site photo indicates, the group's bumper sticker consists of an old"Unrepentant Nader Voter" one with a piece of duct tape over the"Un." I mean, how unpopular among anti-Republicans does a candidate who openly hates Bush have to be for the Congressional Black Caucus to publicly turn against him? Pretty darned. Meanwhile, injecting Zionist conspiracy theories into his election campaign isn't helping him with the Jewish vote. Even the former Nader Raiders are asking him to step down. Further on the"this guy can't catch a break" theme, people are expressing disappointment in Nader's choice of VP candidate."Peter Camejo, a former Socialist Workers Party candidate for president who set up a socially responsible investment firm and then ran for governor of California as a Green Party candidate. Camejo's smart, he's of Venezuelan descent and speaks fluent Spanish and he has a history of involvement with worthy political causes." But Camejo isn't a woman he has been candid about that -- unlike Nader's VP choice for the last election.

For more commentary, please see McBlog.

David Gross - 6/24/2004

I don't follow the logic here. Nader hurts Democrat aspirations for the White House, no doubt, so it's no surprise at all that the Congressional Black Caucus wants Nader to go away. Ditto for any number of people who've decided to hitch their wagon to the Democrat horse this time around, which includes many people who otherwise would be Nader's philosophical partners. None of this is news.

The Camejo choice is Nader's way of making nice with the Green party in the hopes of being able to use that party's ballot access and reach out to Green voters. That's probably smarter politics than the gender-balancing act you seem to be advocating.

Nader's big advantage in this race is that he opposes U.S. imperial belligerence, which many people - liberal, libertarian, conservative, leftist - think is problem #1. Neither major party candidate is taking this stand - Kerry doesn't stand any further in opposition than to say he'd do what Bush is doing, only he'd do it better and with more troops. (And, Libertarian Party loyalists listen up: you're dropping the ball on this one, too.)

(Note: I'm not a Nader supporter myself, so don't ask me to defend his positions on X, Y and Z - I'm just surprised that anyone's concluding he's a non-player.)