Nader speaking tour sets record

Marathon trek targeting Guinness aids third party

Ralph Nader left his fourth stop (Central Square) yesterday, and headed to Tufts University in Medford. (Globe Staff Photo / Wendy Maeda)

Ralph Nader knows he won't win his bid for president, but yesterday he set his sights on a less lofty goal: breaking the Guinness record for most speeches given in a day.

His campaign said he did it.

The longtime consumer activist and veteran political candidate made speeches at 21 stops across Massachusetts, an event never before attempted. The day started at 8:10 a.m. in Westfield and he arrived at his last scheduled stop in Sheffield just after 11 p.m.

Not an easy day for the 74-year-old. By lunchtime at his fourth stop, Nader rushed past a crowd of supporters on his way into ZuZu restaurant in Cambridge, making a beeline for the buffet. There he sat alone at a table to eat.

"He needed to fuel up and drink some tea to keep his voice," explained campaign organizer Matthew Zawisky. "Chamomile with honey."

Long-shot odds, political or otherwise, have never seemed to deter Nader. Neither has criticism of his 2000 presidential campaign, which some viewed as egotistical folly that drained votes from Al Gore in his closely fought battle with George W. Bush.

This year, in his third official run for president, he is campaigning as an Independent and focusing on the creation of a strong third party that could rival mainstream candidates. Yesterday, he railed against what he called "McBama," accusing both Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama of selling out to corporate interests.

While his energy appeared to flag at times, Nader grew invigorated when he criticized Obama, even as he predicted the Illinois senator would win in a landslide.

"Barack Obama has raised more corporate money than any candidate ever before in the history of the Democratic Party," Nader said. "He has told these business interests he's their man."

While that rhetoric won't win him the election, it could win him the Guinness record. Nader needed a crowd of at least 10 people at every location, and each speech he gave had to last at least 10 minutes long.

That didn't seem to be a problem by midafternoon.

Stop 3: 10:45 a.m.

Nader appears at the Federal Reserve in Boston to speak to a crowd of dozens of young people, some carrying signs that say things such as, "Socialism Saves Lives." Nader said he opposes repealing the state income tax (applause) and supports the decriminalization of marijuana (big applause).

"Obama is going to win," he said. "But we can start building a third party."

A police officer working a detail at the event stops Nader as he leaves to shake his hand.

"That's not to say I would vote for him," said the officer, who did not want to be identified. "But I admire his determination and guts to speak his mind."

Stop 4: 11:15 a.m.

Nader eats Middle Eastern food at ZuZu in Cambridge, amid a crowd of supporters who have paid $50 each to dine with him. The Harvard Law graduate gets approving nods as he criticizes Secretary of the Treasury Henry M. Paulson Jr., saying the former head of Goldman Sachs is now "busy bailing out his buddies" with money from the taxpayer funded $700 billion bank rescue plan.

Stop 5: 12:28 p.m.

Nader is 30 minutes late to the Tufts University Student Center in Somerville, but is greeted with applause from dozens of students and supporters. A crowd gathers outside the venue to hear him on an outdoor sound system.

He tells students that they will be "gouged" repaying their student loans, and that skilled jobs in law, engineering, and architecture are increasingly outsourced to countries such as India and China. He also tells them that industries selling junk food to children are to blame for the current youth obesity epidemic. Campaign workers rush him to his next stop: the Danish Pastry Shop in Medford.

In all, Nader traveled, chauffeured by a supporter driving a white Hyundai sedan, more than 310 miles, ending in Sheffield, not far from the New York state border.

When asked about his carbon footprint, Nader laughed. "It's hard to get public transportation here in Massachusetts."

But, he added, he does not own a jet.

Information from the Associated Press was included in this report. Globe correspondent John Guilfoil contributed. Megan Woolhouse can be reached at mwoolhouse@globe.com.