Socialist Presidential Candidate Brian Moore: 3rd Party Wins Ballot-Access Ruling Vs. Ohio

COLUMBUS (TDB) -- A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction that eases a ballot-access barrier imposed by Ohio against third parties hoping to field presidential campaigns in the state. U.S. District Judge Gregory Frost said Ohio "imposes a significant burden on a core political speech right" that conflicts with the First Amendment. Socialist Party nominee Brian Moore, a Floridian who is trying to get on the ballot in all 50 states, challenged the state's petition requirements. Moore has to collect 5,000 names of Ohio voters, but a judge said his petitions can be circulated by non-residents. Lawyers representing Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, a Democrat, argued that state law prohibited non-resident petition circulators. The law is so stringent it requires petition circulator to live in Ohio, a specific county and precinct, and be rgistered to vote.

The lawsuit is Brian Moore, et al v. Jennifer Brunner, Case No. 2:08-cv-224, Southern District of Ohio. There have been similar challenges over the years, and critics have complained that Ohio's election laws are written to favor the two major political parties and preserve power for the Republicans and Democrats. Judge Frost rejected Brunner's lawyers arguments that an injunction could open the door to election fraud: "There is little to no evidence in the record supporting this contention . . ."

Frost said he that as he weighed the arguments, he found none supporting the state's law: "The fourth and final factor to consider is whether issuance of an injunction is in the public interest. It is axiomatic that adherence to constitutional protections is always in the public interest. Consequently, all . . . factors therefore weigh in favor of injunctive relief here."

So far, there's no word on other third parties, but the ruling would certainly looks to help the Greens, who will likely have Ralph Nader leading their ticket, and Libertarians, who have former Georgia Rep. Bob Barr heading theirs.

Cincy Enquirer Blasted For Poor Coverage Of Black Event: NAACP's Smitherman Demands Action

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- Christopher Smitherman, a Green Party Cincinnati Council candidate and the local NAACP branch president, has accused the city's morning metro daily of "institutional racism at its core." He says the civil rights organization is prepared for some kind of showdown with the newspaper, a unit of the Gannett Co. Inc., publishing chain.

Smitherman expressed amazement that the Cincinnati Enquirer did not adequately cover, in his view, the Black Family Reunion. The annual summertime event on the banks of the Ohio River drew some 100,000 people downtown. Smitherman said if someone had been shot or harmed there would have been blazing coverage across news pages. But the mostly peaceful event got short shrift despite its importance to African Americans.

"I believe this is intentional and the result is the continuation of institutional racism at is core. If the Enquirer does not change they will force the Cincinnati branch of the NAACP to take measures to curb their behavior."

Does that last sentence imply a subscription boycott, or some kind of targeting of advertisers?

Smitherman's statement is just the latest signal that the newspaper is foundering under its top brass, who are increasingly viewed as out of touch, out of tune and have nearly exhausted the town's patience. The complete text of Smitherman's letter originally appeared in the Cincinnati Beacon, which is a small online and print news operation that is also among the daily's biggest critics.

[UPDATE -- There was coverage of the event, as this article from the past weekend shows. The complaint seems to be over whether the newspaper devoted enough attention and space to the Black Family Reunion.]

[Note to readers: The previous post was supposed to follow this one. The Bellwether will inactive for the rest of the day.]

Ohio's Dennis Kucinich: New Jersey Green Chair Says He's Hillary's Puppet

CLEVELAND (TDB) -- The chairman of New Jersey's Green Party is no fan of Cleveland U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich, and is dismissing the Ohioan's 2008 presidential campaign as nothing more than smoke-and-mirrors meant to keep progressives in the Democratic Party.

George DeCarlo's assessment is a smack down that belittles Kucinich as a witting ally of New York Sen. Hillary Clinton. DeCarlo told PoliticsNewJersey.com's Max Pizaro that the Clevelander was little more than a prop.

"Kucinich is there for one purpose. He's there to keep peace activists, greens -- note the small 'g' -- in the party. Kucinich is willingly being used. It keeps them there, but out of fear. Of course the nominee is going to be Hillary (Clinton), who voted for the war and is a top money receiver from the pharmaceutical industry."

The New Jersey Greens chief had a softer spot in his heart for Republican maverick Ron Paul, who also voted against the war. DeCarlo clearly has issues with the Clintons, saying Bill's economic sanctions on Iraq were deadlier than George Bush's war.

"Clinton killed more people in Iraq by the sanctions he imposed on that country. All this business about Bush being an incompetent failure, an idiot and a dope -- it's nonsense. Bush has done everything he said he was going to do."

In years past, Kucinich had friends among the Greens. The New Hampshire Green Party endorsed his 2004 presidential campaign, and said the Clevelander deserved the support of all who cared about peace, social justice and environmental issues. This time around, things are different.

How Pure Are Ohio's Greens? Next Door In Pa. It's Been The Green-O-P

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- Cincinnati NAACP president Chris Smitherman has stirred up a firestorm with his plans to run for a City Council seat on the Green Party ticket. All of the debate has focused on whether or not he has a conflict with the NAACP, which tends to discourage local chapter leaders from running for elective offices.

But there has not been much aired about efforts in Pennsylvania to use the Green Party as a front. There have been hijack attempts by Republicans, a tactic designed to siphon progressive votes away from Democrats. Some Greens clearly are concerned that anybody who shows up is welcome. And they are not exactly enthused about poseurs financing and entering their party. Last year, there was an uproar when a when the Green Party's U.S. Senate candidate in the contest involving Rick Santorum's reelection bid wound up being funded by Santorum's backers. Nearly all the money for Green Party nominee Carl Romanelli came from GOP sources -- almost turning it into the Green-Old-Party.

This month, another GOP official in Pennsylvania briefly declared himself a Green. Again, it looked like a strategic move rather than a true political conversion.

Some Greens have argued that their party is the victim of both the major parties. However, they also contend the party has opened itself to abuse by outside political operatives and people who just show up and declare themselves true-blue Greens.

"Part of the reason for its bad decision is that the GP or PA is part of the GPUS. GPUS models itself on the corporate parties by refusing to have a defined membership. Since it does not base itself on a dues paid membership, GPUS must look to other sources . . .

"Not all Green Party activists accept the corporate structure of GPUS and the GP of PA. The original Green Party, the GPUSA, is based on a dues-paying membership. It is this defined membership, not anyone who shows up, who makes policy, including what money to accept and from where. GPUSA has never knowingly accepted money."

National Green Party to Michael Moore: Dems Won't Nominate Kucinich

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- The national Green Party says the Democrats and Republicans are "awash" in corporate cash and aren't seriously interested in enacting health care reform. "There are some exceptions among Dems, like Reps. John Conyers (Mich.) and Dennis Kucinich (Oh.), but Rep. Conyers single-payer bill has as little chance of passage as Rep. Kucinich has of getting nominated."

The Green Party sent an open letter to film-maker/activist Michael Moore that congratulates Moore on the successful opening of "Sicko," his latest movie and smack down of America's health care industry. It urged Moore to back Green candidates for Congress, state and local offices:

"Here's the problem: we're not going to get a national plan as long as the political landscape remains limited to two parties addicted to corporate contributions. Republican and Democratic politicians alike refuse to consider any plan that doesn't leave private HMOs and insurance corporations in charge."

The Green's accused the Dems of abandoning President Harry Truman's dream of national health coverage. "Once upon a time, the Democratic Party supported national health coverage and even endorsed in in the Democratic national platform in 1948. But they deleted it from the platform in the 1990s to make room for President Clinton's 'managed care' phony reform scheme, which would have enlarged the power of major insurance firms."

The Greens added that Al Gore has "seen the light" and now supports national health coverage.

Apparently, they have not sent Gore a letter yet urging him to run on the Green Party slate. And he probably wouldn't be interested, because Ralph Nader, the Green party candidate in 2000, cost Gore votes that year. And if Gore had won the White House . . .

Cincy Dems To Blast Green Party: Gets Blame For W's Election

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- The Green Party has recruited Cincinnati NAACP president Chris Smitherman as a City Council candidate, and some Democrats already see it as a partnership that is going nowhere. They say the Greens --- who ran Ralph Nader for president in 2000 -- helped put President Bush and Dick Cheney in office by siphoning votes away from Al Gore in Florida.

They think they can pin some responsibility for the Bush years, a presidency that is held in low esteem, on the Greens. It could be a tactic that has some impact. The Bush-Cheney legacy is beginning to look toxic, particularly in urban areas, and the Dems can blame the Greens for the misery caused by an abuse of executive privilege.

UPDATE: This just arrived from a Dem source who notes it is the kind of evidence available to make the case Nader and the Green Party cost Gore the White House.

Local Green Party spokesman Josh Krekeler was indirectly quoted in today's Cincinnati Enquirer saying that Smitherman is the party's most viable local candidate ever. Smitherman served a two-year City Council term, but was defeated for reelection in November 2005. He was a member of the Charter Party then. The Charter Party is a Cincinnati-based political organization that has been active in city politics since the 1920s. It is not aligned with Republicans or Democrats, and declares itself to be an independent group.

The 2000 presidential election still rankles. Gore won the popular vote, but a 5-4 Supreme Court ruling, with a conservative bloc of justices backing Bush, settled a dispute over Florida's electoral votes and handed the Republican the presidency. The conventional wisdom about Florida holds that Nader
's Green Party candidacy took votes from Gore, thus giving America Bush, the Iraq War, and a host of other policies that have harmed the middle and lower classes.

While the conventional wisdom is open to debate, there is no question the Greens and Nader remain close to this day. He's scheduled to address a Green Party conclave in Pennsylvania later this month, and will talk about ballot access -- the difficult legal barriers candidates outside the two main political parties have to surmount to secure spots on the ballot.

The national Green Party's political reform agenda speaks about the the "power of civic action" as an antidote to corporate control over the nation's law-making and regulatory agencies. The agenda is worth reading. Interestingly, the Greens want to abolish the Electoral College, and favor direct election of the president. That means they want to scrap the system that put Bush in power.

Viral Spoof Ad Department: First Hillary, Now Apple And PC

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- By now everybody -- even the Neanderthals -- knows about the "1984" viral anti-Hillary spoof ad. But there are other clever culture-jacking commercials that have nothing to do with politics. Gaze HERE, HERE and HERE at the young lady who puts the boys in their place. No way is she being left behind on the wrong side of the digital divide. Terrific guerilla marketing by Novell.

Such knockoffs probably owe a lot to Ralph Nader, who as the Green Party's presidential candidate in 2000 broadcast an early, pre-YouTUBE spoof ad and refused to buckle when MasterCard served a cease-and-desist notice. Nader said taking popular commercials and turning them into satirical props was an exercise in free speech. He lost the election -- and may have also cost Al Gore the presidency that year -- but he won his legal point.

And now, thanks to Ralph, politics and advertising will never be the same.