A Kucinich-Green alliance?
I was wrong about Dennis Kucinich, he’s absolutely worth supporting. And a loose Green-Kucinich coalition would be an exemplary idea.
First, consider this –
“Thursday in San Francisco, three of California’s most prominent Green Party members voiced support for Kucinich, though stopping short of formal endorsements because of the party divide.
“If Kucinich is the Democratic nominee, I am sure the Democrats and the Greens will work collaboratively to oust George Bush in next year’s election,” said Matt Gonzalez, president of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.
Medea Benjamin, co-founder of Global Exchange and Code Pink Women for Peace and U.S. Senate candidate for the Greens in 2000, told The Examiner that Kucinich is “as green as you can get.”
Peter Camejo, California’s Green Party candidate for governor, said if Kucinich were to win the Democratic nod, he “would favor calling an emergency national convention of the Green Party” to discuss how to support the progressive candidate.”
Indeed, with Camejo saying he wants to form a working bloc with Arianna Huffington in the California recall race, then certainly Greens could form a loose coalition with Kucinich. Some might go so far as to work on his campaign, others might simply donate money to help him get his message out.
A strong Kucinich in the Democratic race means the debate will shift to the Left, which is where it should be. To echo Medea Benjamin, Kucinich’s platform and the Green Party platform are virtually identical.
To say he shouldn’t be supported because he can’t win is like saying Nader shouldn’t be supported because he can’t win. Nader had a huge impact on the 2000 election, way out of proportion to his numbers. Kucinich can do the same in 2004.
He’s definitely angling for Green support too, sometimes in ways only Greens would notice. The “Ten Key Issues” on his homepage was named deliberately, I’m sure, to echo the Green Party “Ten Key Values”. Clever.
Kucinich is reaching out to Greens, Greens should reach out back.