The One and Only Candidate
What I like best about Dennis Kucinich is that he is the only candidate who realizes that, if you're in your car hurtling toward a precipice, with the "pedal to the metal", it's not enough to simply lighten your foot a little, or even a lot. Your momentum will carry you over the edge. Instead, the only rational response is to apply the brake, stop the car, and turn it around or back it up, away from the brink.
What Kucinich realizes and has the moral fiber to propose is that when your problems are serious your solutions must be equally serious, if they are to have any real effect. That's why he is committed to a platform that will put on the brakes, stop the car, and turn it around. The other candidates may be content to coast off the cliff, but surveys show that large numbers of Americans would prefer the Kucinich approach. Which means they are unlikely to be inspired by a candidate who offers less. And we know what happens to voter turnout when the electorate is uninspired. It takes a lot to unseat an incumbent President. Specifically, you need a candidate who offers a real alternative to the incumbent. Then, people who would normally sit out an election will flock to the polls. Kucinich, and only Kucinich, is that candidate.
Here's why:
Of course, the other candidates have some good ideas, too. What puts Kucinich head and shoulders above the rest, is his stunning record of commitment, integrity, and accomplishment. A record that goes all the way back to the 1970's.
In 1976, Cleveland, Ohio had a problem. The city had been run for years by a corrupt Republican administration that finally went a step too far. It hatched a plan to sell the city's municipal electric utility (Muny Light) to Cleveland Electric Illuminating Company (CEI), a badly run competitor that had lost millions (They had commissioned nuclear power plants that proved to be so badly built they were unsafe and unfit to use.). CEI wanted to buy Muny Light so it would have a monopoly on Cleveland's electric power. Then it could recoup its losses by raising prices and the citizens of Cleveland would have to pay, whatever it cost. Better yet, the mayor was ready to sell at a bargain price.
Dennis Kucinich, then a city council member, ran for mayor on a promise to save Muny light. He won.
The business establishment in Cleveland wasn't worried. They knew that promises are made to be broken, so they made him an offer he couldn't refuse: Sell Muny Light or the banks would call in the huge loans Kucinich inherited from the previous administration. Meanwhile, the city's staunchly Republican newspapers, flush with CEI advertising revenues, did their best to ruin Kucinich's reputation. When he wouldn't give in, the banks called in the loans and threw the city into default. The city kept Muny Light, but Kucinich lost the next election.
It looked like that was the end of the story for Kucinich's political career - until 15 years later, when the city issued a public apology and thanked him for saving the taxpayers approximately $200 million by sticking to his promise. Kucinich was back.
Using a lightbulb as his logo, Kucinich roared into action, first winning a seat in the state Senate, followed by two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, the second of which he is currently serving. In both cases, Kucinich un-seated Republican incumbents to win. And his record has been exemplary. He sticks to his guns, now, just as he did back in 1976. The only difference is that he has become an expert at building coalitions to achieve even more goals for his constituents. And he shows up for work: Unlike most members of Congress, Kucinich has a phenomonal 99% voting record for his time in Congress. And even now, during the campaign, he has the best attendance record (94%) for roll call votes of the five Democratic candidates from Congress. Compare that to the other Congressman candidates during this period: Edwards 64%, Lieberman 46%, Kerry 38%, Gephardt 9%! Then there's Howard Dean. Dean was away from his job as Vermont Governor so much in 2001 and so secretive about it that the local papers had to sue to get a look at his schedule. Note: In a similar vein, just before he left office, Dean ordered that all his gubernatorial papers be sealed from public view for 10 years. Now, who does that remind you of? Can you say, "C-h-e-n-e-y"?
Footnote: The U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force Interim Report concluded that FirstEnergy, of Akron. Ohio, by violating not one, but four standards of the North American Electric Reliability Council, bears significant responsibility for the August 14, 2003 blackout - The largest blackout in U.S. history. Back in the 1970's, FirstEnergy went by another name: Cleveland Electric Illuminating.
And what will you do now?
So, there you are: Dennis Kucinich, a man who wants to build an America we can all be proud of, an America others will respect, not fear, an America where all can prosper. Dennis Kucinich, a man who has the vision, the smarts, and the guts to do it. All he needs is a little help from you. Will you continue to wait for something better to come along? Will you settle for Bush, or Bush-Lite?
Please don't take my word that Kucinich is worth your attention. Go see for yourself. If you like what you see, however, I urge you to act now - It may be a long time, a lot of jobs lost, and a lot of the environment destroyed, before such an opportunity comes again.
-Alan Wagener
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Some choice Kucinich Links:
Only Kucinich - Why we feel Kucinich is not just the best candidate, but the only candidate for this election.
Kucinich on the Issues - The details of Kucinich's platform.
Kucinich vs. Dean - a detailed comparison by a former Dean supporter.
Comparison of All the Candidates - A Yes/No comparision of all the candidates on many issues.
Kucinich Can Win - More reasons why.
USA Today Interview 11/19/2003
Pity the Poor Pentagon - The Pentagon (and its supporters) would argue that Kucinich's 15 percent cut is too much. Find out whether that's true here.
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