Assailed by Democrats, Nader hits trail, fights back
WASHINGTON -- Ralph Nader yesterday sought to tamp down bubbling criticism of his newly announced Independent presidential bid, which some Democrats have characterized as an ego-quest that will harm their chances of winning back the White House.
"Relax, rejoice that you have another front carrying the ancient but unfulfilled pretensions and aspirations of the Democratic Party," Nader said in remarks addressed to leading Democrats at a press conference here yesterday, his first public foray as a candidate in 2004. "Do not deny millions of voters the opportunity to vote for this candidacy. Everyone should have a chance, everyone should argue on the merits, not on the money."
Nader, 69, the consumer-rights advocate who many say contributed to President Bush's election in 2000 by siphoning votes from former vice president Al Gore, added that his quest for the nation's highest office this year would not help Republicans because Democrats would not vote for him in significant numbers.
"The party that's out of power finds that its members come back into the fold. So this candidacy is not going to get many Democratic Party votes," Nader said. "On the other hand, the party that's in power is the party that we are going to focus on retiring, and conservatives and independents who are very upset with Bush's administration policies are left with two options: Vote for the Democrats, which is unlikely, or vote for an independent ticket."
Nader took 2.7 percent of the vote in 2000. Democrats have said that he cost Gore votes in crucial swing states, such as New Hampshire and Florida. But Nader said yesterday that was not true.
The attacks on Nader from Democrats continued yesterday. Former Vermont governor Howard Dean, who withdrew from the presidential race last week, reiterated his exhortation to supporters that they not vote for a third-party or Independent candidate.
"I urge my supporters, and all other Americans committed to progressive values and honest government, to stick with us, and stick with the Democratic Party, so our cause can prevail in 2004," Dean said in a statement.
Senator Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut, Gore's running mate in 2000, also blasted Nader. "I argued, and Al Gore did in 2000, that a vote for Ralph Nader was effectively a vote for George Bush, and if you care about the environment and fairness and the economy as Ralph says he does, then you ought to vote for the Democratic ticket," said Lieberman.
Republicans continued to cast Nader's run as inconsequential. "President Bush is going to be re-elected if Ralph Nader runs or not," said Ed Gillespie, chairman of the Republican National Committee.
For his part, Nader seemed at once tickled to be back in front of cameras and reporters and dour as he contemplated the state of country. In his prepared comments, Nader offered a bleak assessment of the political process, painting it as beholden to corporate interests and casting the two major parties and the mainstream media as abettors of a corrupt system. "Our country has so many problems it doesn't deserve and so many solutions it doesn't apply," said Nader.
Nader called President Bush "the giant corporation in the White House masquerading as a human being." But he criticized the Democrats as well. "The Democrats, because of their internal decay . . . have been very good at electing very bad Republicans," Nader said. "One might assume modestly that the Democratic Party needs some help. They need additional strategies . . . against a Bush regime that they're too cautious or too indentured to think of themselves."
Nader yesterday acknowledged that his campaign faces a number of hurdles, including that of obtaining spots on state ballots, a task made more difficult by his decision to run as an independent without the aid of a party's machinery. In 2000, Nader ran on the Green Party ticket. He said yesterday he had chosen not to run as a Green Party candidate again this year because the party's convention, which is scheduled for June, is too late and would impede a national campaign.
Nader said he had raised $175,000 during the exploratory phase of his campaign. He declined to specify how many volunteers and supporters he has.
Despite the challenges, Nader said his campaign would target all 50 states, with hopes of playing more than a symbolic role. "Give serendipity a chance," he said, invoking the legacy of former Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura, an independent. "There's always a chance of a breakthrough with the blissful permission of the mass media through which you campaign."
Sarah Schweitzer can be reached at schweitzer@globe.com. 
