7/19 Newsweek: Republicans Are Giving Nader Money

[Beloved Citizen]

(This story just keeps getting bigger. The man whose unquenchable hatred of the Democratic Party has caused him to get into bed with some of this country's most reactionary elements now faces the complete extinction of whatever credibility he still owns.)

Newsweek: By Holly Bailey

July 19 issue - In his run for the White House, Ralph Nader is getting help from an unexpected source: Republicans. Of the $1 million that Nader has raised for his campaign so far, about $50,000 is from donors who have also given to President George W. Bush's campaign. One in 10 of Nader's biggest contributors - individuals who've written checks of $1,000 or more - are longtime GOP donors.

(Article also details the efforts of organizations such as Dick Armey's Citizens for a Sound Economy to get Nader on the ballot. Apparently they plan on going way beyond Oregon.)

Later: Yet (Nader) seems to find some inspiration in his new supporters, telling a crowd at a recent rally, "I think I'll end up taking more votes from Republicans than Democrats."

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5411492/site/newsweek

[Salviati]

1. Ralph's got it wrong...

Later: Yet (Nader) seems to find some inspiration in his new supporters, telling a crowd at a recent rally, "I think I'll end up taking more votes from Republicans than Democrats."

You're just going to end up taking more money from Republicans than Democrats...

[asjr]

2. Is Ralph really so naive to think they will vote for him? They just are

trying to get him on the ballot so he can take votes from Democrats. He is either naive or really really stupid.

[nolabels]

3. Consumer advocate Ralph Nader

x(

Ralph nader: millionaire lawyer for president
by Nick Mamatas ([e-mail]) - January 21, 2002

Consumer advocate Ralph Nader portrays himself as an ideological Outsider - and a crusader for social justice against corporate rule.

Nader ran for President of the United States on the Green Party ticket (2000). He actually got his start working with Daniel Moynihan, former assistant Secretary of Labor and New York Senator. Nader's path to success in government work was not dissimilar to many other Ivy League grads of his generation (Princeton and Harvard Law) until he penned Unsafe At Any Speed (1965).

This book exposed unsafe cars, most famously, the General Motors Corvair. The battle between GM and Nader encompassed dueling press releases, a smear campaign on the part of GM, and an invasion of privacy suit against the carmaker. GM settled the case and Nader used the money as the seed fund for his consumer protection movement.

Nader, while living simply, has amassed a fortune and poured it into his consumer protection campaigns. He worked to change laws regarding the environment, taxation, occupational safety and corporate responsibility. He also fueled the Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) movement, founded the Essential Information foundation and supported the magazine >Multinational Monitor out of his own pocket for years.
(snip)

http://www.disinfo.com/archive/pages/dossier/id439/pg1/

[Beloved Citizen]

5. Kind of sad

The fellow who did so much tripped up quite badly in the end.

Will Nader be remembered for all the things you felt the need to remind us of here, or simply as George W. Bush's political enabler?

[checks-n-balances]

4. Listening to Ralph on Crossfire today, it finally dawned on me that

his line about taking away as many votes from the rethugs as dems has enabled him to set up this situation. It seems to be an attempt to justify his accepting contributions from rethugs like this. That way he seems to look oh-so-clever, like he's putting one over on these people who are giving him their money, even though he does criticize the pRez.

Either he really believes that himself or he thinks other people will "buy" that idea. I wish that were the extent of the damage he could do.

IMHO, he's the one who's been bought, any way you look at it.