More voters take notice of Kucinich
Originally published in the Arizona Republic
More voters take notice of Kucinich
Jon Kamman
The Arizona Republic
Jan. 13, 2004 12:00 AM
Dennis Kucinich is running for president, and many of the people whose automatic response once was "Who?" have a growing awareness of the candidate out in far left field.
On practically every issue important to voters, Kucinich, a fourth-term congressman from Ohio, can be counted upon to have a position that most would consider extreme. [ed. note: this seems to be a bit of editorializing on the author's part, or the standard of "mainstream" is Bush's positions]
For his admirers - and many others who consider his ideas progressive but stop short of calling themselves supporters - Kucinich is an ultraliberal Democrat whose presidential candidacy is extreme in the same vein as conservative Barry Goldwater's battle cry in his 1964 bid for the White House: "Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice."
Kucinich would pull U.S. troops from Iraq within 90 days and persuade the United Nations to take over by renouncing any U.S. interest in Iraqi oil, reconstruction contracts or governance.
He would cut the Pentagon budget 15 percent by wringing out waste, he says.
He would press for near-socialized medicine along the lines of Canada's system. "Medicare for all," as he calls it, would put insurance companies and for-profit caregivers out of business.
"Insurance firms don't heal or treat the sick, but they soak up huge amounts of resources that should go to treatment," he says.
And on his first day in office, Kucinich would cancel U.S. involvement in international free-trade treaties he says are siphoning U.S. jobs to foreign countries.
Breaking loose from the North American Free Trade Agreement and strictures of the World Trade Organization, he would negotiate trade pacts individually with nations only if they agreed to meet fair labor, wage, safety and environmental-protection standards.
Prices of foreign-made goods would go up, but many more jobs would stay in this country, he says.
Critics accuse Kucinich of being, in their politest terms, an impractical idealist. Their harsh label is "wacky."
"That's absolutely preposterous," said David Kaler, his campaign director in Arizona. "The things he espouses are the things that this country was founded on."
Kaler said he was drawn to Kucinich by the candidate's "charisma, ability to talk straight and his integrity."
More people would recognize those qualities and the validity of his views if they took time to explore them, Kaler said.
"Dennis doesn't just talk generalities. He has a plan for everything, and it's all very delineated. He knows what he's talking about."
Among other actions, Kucinich says he would establish a Cabinet-level Peace Department and lead the way toward complete nuclear disarmament; create educational day care for pre-kindergartners ages 3 to 5; fight any further timber cutting or mining on public lands; push for government funding of political campaigns; advocate against the death penalty; and, in a recent change of view, support women's right to abortion.
Kucinich's dedication to his work has given him a near-perfect voting record in Congress and 3-to-1 majorities of victory in his past two re-election contests in a district with substantial Republican registration.
His populist appeal comes from genuine identification with blue-collar workers and the hardships faced by the "little guy," a term he has had to endure more than figuratively, given his 5-foot-7 stature.
The eldest of seven children whose Croatian father drove a delivery truck, he grew up in 21 places, including a couple of cars, by the time he ventured out on his own at age 17. He worked two and three jobs at a time to put himself through college, and in 1973 completed both his bachelor's and master's degrees in speech and communications at Case Western University.
By then, Kucinich had become the boy wonder of Cleveland politics, elected at age 23 to the City Council, where he served three terms.
In 1977, elected mayor at age 31, he became the youngest person ever elected to lead a major American city. His term would be a torturous two years. Cleveland went into default on its loans as banks tried to force him to sell the city-owned electric system, and Kucinich narrowly beat back a recall attempt. He was defeated in the next election. Twenty years later, the City Council honored him for having preserved the utility.
Now 57, divorced twice and the father of a grown daughter, Kucinich maintains a vegan diet, meaning he consumes no animal products.
The congressman has an estimated net worth of less than $45,000. Illustrating the breadth of his appeal, one of his leading backers is salt-of-the-earth musician Willie Nelson, and perhaps his greatest honor was receiving the 2003 Gandhi Peace Award, which in previous years has gone to such luminaries as Eleanor Roosevelt, physicist Linus Pauling, farm workers organizer Cesar Chavez and former Sen. George McGovern, D-S.D.
If the nation at large is ready to accept the clean-sweep programs of a congressman it barely knows, the polls haven't indicated more than a blip yet.
But in the recent Iowa debate, Kucinich had a ready answer for Democrats who like his views but don't think he's electable.
"Well, you know, I'm electable if you vote for me," he said.
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