Yesterday, someone I met while phonebanking for the Democrats in 2004 invited me to a meet and greet for the Green Party candidate in CA-28, Howard Berman's solid blue district. Apparently, the candidate is a new and improved Green, because his big promise is to caucus with the Democrats if elected.
After my request to be deleted from the email list was ignored, here is my angry and not entirely grammatical response. The names have been changed...
Janey:
The argument that a Green candidate would not become a spoiler if elected to the House is stunningly dishonest. This meeting is not about electing someone with 3% name recognition to Congress, it's about building the Green Party, correct?
So let's look at what the Greens have done and are doing. I'm sure you remember 2000. In 2004, the California Greens supported Nader's nomination, which would have made the Green candidacy a lot less symbolic, and more helpful to Bush.
This year, the Republicans have been desperately trying to qualify the Green candidate in the Pennsylvania senate race, to help Santorum hold on to his seat. All of Carl Romanelli's donors have been Republican. They want him on the ballot so Santorum can continue to vote against women's and gay rights. So they can continue in Iraq and other foreign policy misadventures. So the Republicans can end Social Security and union rights.
In most countries in Europe, if two liberal parties combine for 51% of the vote, the liberals rule. If the Greens and the Democrats combine for 51% in this country, the Republicans probably rule.
We are making progress inside the Democratic Party. Howard Dean is head of the DNC. We're battling Lieberman in Connecticut. The netroots helped [senate] candidates in Virginia and Montana win the Democratic nomination against better funded establishment candidates. The last two Saturdays I was making voter ID calls on behalf of MoveOn to Ohio to get rid of DeWine.
But you're just just giving up, promoting a fantasy movement base on a European style of governance that does not exist here. Bush would be thrilled.
Heckuva job, Janey.
Maybe I should have included the following from Outside magazine, August 2000, via Eric Alterman:
When asked if someone put a gun to his head and told him to vote for either Gore or Bush, which he would choose, Nader answered without hesitation: "Bush."
I'll vote for a Republican before I vote for a Green.