I love it when the "hard left" fights among themselves. Daily Kos -
Randi/Nader Air America Transcript
by ckerr
Thu Apr 1st, 2004 at 19:26:00 GMT
This deserves to be passed around, so I typed it up. All typos/errors/inaccuracies are mine.
Audio Clip
President Carter: [speaking to an audience]: I have a friend named Ralph Nader. He was trusted enough by my family to have been permitted in Plains, Georgia to umpire a softball game where I pitched on one side and my brother pitched on the other side. That's a lot of confidence. When I was president he gave me a lot of advice. And tonight I want to return the favor by giving him some advice.
[Audience applauds]
President Carter: Ralph, go back to umpiring softball games or examining the rear end of automobiles, and don't risk costing the Democrats the White House this year as you did four years ago.
[Audience applauds louder]
Randi: Okay, that's a heavy-duty statement Ralph Nader, and that came from the former President of the United States Jimmy Carter who relied on you for advice. So what do you make of that?
Nader: Well, I'd just respond with his motto from 1976 when he ran for president. His motto throughout the country and the title of his book was, `Why Not the Best?' Why not the best policies...
Randi: ah ha ha, oh we like ourselves, do we?
Nader: ... why not the best policies?
Randi: Listen.
Nader: Why not the best way to involve the American people? Why not give more voices and choices in our presidential elections instead of having it locked up by the two parties who increasingly are dialing for the same corporate dollars.
Randi: But we had the Green party and your candidacy and now they don't want you, so you're an independent. And they don't think you're the best.
Nader: No, the Green party just hasn't made the decision until June as to whether they want a candidate and under what conditions and that's too late for the ballot access deadlines.
Randi: and..
Nader: One out of every three Americans call themselves independent and they've never really had an independent candidate for a long time.
Randi: And you know what? Another day, another time, I'm, you know, fine. good. Let's do it. Let's put the best ideas on the table whether they be Green, Reform, Independent, I don't -- this time, we can't afford it and you know it. So I'm thinking -- now, just hear me out -- as a very open-minded liberal, I'm thinking -- maybe, Ralph does have this huge ego and he lives in Connecticut and lives small and he's really not into the y'know, whole thing except the power part of life -- or -- maybe Ralph wants to be a kingmaker. Do you know what I mean? Maybe you're gonna make a deal with the Democrats and turn over any voters that you might have out there to the Democrats in exchange for, I don't know, trade commissioner, something that you're interested in.
Nader: You should know me better than that. There's no deals. When you run for president you run in all fifty states, you...
Randi: But you said yesterday on Crossfire that you were going to talk to
Kerry.
Nader: Of course talk to him about how to defeat George W. Bush! Do you really think the Democrats know how to defeat the Republicans? They've been losing for ten years to the worst part of the Republican party. Losing the House, the Senate...
Randi: .. We won for two elections, and then we lost the last one because the fix was in. I mean, it was a dirty election. I know; I was in Florida.
Nader: You're right, there. The Democrats won the election in 2000 but ...
Randi: -- so what do you mean ten years?
Nader: .. but, but they weren't -- they blundered, they didn't even know how to keep what they'd won. No, the Democrats are very similar on military policy, foreign policy, federal reserve policy, food and drug policy, [unintelligible] policy ...
Randi: No, they're not!
Nader: ... sure! Of course!
Randi: You know the Democrat's policy, you know when the Republicans talk about regime change was the Clinton administration's policy, but it was regime change from within. It was never military action on our part on Iraq. That was not the policy. The policy was to get these people to forgive us for slaughtering them when the Republican president Bush the First told them ``rise up, and we'll get your back'', and they saw
American helicopters that we sold to Saddam come and slaughter them. Those are the people in the mass graves and everybody knows it -- or they need to know it -- but, but we can't afford you this year Ralph!
Nader: You're quite right on what Bush One did in terms of urging the Shiites and the Kurds to rise up against Saddam and then ...
Randi: Slaughtered 'em.
Nader: ... Saddam slaughtered them. But remember that the Democrats had a very aggressive foreign military policy when they were in power, a huge military budget. You know, Clinton was a draft-dodger so he wasn't willing to take on the pentagon. And he wasn't willing to take on the Congress on many huge military expenditures and that starved many of the necessities back home among the American people --
Randi: Did it starve --
Nader: -- which were ignored on both parties.
Randi: -- did it starve police officers? 'Cause we put 100,000 cops, or close to it, on the street before Bush came in.
Nader: [unimpressed] Yeah.
Randi: Yeah. It didn't --
Nader: -- don't, don't worry. Childhood poverty is increasing, regardless of the two parties. Affordable housing problems are becoming more serious --
Randi: Now they are --
Nader: [talking louder to speak over Randi] consumers are going into more --
Randi: Now they are because you know why, the states are starving, that this -- we have a president that literally stole the treasury. And that's why we can't afford you. I wish we could, Ralph Nader! I wish we could.
Nader: Wait, wait. Why -- why don't the Democrats stop the things they don't like from the Republicans like the tax cut for the wealthy --
Randi: [exasperated] They're in the minority! They're in the minority in the Cong -- oh, Ralph, come on, you like to spew this stuff, but you're smarter than that --
Nader: -- wait, wait -- the war resolution, the patriot act --
Randi: Ralph, Ralph, how many, how many --
Nader: -- do you have listeners now? Do you have listeners? --
Randi: -- Ralph. how -- I've --
Nader: -- votenader.org is the web site for people who want a more deliberate and detailed --
Randi: Ralph, let me tell you something. I have probably, you know, millions and millions of listeners. I've been on for years and years and years. Which you may not know because you didn't do your homework. But the truth of the matter is, they don't want you to run either! Even your, your Green party supporters, they can't afford you! That's why the Green party is not endorsing your candidacy and you've become an independent! We can't afford you Ralph! Now, if you want to do a little horse trading, that would be smart politics. And if you wanted to be a kingmaker, meaning, you ran for a while and then you turned over your voters and you endorsed Kerry, and said to Kerry, ``you know you need a guy like me. You neeed a guy like me on [name your policy that you're most passionate about]'', and go fix it, and then, four years from now, you'll find out what the Democrats have know for -- for ten years, and that is: they're in the minority in Congress, and they can't vote out appropriations bills because they don't have line-item veto outta a Democratic president's hand. They can't vote out these pork projects; they can't vote out the stealing of the treasury, the underfunding of education, the underfunding of medicare. C'mon, you know this!
Nader: Welll, since you're filibustering, you should've mentioned that the Senate and the Democrats could've filibustered a lot of these things and blocked them. Filibustering is a tool that the Republicans know how to use better than the Democrats. They --
Randi: They filibustered a couple of judges and looked what happened.
Nader: yes. and by the way you're ---
Randi: Look what happened! During the recess they put 'em in --
Nader: -- are you interviewing? are you a show host? are you interviewing? or are you filibustering? Do you want to give me a chance to --
Randi: -- no, I'm angry at you! --
Nader: -- wait wait! Is this the way --
Randi: -- I'm angry at you! I'm a genuine person who's really mad at your candidacy!
Nader: Well, why are you denying millions of people the opportunity to vote for my candidacy --
Randi: Because. We. Can't. Afford. It.
Nader: -- how arrogant, how arrogant can you be? --
Randi: I'm not arrogant, I'm a patriot! I -- we can't afford you, and real patriots have to stand up and question your candidacy!
Nader: Wait a minute! wait a minute. Why are you denying millions of Americans an opportunity to have more choice --
Randi: Because.... how many ways to Sunday do I have to tell you. We can't afford you.
Nader: I'm sorry, Can you afford freedom? Can you afford choice? Can you afford civil liberties? --
Randi: Gimmie a Democrat President!
Nader: -- can you -- is this the way you want to start Air America? You want it to be Hot Air America?
Randi: Oh, no, you see --
Nader: -- Log on to the web site votenader.org --
Randi: -- Ralph, let me tell you something. If you did get to be president, tell me who you would caucus with. Tell me who you could get to vote for your ... views and visions, and your, your bills! Who is an independent other than Bernie Sanders and Jim Jeffords? Who are you gonna count on? You -- let's say you win. Okay?
Nader: You can't win without a huge mobilization of voters --
Randi: -- let's say ya do --
Nader: -- that would replace many members of Congress.
Randi: -- let's say it's seventy years old, from your house in Connecticut, your little house --
Nader: -- now waitaminute. now wait wait wait. you're --
Randi: -- you are, you are ready to do this.
Nader: -- listen, listen. now you're getting nasty.
Randi: I'm not!
Nader: You are ruining the first day --
Randi: I'm not ruining anything.
Nader: -- the first day of Air America.
Randi: This is Air America.
Nader: -- you're not letting your, you're not letting your guest be, have a chance to speak. You're --
Randi: I asked you a question. --
Nader: -- you're not letting your guest have a chance to speak.
Randi: -- So you get there, ya make president, right? Ya make president. Who are you caucusing with? --
Nader: How about Ed Markie? --
Randi: -- Democrats or Republicans? --
Nader: -- how bout Ed Markie? How about, eyuh, Waxman --
Randi: -- Democrats or Republicans? That's your choice! Your choice is Democrats or Republicans --
Nader: -- how about Pelosi?
Randi: Pelosi is a Dem-o-crat. --
Nader: -- what are you talking about? that would be the Democrat --
Randi: Pelosi is the Democrat minority leader.
Nader: -- listen, listen. If I win the presidency, that means the Democrats would win the Congress --
Randi: [flabbergasted] What?
Nader: -- And a lot of my friends are in the Congress. And by the way. --
Randi: [mind blown] Wow...
Nader: -- you've got a very bad interviewing technique --
Randi: -- uh uh uh. I am not --
Nader: -- and you're not going to get an audience by overtalking --
Randi: -- interviewing you --
Nader: Do not overtalk!
Randi: I am not ... interviewing you!
Nader: Do not overtalk!
Randi: I mad at you! Don't you understand the difference?
Nader: Fine, just close up and start screaming to your audience.
Randi: [laughs] Look. Don't tell me how to do radio; I've done it for twenty years. You screwed up the last election, and now you want to screw up this one, and I'm pissed!
Nader: (pause; speechless) You know, you ought to be ashamed of yourself because you --
Randi: But I'm not! You know you should --
Nader: -- you agree with me --
Randi: -- be ashamed of yourself! --
Nader: -- you agree with me on so many issues. You really ought to be ashamed of yourself.
Randi: I'm not ashamed of myself. I can't afford you!
Nader: (struggling for words) Nobody stands, nobody for stands, for workers and, and, and the poor people the way I do.
Randi: Ralph, sometimes I look at something, sometimes I look at a really fabulous, fabulous pair of shoes, but I can't afford em. I can't afford you! I'm not saying you're not fabulous. I can't afford you! Why you don't get this I don't know.
Nader: Oh! You can't afford a living wage in this country? Why don't the Democrats ask for a ten dollar living wage?
Randi: What I'm saying is, when you get there, let's say you're president, let's do this.
Nader: Yeah.
Randi: Who are you caucusing with?
Nader: Oh, all kinds of people in Congress, I'm very persuasive!
Randi: Name them! Besides for Ed Markie, Jim Jeffords, and I'll give you, um I --
Nader: Kennedy, Feingold --
Randi: Kennedy?!?
Nader: Kennedy, Feingold, all kinds. Boxer from California, on and on.
Randi: Oh, y'see, then Ralph, you really don't know politics if you think the Democrats are gonna vote with an independent president --
Nader: -- you're not, you're not doing your homework. Listen. Listen --
Randi: -- you're outta your mind. They've got a national party.
Nader: -- you're reducing yourself to (apathis?). I don't deal with someone who doesn't allow me to talk, and if you want your guests to close up on you on the first day of Air America --
Randi: -- you just keep telling me --
Nader: -- because you're overtalking, you're fillibustering, good day! (hangs up)
Randi: They've heard you say that a thousand times but you won't answer the question. Say he does, see, this is the problem, and I am pissed, and I don't, y'know, I'm not interviewing Ralph Nader. I'm mad at Ralph Nader. I've been mad at Ralph Nader since 2000, and I've got news for you: If Ralph Nader became the President of the United States, where does he go to get his bills passed? Does he go to the Republicans? Does he go to the Democrats that he just beat? You know, this is why there's no ... prospects for Ralph, other than what Ralph is really doing. And what Ralph, I think is really doing -- if he's smart enough, and Ralph's pretty smart -- is, he's gonna run, and then he's gonna endorse Kerry and turn over those those voters which might be, what, three million maybe, who could make the difference, in exchange for trade commissioner, EPA, something that he wants to do. But he won't tell you that. 5:33. |
