Taking stock.

• Author: Hahnel, Robin
• Position: Election 2004: Green Analyses

Election 2004 was destined to be a problematic nightmare for the Green Party from the beginning. Before the election cycle began, the country had discovered that, instead of a centrist Republican without a mandate, 9/11 and its aftermath had saddled us with a radical right wing presidency, pushing US imperial ambitions to new heights and threatening to develop an American version of fascism if re-elected. Most progressives, with notable exceptions like Ralph Nader and CounterPunch, realized that ridding the world of Bush-Cheney and trying to reverse the slim Republican majority in the US Senate were the overwhelming political priorities of the 2004 election.

At the expense of a great deal of internal strife, the Green Party made the right choice at our Milwaukee convention and refused to endorse the politically irresponsible candidacy of Ralph Nader. Instead we voted for the only honorable option open to us: we ran a low profile, safe state presidential campaign that did everything possible to make clear that while we recognized the priority of defeating Bush-Cheney, we were under no illusions that the Democratic Party would be a vehicle for progressive change. When our vice-presidential candidate declared that she would not vote for herself in a swing state, she did herself and the Green Party proud. It is time to cash in on our wisdom and our political maturity.

The critical issue in the aftermath of the 2004 election is what will happen to the millions of people who rallied to the failed cause of defeating Bush-Cheney. During the summer and fall of 2004 there were two armies of organizers fighting for the minds and hearts of the electorate in every battleground state, with support troops pouring in from neighboring safe states every weekend. On one side was the well-funded Republican Party, working with conservative churches.

On the other side were independent political organizations like ACT and Move-On, working along with the traditional civil rights, labor, women's, gay, and peace groups--all of whom were mobilized like never before. The Democratic Party and Kerry-Edwards campaign fluttered above the real political battles, largely powerless to do anything other than make life difficult for the independent progressive political armies fighting their battles for them.

By joining those who waged the good fight against Bush-Cheney in the summer and fall of 2004, rather than sabotaging their efforts, and by continually reminding...