Presidential candidate and consumer activist Ralph Nader will be meeting with members of the editorial board on Thursday, Oct. 9.
What would you have us ask him?
(Pictured: Five-time presidential candidate Ralph Nader, shown in his Washington campaign office. Washington Post photo by Lois Raimondo.)
How confident are you that you have the ever elusive bird voting bloc wrapped up?
I would pose the following question to Mr. Nader, with this preface: In voting for you in 2000 I voted my conscience and do not regret it at all, despite the disastrous outcome the last eight years due to the George W. Bush administration. I believe if more people had actually voted their consciences, rather than their vested interests — in addition to having researched the important election issues — those disastrous consequences would never have come to pass. That written, how would you argue that voting for you this time around would make a practical difference? Surely you see this election as more important than the one even eight years ago, considering the financial, constitutional and diplomatic messes the Bush administration has wrought.
I would ask him,
How can we really, really add a third party (independent or libertarian) on the Presidential Ballots and get them more in the public eye? We really only have a 2 party system in Presidential elections. I have never seen a TV commercial for any of the Libertarians or Independents. And how come people feel that they are “throwing away” their vote if they vote for someone NOT a democrat or republican?
I personally can not vote for Obama and I can’t vote for McCain. I really do not like either one. So, I guess I will be “throwing my vote away” but I have to live with myself.
What are your biggest fears for an Obama presidency?
Why are people so ungrateful for what you have done for them?
Seriously though, whats his stance on charter schools and vouchers? I’ll be voting for him regardless, but still.
Do you believe health care is a right?
What is a right? How are rights obtained?
Mr. Roth,
If Bob Barr came by would you guys interview him? What about Robb Cunningham, Kevin Babcock, Robert Christophel, Michael Peters, and Donald DeVivo who are all third party candidates in the city?
I would be much more interested in what Jim Lembke and Joan Barry have to say than Ralph Nader. Why don’t you guys actually do some work and let people know what the people who are going to be our representatives believe?
It’s a fair point, John.
It is not up to me, but I’m thinking we might meet with Barr but I am not so sure about the others.
Nader is not much different than the rest when it comes to his prospects on Election Day. But he is this cultural figure and has been considered by many to have been the spoiler in Bush v. Gore (something he vigorously disputes) so it is worth sitting with him for an hour or so in hopes of hearing some insights that would be of interest to our readers.
We are working on state and local races, so please stay tuned.
How about these gems:
1. Mr Nader, since you are two years older than Senator McCain, do you think you can handle the stresses of the office of President?
2. Mr Nader as an Arab-American, what do you think of the McCain campaigns (and their lackeys) attempting to paint Senator Obama as a “terrorist” purely on his name?
3. Mr Nader, how many Republican PACs are contributing to your campaign? Could you be specific?
4. Mr Nader, do you plan on running again in 2012?
5. Mr Nader, just what do you stand for this time?
Eddie Roth writes about education, social justice, public safety, transportation, legal affairs and historic preservation. He joined the Post-Dispatch editorial page in 2008 after six years as an editorial writer with the Dayton Daily News. But he is not new to St. Louis. Eddie grew up in Webster Groves and south St. Louis County. He's a lawyer who for many years practiced with a downtown firm, and was active in civic affairs, including serving a term on the St. Louis Police Board. He and his wife, Jeanne, and their three daughters, Emily, Julia and Alice, live in the Shaw Neighborhood.
When it comes to community organizing, he endorses Quentin Crisp's advice: Rather than keeping up with the Joneses, it's better to pull them down to your level.
I would ask Ralph Nader:
“Who do you hold most responsible for the “middle-class” economic collapse as wealthy Americans cash-in and move to Brazil…President George Bush, SEC Chairman Christopher Cox, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, or 3rd Party Candidate Ralph Nader”?