Presidential hopeful says Mauians relate to message
Originally published in the Maui News
Presidential hopeful says Mauians relate to message
By ILIMA LOOMIS, Staff Writer
WAIKAPU - A long way from where he started his political career, Democratic presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich feels he's found a kindred spirit in Maui.
"I feel so at home here," the Ohio congressman told supporters at a fund-raiser Sunday afternoon at the Maui Tropical Plantation.
Since starting his campaign, Kucinich said he'd been "flooded" by messages of support from Hawaii, Maui in particular, motivating him to make the Valley Isle an early campaign stop - although he plans to visit all 50 states.
"I responded to Hawaii because Hawaii responded to my message," he said after a Sunday morning "Town Hall" meeting at Maui Community College.
Considered one of the most liberal members of Congress and a long shot as a presidential candidate, Kucinich bridled at the question of whether he was a serious contender for his party's nomination.
He said he was "leading the way" in bringing to the national debate issues like universal health care, cutting defense spending and extricating the United States from Iraq, and he cited his record as a former mayor, state senator and congressman.
"I think that makes me not only a serious candidate, I think it makes me the next president," he said.
The race for the Democratic nomination will be a close one, he promised supporters, with none of the candidates walking away from the state caucuses with a clear lead.
"This thing will be decided in (the national) convention," he said. "I'm not willing to concede to anyone that I'm not going to get the nomination. And frankly, it's my presence in this race that's changing the direction of this race."
Kucinich, one of nine announced candidates seeking the Democratic Party nomination for president, is among the few presidential candidates for a major party to appear on Maui over the past 40 years.
The candidate waxed pensive Sunday, citing poets and philosophers like Wordsworth, Emerson, Tennyson and Jung as he outlined a political platform that includes universal health coverage, eliminating the nuclear arsenal and creating a Department of Peace.
He called on supporters to "create a new world," and not to lose perspective on the values of nature and humanity.
"We get entrained with the rhythms of an industrial society and forfeit to that society the quality of our air, our water, and our rights as human beings," he said.
He accused the Bush administration and others in Washington of promoting fear, "aimed at breaking down the resolve of a free people" and discouraging the public from questioning federal policies.
He blasted Bush's entry into war with Iraq, saying Iraq had nothing to do with the 9-11 terrorist attacks and hadn't been shown to have weapons of mass destruction. Invading Iraq only fostered more bad feeling for America and "created more opportunity for terrorism," he said.
"This idea that violence can conquer violence just plays into the cycle," he said.
Outlining his platform, Kucinich called for:
Cutting defense spending by 15 percent.
Repealing the Patriot Act.
Ending the U.S. presence in Iraq.
Turning over to the United Nations responsibility for Iraq's oil resources, reconstruction contracts and peacekeeping troops.
Slashing tax breaks for the highest tax bracket.
Establishing a Department of Peace.
Eliminating the nuclear arsenal.
Providing free day care for young children and fully funding elementary and secondary schools.
Providing free tuition to public junior colleges.
Supporting the creation of a Palestinian state.
Overall, he said nonviolence should be a guiding principal for the country's leaders, and that the United States should work to make better connections with other countries and lead the way in promoting peace and cooperation.
"The world is waiting for a different kind of message from America, one that beckons, not holds up its clenched fist."
Kucinich expects that message to resonate with voters on Maui.
"Hawaiians understand peace and sustainability," he said after the MCC appearance. "That's why they're supporting the campaign."
Dennis Kucinich
His Views on things
While on Maui, U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich shared his thoughts on a number of different issues.
On himself: "If you want fundamental change in the system, I'm your man."
On the Defense Department: "A $400 billion budget for the Pentagon says nothing but that violence is inevitable. War is inevitable. We need to change that thinking."
On war in Iraq: "Somehow the thinking is that if we can blow people up we can change their minds."
On the Patriot Act: "We must speak out against any attempt to degrade our democracy by passing laws that undermine our civil liberties."
On big business: "I intend to take action to challenge the monopolies in our society, to break them up."
On education: "The (Bush) administration cut education funding by $10 million while they told local communities they had to follow the dictates of the so-called No Child Left Behind Act."
On health care: "Insurance companies make money by not providing health care . . . We need to end health care for profit."
On nuclear weapons: "I intend to get the United States out of the business of building nuclear weapons and into working with other nations to begin getting rid of nuclear weapons."
On genetically modified crops: "Your ability on Maui to resist that could be extremely important for the economy of the state down the road."
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