NEWS
Tuesday, June 10, 2003
Democratic candidate for President Dennis Kucinich at the Conference to Take Back America:"... Yet the most impassioned applause of the day was reserved for Kucinich. Introduced by Leo Gerard, president of the United Steelworkers of America, as "the only vegan in Congress," Kucinich took the stage to John Lennon's "Imagine" and proceeded to conjure the heyday of American progressivism by promising a new version of Franklin Delano Roosevelt's Works Progress Administration. "We're gonna rebuild America's cities, and we're gonna do it with America's steel," he roared, his voice far larger than his elfin frame. In his spellbinding speech, Kucinich laid out a lefty's dream platform: Medicare for all, money pulled out of the Pentagon budget to pay for schools and other domestic programs, and "total nuclear disarmament." He spoke to the crowd's fury over the war in Iraq, getting a screaming standing ovation when he cried, "This war was wrong! This war was fraudulent! We must expose this administration!"
When he was finished, it was clear there was no point in having anyone else follow him. "Dennis Kucinich has barbecued George Bush," said the emcee. "How about we have a barbecue right now?" With that, the crowd adjourned to a party, many daring to imagine voting for a candidate not because he seems electable, but because they want to elect him."
That, from Salon's coverage "We don't need a second Republican Party". This guy also advocates a Department of Peace.
Posted by Rob at 1:06 AM
