Sunday, February 24, 2008

Ralph's "in": Barack "not terribly concerned" (Updated)


UPDATE: Video from Nader's appearance on "Meet the Press" is now online (scroll down to "More video").

USA Today:
Ralph Nader is back for another White House campaign.

He made the announcement Sunday morning on NBC's Meet the Press. According to the Associated Press, Nader criticized the major parties' presidential contenders for failing to address corporate crime, Pentagon waste and labor rights.

The AP notes that some Democrats have blamed Nader for drawing Florida votes that might have otherwise gone to Al Gore in 2000. They're not likely to love him this time around either — Votenader.org is already characterizing Nader as "Mr. Frugal" compared to Sen. Hillary Clinton.
Washington Wire (Wall Street Journal):
Barack Obama said today during a visit at the Ohio State University Medical Center that he wasn’t terribly concerned about the prospect of a Nader campaign. “I think the job of the Democratic Party is to be so compelling that a few percentage [points] of the vote going to another candidate is not going to make any difference.”

Obama responded to criticism from Nader, who has suggested that the Democratic hopeful lacks substance, by noting that Nader has reached out to his campaign. “My sense is that Mr. Nader is somebody who if you don’t listen and adopt all of his policies thinks you’re not substantive,” Obama said, before praising Nader as a “heroic” and “singular figure in American politics.”

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