Barry Sheppard, San Francisco
Independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader named long-time activist Peter Miguel Camejo as his vice-presidential running mate at a press conference in Washington, DC on June 21.
The announcement was covered by the daily press nationwide. Most commentators saw the addition of Camejo as strengthening the Nader challenge to the two-party monopoly of the Democrats and Republicans.
"Nader's selection of Camejo gives further shape to a left-leaning, anti-war campaign many Democrats fear will spoil their effort to unseat President George Bush", an article in the Los Angeles Times said.
"Nader ... praised Camejo as an activist who fought racial discrimination in the South in the 1960s, rallied for farmworkers and opposed the Vietnam War."
"He's put his feet in a lot of marches", Nader said. "He broadens our range. He stands to communicate very well with the Latino community and African-American community."
The Times continued, "Camejo joined in Nader's complaints about the 'two-party duopoly'.
"He called [Democrat presidential candidate] John Kerry 'a guy who will come in and set it up for the Bush [family] to come back — because the Democrats never challenge the underlying premises of what the Republicans are doing.
"Camejo said he fervently opposed the Iraq war and the anti-terrorism law known as the Patriot Act, and he noted that Kerry supported both when they came to a vote in the Senate.
"On Iraq, 'Kerry's criticisms of Bush are how he's doing his policy, not what he's doing', Camejo said. "He's not challenging that it was wrong to invade a nation, in violation of international law, on false premises."
The Nader/Camejo ticket is bucking a strong "Anybody But Bush" line being promoted by many progressives and leftists calling for a vote for Kerry. But this line is being undermined as Kerry sticks to his pro-war position. Kerry even calls for more troops to Iraq. Bush recently correctly pointed out that Kerry is basically supporting Bush's line.
The war in Iraq has become the central political issue in the United States and will become even more so. For the first time, a majority now says that it was wrong to invade Iraq in the first place.
Camejo was the Green Party candidate for governor of California in 2002, garnering over 5% of the vote state-wide, and 16% in San Francisco. He also was the Green candidate in the 2003 recall election of Democrat Gray Davis. Camejo was on the nationally televised candidate debates in that election.
From Green Left Weekly, June 30, 2004.
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