Dean Hopes and Green Dreams: The 2004 Presidential Race
In Dean Hopes and Green Dreams: The 2004 Presidential Race, media and political commentator Norman Solomon critiques the idea that progressives should support Howard Dean and offers an alternate suggestion:
On a full range of issues -- from international trade to health care to labor rights to welfare to criminal justice and the drug war to federal spending priorities to environmental protection to gay rights to the death penalty to foreign policy -- Dean's positions are markedly inferior to Kucinich's platform. So why not battle to get as many Democratic convention delegates as possible for Kucinich? Granted, he's very unlikely to be nominated. But a hefty Kucinich delegate count would be a strong progressive statement within the Democratic Party and would provide a louder national megaphone for the values that we share. Kucinich speaks for progressives on virtually every issue. In sharp contrast, Dean does not.
I admire the creativity and commitment that many activists have brought to their work for Dean. Yet his campaign for the nomination offers few benefits and major pitfalls. If Dean becomes the Democratic presidential candidate next year, at that point there would be many good reasons to see him as a practical tool for defeating Bush. But in the meantime, progressive energies and support should go elsewhere.
The article also argues that Greens should consider working with Democrats to defeat Bush rather than running Nader or another candidate and splitting the liberal vote.
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