DW In-House Historian and Philosopher, Leonard Carrier, responding to an article in “The Nation”, questions whether “Democrats” has become, in the current of today’s politics, a misnomer.
The name 'democrat' comes from the Greek demos, meaning 'people'. So the Democratic Party should be the people's party, as opposed to the parties that favor the elite. But how many Democrats in Congress or running for President can say that they favor the people, rather than special interests? Nancy Pelosi, through her inaction on impeachment and her allowing increased Administration spying on us, has shown that she is not protecting the people. Hillary Clinton, in sharing a podium with Rupert Murdoch and raking in huge sums of corporate financing, has shown that she is not favoring the people. Barack Obama, in changing his mind when corporate interests threaten him about engaging in dialog with other countries, is really not speaking for the people. John Edwards, who suggests that debates be limited to "major" presidential candidates, is not standing up for the people.
The only Democrat running for President who has consistently spoken for the people has been Dennis Kucinich. Here are some of the ways that Kucinich has done this: (1) co-sponsoring with John Conyers HR 676, a universal health plan, (2) voting against the Patriot Act, (3) voting against invading Iraq, (4) promising to withdraw from the WTO and NAFTA, (4) standing opposed to weapons in space, (5) voting against a flag-burning amendment, (6) advocating a 12-point plan to get our troops safely out of Iraq, (7) voting to cut off funds for prosecuting the Iraq war, (8) urging the signing of the Kyoto Protocols to cut down pollution, (9) advocating education for all, from kindergarten through college, (10) urging the creation of a Department of Peace, (11) ending the "war on drugs," (12) urging renewal of the environment, (13) sponsoring HR 333 to impeach Dick Cheney, and (14) abolishing the death penalty.
All of these positions favor the people over the wealthy and well-connected. All the other presidential candidates are Democrats in name only. Ralph Nader called Kucinich "a genuine progressive." The corporate punditry with its big media would prefer our remaining content with ersatz progressives. That way they can continue to run the country from the top down, and the people will be none the wiser.
The probability that we may fail in the struggle ought not to deter us from
the support of a cause we believe to be just. -- A. Lincoln
