Nader eyeing another White House run
PRINCETON, New Jersey (CNN) --Consumer advocate Ralph Nader said Thursday he is leaning toward another independent run for the presidency and will make his decision public in January.
"We're testing the waters," Nader said in an interview with CNN. "It's a high probability but that is yet to be determined."
Nader has formed an exploratory committee for a 2004 run and said he would gauge his support through the success of fund-raising efforts and the number of volunteers who come forward.
The consumer advocate last made a bid for the White House in 2000 on the Green Party ticket, when he won about 3 percent of the popular vote nationwide and got 5 percent or more in 12 states.
In fact, some Democrats blamed Nader, 69, for siphoning off votes that might have gone to Democratic candidate Al Gore, especially in the hard-fought state of Florida, where Nader took 97,000 votes.
"Gore beat Gore," Nader says to those charges. "He didn't get Tennessee, his home state. That would have made him president. And he blundered in Florida and didn't ask for a statewide recount."
"I would say to Democratic voters the following: If you think that a third party candidacy is going to take away votes and cost the Democrats the election, you've got the power entirely within your own franchise when you go to the voting booth and vote for the Democrats," Nader added.
He said if he were to run, he would focus his efforts on the third of the electorate that's not aligned with either party and with the 100 million adults who are non-voters.
Nader was in Princeton Thursday for a strategy session with Green Party activists to consider the pros and cons of another race.
He said his decision will be twofold: whether to run for the presidency at all, and whether to run again on the Green Party ticket.
Meanwhile, the party is divided on another Nader candidacy.
Green Party member Larry Barnett, the former mayor of Sonoma, California, and now a member of its city council, said the party's priority should be defeating George W. Bush.
"Any diversion from that, even rooted in principle, interferes with that goal," he said, explaining why he's against another Nader run.
"I would urge him to throw his weight behind whoever the Democratic Party puts up," Barnett said.
In assessing the current field of presidential hopefuls, Nader said he supports some of their platforms, but something's missing.
"I like some of the things that the Democratic candidates are saying, but you have to hold their feet to the fire," he said. "Sometimes that requires competing candidacies, greater choice and breaking up that exclusionary presidential debate organization."
In the 2000 campaign, both Nader and independent candidate Pat Buchanan were excluded from the fall presidential debates between Gore and Bush.
"I think there's a great need for a progressive candidate for the presidency," Nader said. "The two parties are very much dialing for the same commercial dollars. The two parties are ignoring issues like a living wage."
In the 2000 race, Nader raised $8 million. He said if he mounts another campaign he hopes to raise between $5 million and $10 million.
Another factor in his decision will be how the two main parties respond to a 25-page agenda he has sent to them, to determine whether they are addressing issues he believes are important.
"One of the justifications for this campaign is to preserve and expand the right of third parties and independent candidates to challenge the two-party duopoly system," Nader said. "I see it as a civil liberties issue of free speech."
CNN national correspondent Kelly Wallace and producer Phil Hirschkorn contributed to this report.
Find this article at:
http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/12/11/elec04.prez.nader.2004/index.html
"Yeah, well, that's just, like, your opinion, man." - The Dude, 1998
PRINCETON, New Jersey (CNN) --Consumer advocate Ralph Nader said Thursday he is leaning toward another independent run for the presidency and will make his decision public in January.
"We're testing the waters," Nader said in an interview with CNN. "It's a high probability but that is yet to be determined."
Nader has formed an exploratory committee for a 2004 run and said he would gauge his support through the success of fund-raising efforts and the number of volunteers who come forward.
The consumer advocate last made a bid for the White House in 2000 on the Green Party ticket, when he won about 3 percent of the popular vote nationwide and got 5 percent or more in 12 states.
In fact, some Democrats blamed Nader, 69, for siphoning off votes that might have gone to Democratic candidate Al Gore, especially in the hard-fought state of Florida, where Nader took 97,000 votes.
"Gore beat Gore," Nader says to those charges. "He didn't get Tennessee, his home state. That would have made him president. And he blundered in Florida and didn't ask for a statewide recount."
"I would say to Democratic voters the following: If you think that a third party candidacy is going to take away votes and cost the Democrats the election, you've got the power entirely within your own franchise when you go to the voting booth and vote for the Democrats," Nader added.
He said if he were to run, he would focus his efforts on the third of the electorate that's not aligned with either party and with the 100 million adults who are non-voters.
Nader was in Princeton Thursday for a strategy session with Green Party activists to consider the pros and cons of another race.
He said his decision will be twofold: whether to run for the presidency at all, and whether to run again on the Green Party ticket.
Meanwhile, the party is divided on another Nader candidacy.
Green Party member Larry Barnett, the former mayor of Sonoma, California, and now a member of its city council, said the party's priority should be defeating George W. Bush.
"Any diversion from that, even rooted in principle, interferes with that goal," he said, explaining why he's against another Nader run.
"I would urge him to throw his weight behind whoever the Democratic Party puts up," Barnett said.
In assessing the current field of presidential hopefuls, Nader said he supports some of their platforms, but something's missing.
"I like some of the things that the Democratic candidates are saying, but you have to hold their feet to the fire," he said. "Sometimes that requires competing candidacies, greater choice and breaking up that exclusionary presidential debate organization."
In the 2000 campaign, both Nader and independent candidate Pat Buchanan were excluded from the fall presidential debates between Gore and Bush.
"I think there's a great need for a progressive candidate for the presidency," Nader said. "The two parties are very much dialing for the same commercial dollars. The two parties are ignoring issues like a living wage."
In the 2000 race, Nader raised $8 million. He said if he mounts another campaign he hopes to raise between $5 million and $10 million.
Another factor in his decision will be how the two main parties respond to a 25-page agenda he has sent to them, to determine whether they are addressing issues he believes are important.
"One of the justifications for this campaign is to preserve and expand the right of third parties and independent candidates to challenge the two-party duopoly system," Nader said. "I see it as a civil liberties issue of free speech."
CNN national correspondent Kelly Wallace and producer Phil Hirschkorn contributed to this report.
Find this article at:
http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/12/11/elec04.prez.nader.2004/index.html
"Yeah, well, that's just, like, your opinion, man." - The Dude, 1998
2004 Will Be the U.S.'S Best Year Economically in Last 20 Years, The Conference Board Reports in a Revised Forecast
Thursday December 11, 11:01 am ET
NEW YORK, Dec. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Revising its year-end economic forecast sharply upward, The Conference Board today projected that real GDP growth will hit 5.7% next year, making 2004 the best year economically in the last 20 years.
The forecast, by Conference Board Chief Economist Gail Fosler, expects worker productivity, which set a 20-year record in the third quarter, to rise at a healthy 3.6% next year. That would follow a gain of 4.3% this year.
The economic forecast is prepared for more than 2,500 corporate members of The Conference Board's global business network, based in 66 nations.
KEY BAROMETERS FLASHING GROWTH
"Growing business spending and continued strength in consumer spending are generating growth throughout the U.S. economy," says Fosler. "This burgeoning strength is reflected in The Conference Board's widely-watched Leading Economic Indicators, the Consumer Confidence Index and the Help-Wanted Advertising Index. While the labor market, a critical factor in sustaining growth, is growing slowly, a pick-up in hiring may already have begun."
Real consumer spending, which continues to fuel growth, will increase at a 4.7% pace next year, up from about 3.2% this year. Another gain of 4.3% is projected for 2005.
While the U.S. economy is expected to generate more than one million new jobs next year, the unemployment rate will edge down only slightly, averaging 5.6% in 2004.
The Conference Board forecast notes that as the U.S. economy bounces back, so is Europe, although growth will be subdued compared to most other major parts of the world. "For all the concern about a weak dollar," says Fosler, "the dollar will be worth more than the euro by the end of the year."
Real capital spending, which will rise by only 2.7% this year, will climb 11.7% next year and another 8.6% in 2005. Pre-tax corporate operating profits will top $1 trillion next year, up from a projected $928 billion this year. Another trillion-dollar-plus gain in profits is expected in 2005.
The continued recovery in business profits, which was a key ingredient in funding new investment (crucial in making 2004 a strong growth year), depends on price relief. Business profits will benefit from both improved volume and recovering profit margins in 2004, as inflation creeps back toward 3% by the end of the year.
Source: Revised Conference Board Economic Forecast December 2003
Source: The Conference Board
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/031211/nyth120_1.html
"Yeah, well, that's just, like, your opinion, man." - The Dude, 1998
Thursday December 11, 11:01 am ET
NEW YORK, Dec. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Revising its year-end economic forecast sharply upward, The Conference Board today projected that real GDP growth will hit 5.7% next year, making 2004 the best year economically in the last 20 years.
The forecast, by Conference Board Chief Economist Gail Fosler, expects worker productivity, which set a 20-year record in the third quarter, to rise at a healthy 3.6% next year. That would follow a gain of 4.3% this year.
The economic forecast is prepared for more than 2,500 corporate members of The Conference Board's global business network, based in 66 nations.
KEY BAROMETERS FLASHING GROWTH
"Growing business spending and continued strength in consumer spending are generating growth throughout the U.S. economy," says Fosler. "This burgeoning strength is reflected in The Conference Board's widely-watched Leading Economic Indicators, the Consumer Confidence Index and the Help-Wanted Advertising Index. While the labor market, a critical factor in sustaining growth, is growing slowly, a pick-up in hiring may already have begun."
Real consumer spending, which continues to fuel growth, will increase at a 4.7% pace next year, up from about 3.2% this year. Another gain of 4.3% is projected for 2005.
While the U.S. economy is expected to generate more than one million new jobs next year, the unemployment rate will edge down only slightly, averaging 5.6% in 2004.
The Conference Board forecast notes that as the U.S. economy bounces back, so is Europe, although growth will be subdued compared to most other major parts of the world. "For all the concern about a weak dollar," says Fosler, "the dollar will be worth more than the euro by the end of the year."
Real capital spending, which will rise by only 2.7% this year, will climb 11.7% next year and another 8.6% in 2005. Pre-tax corporate operating profits will top $1 trillion next year, up from a projected $928 billion this year. Another trillion-dollar-plus gain in profits is expected in 2005.
The continued recovery in business profits, which was a key ingredient in funding new investment (crucial in making 2004 a strong growth year), depends on price relief. Business profits will benefit from both improved volume and recovering profit margins in 2004, as inflation creeps back toward 3% by the end of the year.
Source: Revised Conference Board Economic Forecast December 2003
Source: The Conference Board
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/031211/nyth120_1.html
"Yeah, well, that's just, like, your opinion, man." - The Dude, 1998
DEAN IN FOR N.H. BUSH-WHACKING: POLL
By DEBORAH ORIN
December 12, 2003 -- WASHINGTON - A stunning new poll shows President Bush would clobber Democratic front-runner Howard Dean by nearly 2-1 in politically potent New Hampshire - even though Dean has a giant lead over Democratic rivals in the state.
Bush gets 57 percent to Dean's 30 percent among registered voters in the American Research Group poll. In fact, Dean, from neighboring Vermont, does worse in the Granite State than a generic "Democratic Party nominee" who loses to Bush by 51 to 34 percent. Another ARG poll this month showed Dean with a 30-point lead over Sen. John Kerry (Mass.) for the Jan. 27 New Hampshire primary, the second test after the Jan. 19 Iowa caucuses.
The new poll seems sure to fuel claims by rivals that Dean would be another George McGovern debacle for Democrats in the general election.
http://www.nypost.com/news/nationalnews/13258.htm
"Yeah, well, that's just, like, your opinion, man." - The Dude, 1998
By DEBORAH ORIN
December 12, 2003 -- WASHINGTON - A stunning new poll shows President Bush would clobber Democratic front-runner Howard Dean by nearly 2-1 in politically potent New Hampshire - even though Dean has a giant lead over Democratic rivals in the state.
Bush gets 57 percent to Dean's 30 percent among registered voters in the American Research Group poll. In fact, Dean, from neighboring Vermont, does worse in the Granite State than a generic "Democratic Party nominee" who loses to Bush by 51 to 34 percent. Another ARG poll this month showed Dean with a 30-point lead over Sen. John Kerry (Mass.) for the Jan. 27 New Hampshire primary, the second test after the Jan. 19 Iowa caucuses.
The new poll seems sure to fuel claims by rivals that Dean would be another George McGovern debacle for Democrats in the general election.
http://www.nypost.com/news/nationalnews/13258.htm
"Yeah, well, that's just, like, your opinion, man." - The Dude, 1998
