[Iowa-dx] FW: Exclusive interview with Green Party presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney

[Hart, Holly J]

Exclusive interview with Green Party presidential candidate Cynthia McKinne=
y

Thadeus Greenson/The Times-Standard

Article Launched: 05/10/2008 12:26:59 AM PDT

Presumptive Green Party nominee Cynthia McKinney made her final stop on a w=
hirlwind tour through Humboldt County Friday night.

Hours before speaking at Humboldt State University, McKinney took a moment =
to sit down with the Times-Standard to discuss why, after being a lifelong =
Democrat, she announced her independence last year and is now running as th=
e Green Party candidate. During the 45-minute interview, portions of which =
are transcribed below, the former congresswoman also touched on some of the=
 problems facing America that she said the nation's next president will hav=
e to address.


Times-Standard: So why the Green Party and why now?

McKinney: Why now is the obvious one: Because of the condition of our count=
ry, the failure of the Democrats -- particularly now that they are in the m=
ajority -- to even live up to the expectations of their voters, I won't say=
 their campaign promises, but I will certainly say the expectations of thei=
r voters.

Of course, I do believe that in November of 2006 the American people went t=
o the polls and voted, and they voted for peace. We don't have peace yet. I=
 do believe that a significant chunk of the American people would also like=
 to see justice in this country. The Sean Bell verdict is an example of man=
y examples that are possible. Of course, the Mumia (Abu-Jamal) verdict is a=
nother example that we don't yet have justice in this country.

I believe in November 2006 the American people went to the polls andthey vo=
ted for respect for our constitution, particularly the Bill of Rights, and =
we don't yet have that either.

The American people expect health care, a single payer form of health care =
such as Medicare for all, and we don't have that either.

We desperately need a livable wage -- well, we haven't got that yet either.=
 And, if the minimum wage had kept pace with CEO remuneration, according to=
 United for a Fair Economy, the minimum wage would be $22 an hour. We don't=
 have that yet either.

So, basically, it seems that the American people are increasingly -- partic=
ularly a portion of the American people -- are continuing to vote in the bl=
ue, but they live in the red. I wish I could say that was something I thoug=
ht up, but that's the name of the most recent United for a Fair Economy rep=
ort. And, it criticized the Democratic majority in Congress for failing to =
address the huge racial disparities that continue to exist in our country. =
...

T-S: As president, how will you address these social justice issues and bri=
ng peace to America?

McKinney: I think we have to provide leadership on social justice issues. I=
 would suspect there is a segment of the American population that really do=
es want to have a real discussion of race worth having, but of course as lo=
ng as the corporate media propagandize certain comments that are made by ca=
ble TV magnates, or by former vice presidential candidates, or by pastors o=
f black churches, then you won't get the serious discussion that this count=
ry deserves or that people who are suffering desperately need.

... One of the things that isn't being discussed in this election is the fa=
ct that the United States is hopelessly mired in debt, and what is going to=
 be done about this.

According to the former comptroller, who left his position as leader of the=
 (U.S. Government Accountability Office) so that he could go out and talk a=
bout the realities of the situation, according to him, the United States, w=
ith all of the debts called in, is $53 trillion in debt, and there's no way=
 that can be paid. And, that doesn't even include household debt. ... When =
all this comes crashing down, what will be left standing are the original v=
alues of the Green Party: Local economy, ecological wisdom, grass roots Dem=
ocracy. These are the things the Green Party has been advocating for 20 yea=
rs, so you could say I'm late to the party. But thank goodness I'm finally =
at the party. ...

T-S: You mentioned Green values, and there seem to be a lot of people who b=
elieve in Green values but tend to vote Democratic. The Green Party has kin=
d of been vilified as a spoiler in past presidential races, what would you =
tell some of those who does believe in Green values but feels this election=
 is too important to not vote Democrat?

McKinney: Every election is so important that it is vital to Democracy that=
 people vote their values. Now, with respect to this notion of spoiler, we =
need to correct the record because anybody who knows what happened in the p=
residential election of 2000, we know two things happened.

One is that the Republicans got together and organized a way to disenfranch=
ise black voters. This was not just only in Florida. What we have to unders=
tand is that this is something that has been going on for a very long time,=
 but the stakes weren't quite so high as they were with the Gore-Lieberman =
ticket. But the stakes weren't quite high enough for the second reality to =
not prevail, and that is that the Democrats didn't fight for the victory th=
at the voters gave them.

Now, anyone that understands what happened in 2000 would not dare accuse th=
e Greens of spoiling an election. I think election theft is a pretty good s=
poiler itself. I think failure to fight for the results that reflect the wi=
ll of the voters, that's a pretty good spoiler itself. However, it's far ea=
sier to point the finger at somebody else that is so weak that they aren't =
able to defend themselves in the court of public opinion because we've got =
the corporate press, who have demonstrated their willingness to lie. They r=
epeated the lies 935 times that were told by the leading protagonists on th=
e Bush administration leading up to the war. ...


Thadeus Greenson can be reached at 441-0509 or tgreenson@times-standard.com

http://www.times-standard.com/localnews/ci_9216109