Supporters of Green Party presidential candidate Ralph Nader and left-wing Democrats are conducting a last-minute campaign in various swing states, fearing that Nader could tip the election in favor of Republican candidate George W. Bush. Politicians and activists note that, with the presidential race so close between Bush and Democratic candidate Al Gore, votes for Nader could ultimately put Bush in the White House, and the costs would be heavy. With 3-4 possible Supreme Court appointments during the next presidency, reproductive rights are on the line. Bush has stated that his model Justices are Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas, two of the most conservative Justices on the Court, and there are indications that Thomas could become Chief Justice under a Bush administraton.
A coalition of progressive organizations, including the Human Rights Campaign, will travel to five swing states – Oregon, Washington, New Mexico, Minnesota, and Wisconsin – this weekend to campaign for Gore, targeting liberal voters. In addition, several environmental organizations and NARAL recently launched ads urging liberal voters to consider the urgency of keeping Bush out of the White House. According to the Washington Post, folk-rock singer and feminist Ani DiFranco, who recently performed at a Nader rally and plans to vote for him this November, told fans in an Internet letter, “ïif I found myself in a swing state, I’d remember the record number of executions Governor Bush has authorized in the state of Texasand I’d think long and hard about the bleak future of women’s reproductive rights in a Republican-controlled White House. And my vote would go to Al Gore.”
