Mike Gravel: The New Howard Dean?
By Justin Gardner | Related entries in 2008 Election, VideoThe far left always hungers for a candidate they think will tell it like it is. Hell, we all do. Howard Dean was just such a character. He was pretty much the first to come out in early 2003 and denounce the war and our foreign policy stance post 9/11. And with the help of Joe Trippi’s social-networking magic, the message caught on big time and rocketed Dean to the front.
And maybe that “hunger” is why the blogosphere and beyond is abuzz over these clips from Thursday’s South Carolina debate.
Personally, I don’t think he’s got a chance. I think he comes off as a little too loose, and not very presidential.
What do you think?
This entry was posted on Saturday, April 28th, 2007 and is filed under 2008 Election, Video. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
April 28th, 2007 at 8:17 pm
I think he is a clown.
And so are you for writing a post like this.
April 28th, 2007 at 10:09 pm
Thank you.
April 28th, 2007 at 10:44 pm
Mike Gravel poses some tough questions for American voters. He challenges voters to reject politics beholden to corporate infuence, and vote for a mutual, participatory system of democracy. Justin, as you say that Gravel came off as unpresidential in the debate, I believe that the public has to change the definition of what “presidential” is. In my view, if we are to fix the problems Bush has imposed on this nation, we need to change our government at its most fundamental levels, by renewing our foreign policy, eradicating corporate heirarchy and starting anew, at the public level. Granted, it is too early to know if Gravel is the candidate for the job, but so far, he is the only man in the race with the interest of fixing the complex problems that plague the nation today.
April 28th, 2007 at 11:26 pm
Couldn’t even finish the video and I’m usually entertained by idiots.
April 29th, 2007 at 2:49 am
Does Gravel have that voice then? Is that really the direction we want to be going? I’m not sure, but something tells me no. We don’t want to have a President who is more prone to throwing up his arms and going “Wake up.”
Some in the media have likened Gravel to Howard Beale. Well, I wouldn’t want Howard Beale as President either.
April 29th, 2007 at 7:24 am
When do you idiots learn not to trust your gut feelings? What part of Gravel’s sentences or ideas or speeches do you find irrational? Why can’t he be a president and Bush can be? Well, probably the people who elected him to be “entertained” by him.
April 29th, 2007 at 7:24 am
So what is “presidential material”? Giving the same old old rote answers to questions like “name America’s top enemies”? It’s about time that someone challenges the sweetheart deal that the “top tier” candidates have with the mainstream press.
Gravel is right; the U.S. spends more on defense than the rest of the world combined. Isn’t that obvious?
Here are some quotes from Gravel I kept from the press on Friday morning:
“We have no important enemies. What we need to do is to begin to deal with the rest of the world as equals, and we don’t do that. We spend more as a nation on defense than all the rest of the world put together.
Who are we afraid of? Who are you afraid of, Brian? I’m not.
Iraq has never been a threat to us. We invaded them. I mean, it is unbelievable. The military-industrial complex not only controls our government lock, stock and barrel, but they control our culture.”
“It’s like your first day in the Senate. You say, ‘How did I get here,’ and then about six months later you say, ‘How the hell did the rest of them get here? I’ve got to tell you, after standing up with them, some of these people frighten me.’ ”
To Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.), Gravel said: Sen. “You have a certain arrogance. You want to tell the Iraqis how to run their country. I gotta tell you, we should just plain get out.
It’s about time someone raised these issues in a debate. I’m tired of hearing Hillary say, “Iran is an existential threat.” What does that even mean? Or Obama saying, “No options are off the table.” That arrogant attitude is what has gotten us into the mess this country is in right now.
Gravel advocates really ending the war. Does anyone really believe Iraq is going to be in better shape in a year? More soldiers are going to die for nothing whether we stay or not. The Democrats and the Republicans are playing political games with lives of US soldiers and Iraqis.
Gravel also supports getting rid of the IRS and replacing it with a fair tax.
That’s all I can think of for know. If you really want to know more, visit his web site at gravel2008.us. It’s worth spending some time. Rather than just giving Americans fluff, Gravel provides a truly alternative voice — a voice of reason. I know, it’s shocking for some people to hear, but if you keep listening it will start to make sense.
April 29th, 2007 at 11:21 am
The following three individuals were involved with the decision to keep Mike Gravel out of the June 3rd debate in New Hampshire. Let them know that this kind of censorship is outrageous! Tell all three of these individuals that Mike’s patriotic voice ought to be heard on June 3rd! Every e-mail and phone call will make a difference…
Andrea Jones, ABC News, Washington D.C. (202) 222-6896.
E-mail: andrea.jones@abc.com
Alex Jasiukowicz, WMUR-TV. (603) 641-9073.
E-mail: ajasiukowicz@hearst.com
Charlie Perkins, Editor of the New Hampshire Union-Leader. (603) 668-4321 x 321.
E-mail: cperkins@unionleader.com
April 29th, 2007 at 11:38 am
In the primary, I will be voting for anyone to stop Hillary. But Gravel’s voice merits being heard.
Swiftspeech reports that Gravel may be deleted from future debates. For now, let’s just do what we can to see he’s not excluded from further televised debates! Voice your concern to CNN. Took me 90 seconds!
April 29th, 2007 at 11:39 am
Thanks, Mike. I will post these, too!
April 29th, 2007 at 7:06 pm
AND, Howard Dean was right. If the media had not assassinated him on the eve of the New Hampshire primary by playing their own creation (the “scream” tape) 600 times in 4 days, he would have been nominated and probably elected. Probable result: We would not be in Iraq today. I challenge anyone who doubts it to read the speech he gave at Drake University (you can Google it) in the fall of 2003 where he predicted precisely what Bush’s war would bring to this nation, including the insurgency aftermath. Dean was was RIGHT and no pundit can deny it
today, so he gets the last laugh. I suggest it might wise to listen to Mike Gravel. He is the person who, back in the 1970’s, gave us the Pentagon Papers and is a true patriot.
April 29th, 2007 at 10:09 pm
To have Mr. Gravel included in the June 3rd debate in N.H., you need to call Jim Walton, President of CNN Newsgroup, personally in his office at 404-878-1720 . Let him know how excited you were to see Senator Gravel on MSNBC last week, and tell him that Mike Gravel’s voice ought to be heard on June 3rd in N.H. This is a direct phone line to a top CNN executive. I just left him a voice mail myself. I told him that given all of our troubles right now, there is no reason to exclude Mr. Gravel’s patriotic voice from the next debate. Mike Gravel published the Pentagon Papers, and he used parliamentary tactics to end the draft in this country. Now, with our nation embroiled in catastrophe, and with the general election more than a year and a half away, CNN really ought to give this true patriot an opportunity to speak!
It only takes a minute, and if you are as frustrated and concerned as I am, then you should consider telling CNN to open up the debate to Sen. Gravel on June 3rd.
In the first quarter of this year, Senator Gravel accumulated a total of $496 for his campaign. That puts him well behind Hillary and Obama, who each raised over $25,000,000.00 in that same period. That should tell you all you need to know about the state of the Democratic party right now. If Hillary or Obama get elected, you can expect “politics as usual.”
April 30th, 2007 at 3:20 am
The issue is whether Gravel has the right to join in the presidential debate. I disagree that CNN should omit him from airing his opinion just because his political coffers aren’t as full as Clinton’s or Obama’s. I don’t want the richest candidate to win; I want the best candidate to win.
Just a note: in the last two elections, the richest candidate won. Now there’s a clown for you with the intellect of an amoeba, not to mention utterly compassionless. I, too, will not vote for Hillary in the primaries, based on her voting to invade Iraq and her support for pro-lifers.
I’ll be on the phone with CNN’s president (or at least his voice mail) tomorrow. Please spread the word.
May 1st, 2007 at 11:05 am
http://www.studentsforgravel.com/wordpress/?p=12
He’s coming on Colbert tomorrow night!
May 14th, 2007 at 6:02 pm
Mike Gravel, Dennis Kucinich, and Ron Paul should together create and lead the New American Century!!! All the other ‘hopefuls’ are just a boring replay of all those usual puppets serving the military-industrial complex controlled by Jewish extremists and christian fundamentalists.