KUCINICH--Salon Magazine in-depth interview

[cryofan]

good stuff:
http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2003/12/18/kucinich/index_np.html

You will need to view a commercial before you can read the article.....click on Day Pass at the bottom....

[Karmadillo]

1. Great interview. Excellent comparison of Dean's health plan and DK's

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2003/12/18/kucinich/index.html

<edit>

Caller question (from Link TV viewer Sol Cohen of Vallejo, Calif.): Are you in favor of national health insurance, or a single-payer plan similar to that in Canada, and if so, how would you implement such a plan in view of the hostility of the healthcare industry and the high probability of a Republican Congress?

I've introduced legislation with John Conyers of Michigan, HR 676, to create a universal, single-payer healthcare system -- a national health plan, extended Medicare for all. Now, the way that we would accomplish it is this: Currently the United States pays $1.4 trillion for healthcare, that's from private resources and from the government. hundreds of billions of dollars of that $1.4 trillion go for things like corporate profits, stock options, executive salaries, advertising, lobbying, marketing, the cost of paperwork. We're already paying for a universal standard of healthcare but we're not getting it because of the allocation of dollars.

My plan is to take America away from a for-profit system, where healthcare is rationed by ability to pay, and create a not-for-profit system where all the resources go into providing Americans with medical care for all medically necessary procedures. Now there are some candidates for president who have said, "If you want fundamental change in the system I'm not your man." And one of those candidates is a doctor ...

Howard Dean, you're referring to.

Frankly. And I think that it's time to get a second opinion. Now, Governor Dean has said that he wants everyone to have health insurance. We must look at that description. Health insurance. That means you can have health insurance, but you're still going to be stuck with an insurance company that's going to raise your premiums, increase your co-pays, increase your deductibles and shrink you area of coverage. Because insurance companies make money not providing healthcare. My plan is to take it out of the hands of the private insurers and out of the hands of the pharmaceutical companies, and create a not-for-profit public healthcare system where everyone is cared for. That's a major difference between Governor Dean and me, and I think it's going to be one of those defining issues in this election.

more...

[Myra]

3. Great interview, thanks.

I absolutely do want fundamental change in the system.

[VT70]

2. Great interview

Dennis is awesome. :thumbsup:

[Ficus]

12. whoah!

a Lieberman sig line! Never thought I'd see something like that on DU!

[ThirdWheelLegend]

4. WOW great interview... all should read this article

Dennis is so knowledgable and just plain correct on so many issues.

on workers and business...

snip>>>
" The Center for Public Integrity is going to publish a book next month called "The Buying on the President 2004," looking at all the presidential candidates and listing each of your biggest campaign contributors, not just in this race but throughout your time in public life. Nine of your 10 biggest contributors are labor unions. As president, will you be beholden to labor unions? And will you be able to work with business in a cooperative way?

First of all, there is some disclosure needed here. I'm not a missionary to labor. I come from the house of labor, and I fully intend to have worker's rights enshrined in a worker's White House: the right to organize, the right to collective bargaining, the right to strike, the right to decent wages and benefits, the right to a safe workplace, the right to a secure retirement, the right to participate in a political process. I would have no trouble whatsoever in working with business as long as business understands that it has a responsibility to pay people a living wage, as long as business understands that it has the responsibility to make sure that people when they're on the job have certain rights, as long as business understands that it needs to create a safe workplace -- we'll have a marvelous working relationship with business. "
snip>>>>


He stands tall above the other candidates on about 99% of the issues.
There is no other possible choice for me in the primary.

TWL

[maddezmom]

5. Worth reading

:kick:

[Terwilliger]

6. kick

[buddhamama]

7. thanks for posting

:kick:

[jpgray]

8. GREAT interview!

He nailed his abortion stance this time, and had very good comments on every question he was asked. I may have to scrounge for some more money to give Dennis if he's running low....

[Ficus]

13. Dennis is always running low

nt

[ErasureAcer]

9. good interview

:)

www.kucinich.us

[LWolf]

10. This was a highlight for me:

One doesn't look too much at the spending policies inside the Pentagon, but actually that's my job. I'm the ranking member on a sub-committee that has jurisdiction over national security, and we've held hearings on spending practices in the Pentagon. We know, for example, that the Pentagon has over a trillion dollars in accounts it cannot reconcile.

They've lost a trillion dollars through bookkeeping errors?

They can't track it down. They have over a thousand accounting systems. They can't track it down, and so we don't know. What we do know, though, is that this missile system they want to put up has been fraught with fraud. We shouldn't be spending money on it. So I'll set that system aside. I'll set aside the building of new nuclear weapons. We have so many weapon systems right now that are being developed when we haven't even used the previous generation. There's a tremendous amount of waste. I believe a 15 percent reduction in the Pentagon budget can be achieved without any adverse impact on our national security whatsoever.

I heard him discuss this last summer. Here is a point I'd like to repeat; I don't think many people realize this:

He is the ranking member on a sub-committee that has jurisdiction over national security

He is knowledgeable and qualified to address the issue of national security.

[goodhue]

14. trillion dollars lost

This is a national scandal that all other candidats avoid but DK brings up whenever he can. And he knows what he is talking about. This issue dovetails perfectly into Enron/World Con/Halliburton corruption.

Please note that DK brings up the issue at his own initiative in response to question on education funding. Once again for emphasis:

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2003/12/18/kucinich/index2.html

There's another area here, too. The Pentagon budget has been expanding very rapidly. One doesn't look too much at the spending policies inside the Pentagon, but actually that's my job. I'm the ranking member on a sub-committee that has jurisdiction over national security, and we've held hearings on spending practices in the Pentagon. We know, for example, that the Pentagon has over a trillion dollars in accounts it cannot reconcile.

They've lost a trillion dollars through bookkeeping errors?

They can't track it down. They have over a thousand accounting systems. They can't track it down, and so we don't know. What we do know, though, is that this missile system they want to put up has been fraught with fraud. We shouldn't be spending money on it. So I'll set that system aside. I'll set aside the building of new nuclear weapons. We have so many weapon systems right now that are being developed when we haven't even used the previous generation. There's a tremendous amount of waste. I believe a 15 percent reduction in the Pentagon budget can be achieved without any adverse impact on our national security whatsoever.

Will they find the trillion dollars then?

Well, you know what, we'll find a way to straighten out the books. I mean, this is a nightmare for the taxpayers as well as for fiscal management.

[LWolf]

17. What would $1trillion buy?

We're not talking nickels and dimes here. That's a significant impact. It's a good thing we've got Dennis bringing these things up. We sure don't read about a lost $trillion or so in the papers, or see it on tv. And we're not hearing about it from any other politicians, candidates or not.

Anybody out there interested in finding out what happened to that $trillion? Anybody think we could fund unfunded mandates, rebuild infrastructure, or just pay down debt if we found an extra $trillion lying around somewhere? How about some fiscal accountability here?

[Karmadillo]

11. Kick

n/t

[goodhue]

15. 20% renewables by 2010

another great Q & A:

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2003/12/18/kucinich/index_np.html

Caller question : When I was young, President Kennedy committed the country to sending a man to the moon by the decade's end, which at that time was a seemingly impossible task. But our country committed enormous resources, both human and financial, and was successful. Would you be willing to make a similar commitment of the country's resources and end our dependence on petroleum?

You're right, President Kennedy showed what positive leadership can do in setting goals and an expanded vision for America. I intend to do the same thing with respect to achieving energy independence. The path we take must be towards a 20 percent renewal energy portfolio by the year 2010. We have to incentivize the development of renewable technologies and provide disincentives for development of coal, oil and nuclear energy.

[redqueen]

16. Thanks for the post! n/t

[dpbrown]

18. Thank you, Salon

If the media is as afraid of Dennis as they seem to be, he must really be the right candidate.

[Nadienne]

23. Absolutely n/t

[KaraokeKarlton]

19. a kick for Kucinich supporters

and to protest against the negativite threads being posted. Everyone kick a positive thread and lets get rid of the flame baiting!

[Zomby Woof]

20. ZombyKick

[no name no slogan]

21. Wow, what a great interview!

That was fantastic! This is one of the better interviews with him I've seen/read. Thanks for posting this!

[revcarol]

22. I'm so angry!!

NOW I find out I could have watched the Link TV broadcast on the web(no TV.)This was one superb interview of one superb guy.

GO DENNIS!!

[Jerseycoa]

24. Hey, this is great

:bounce:

[dpbrown]

25. Kucinich is easily the best candidate we've had to chose from in years

it's time to take back the mantle of Democratic progressivism.