The Ralph Nader candidature in the US together with the wider questions it raises, have become contentious issues on the left. In the last issue we printed an article which argued that socialists should give critical support to Ralph Nader. Here DAVE PACKER presents an alternative view.
OR MANY on the left in Britain it seemed common sense to support Ralph Nader the American Presidential elections. He presented himself as a radical left alternative to the two party stitch-up which has traditionally given the American working class the choice between a Republican tweedle dum and a Democrat tweedle deel There is no mass workers' party in America, so to many socialists Nader appeared to be the next best thing, even a chance to open up a new political space. In my view these arguments are wrong because they do not Stand from the perspective of class.
Clearly, the Nader Canalso populist rather than socialist. It acted as a pole of attraction to the left, and its rallies were huge with several drawing numbers ranging from 6,000-12,000 people.
'The largest was in New York City's Madison Square Garden where major movie stars like Susan Sarandon, Michael Moore and the TV talk show host and millionaire Phil Donahue were precent.
Nader often took up feminist, anti-racist, and environmentalist themes. Attacks on multi-national corporations In the context of U.S. politics, there was no doubt that millions saw him as an alter"two-party" system. Many of those who voted for him did so to protest against the fact that there was virtually no differCICe Bush and Gore.
They did this in spite of incredible pressure from the pro-Gore liberal establishment including the National Organisation for Women and the NAACP as well as the Nation Magazine.
So the problem, some may ask? Putting all the liberal attacks aside, as well Nader's radical sounding rhetoric, the underlying political thrust of his campaign and politics, which Nader came back to time and again was the reform of the Democratic Party and of capitalism.
Even on BBC's Newsnight youthful political current Democrats failed to return to their His programme was workers' paigns in the past, it was ical Democrats, who are the second al C the WORKED successful his "anti-corporate' stance. approach banning ike the U.S. corporations.
U.S. Nader's view, because decent it is a defence of small capital property, me 'fair' America).
Nor is he any kind of America; he was standing as ..HEY. IT'S AS MODEL! POPULIST AS HE CAN 07... appendages right wing of the two US An example, is the current Green parties, can be charac- US "Labour Party" initiative petty-bourgeois party, with a 1996 at the behest of activists One of the biggest issues LuCIOUS independent working class a big movement from below Democras union bureaucracy who may USA. Small Marxist organi- want a decisive break with US workers faced a Hobson's choice, with two reactionary candidates challenging the two main Party activists, forces Ralph Nader's candidature. new H02SS Nader, a veteran consumer anti-corporate rhetoric, got 2.5 percent of the national pole of attraction. But as we class movemenT He has rightly dismissed left or progressive vote and a two party system which
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