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Ralph Nader yesterday defended the support he has received from Republicans in his presidential bid, saying that "Republicans are people, too."     The independent presidential candidate, in a debate with former Democratic presidential hopeful Howard Dean, also called his bid to run as an outsider as an expression of freedom.     "It's called freedom," Mr. Nader said. "Freedom of conscience, freedom to authentically communicate the necessities to the American people without the trappings of special interests and commercial cash."     Mr. Nader picked on the Democratic Party throughout the hour-long debate, which was held at the National Press Club and sponsored by National...

Hey, Michael, Where Were Your Friends? Once upon a time, there was Michael Moore the First. He never forgot his friends. Come time for the Washington, DC premiere of Bowling for Columbine a while back, he invited his old buddies in Washington—gave them good seats and spent the rest of the evening with them. During his other movie's premiere, he affectionately recognized how much those old friends helped him and supported him after he was mistreated and let go by Mother Jones. He was generous with his words and time. Now there is Michael Moore the Second. Last night he...

Maverick presidential candidate Ralph Nader is accusing the Kerry campaign of launching a "Watergate"-style dirty tricks operation in a bid to keep him off the ballot in November. Nader personally leveled the allegation in a conversation with John Kerry Tuesday morning, and detailed the exchange later in the day for national radio host Sean Hannity. "I said, 'You better look and see what your Democrats are doing here because they can get in trouble'. . . . I told him, 'This could be a kind of Watergate.'" Nader said that Kerry has "got these rambunctious, aggressive underlings of his" who...

WASHINGTON (AP) - Independent candidate Ralph Nader, denied a spot on the Arizona ballot, on Friday accused the Democrats and presidential candidate John Kerry of engaging in political "dirty tricks." Just hours before the developments in Arizona, Nader complained that the Democratic Party has "stepped up its obstruction tendencies" in challenging his ballot access. The consumer advocate said he had called the Kerry campaign three times Thursday, asking to chat with the candidate. "We have to get a clarification if they're going to engage in dirty tricks," Nader told reporters at a news conference to criticize multinational corporations. The Kerry...

<p>You're only fueling defeatism--and you defeated my father.</p> <p>Watching Ralph Nader declare his candidacy was like having a terrible flashback. Oh no--not this again! I'm not saying we should muzzle independent voices or rule out third parties. Mr. Nader has a right to run for president. And I have a right to say, What an awful idea.</p>

Nearly one in four voters in a new USA Today/CNN/Gallup Poll say the Green Party's Ralph Nader should run for president again in 2004. Nader expressed surprise and said the numbers showed that "people are looking for alternatives to the Democratic and Republican duopoly." A Draft Nader organization is setting up shop in all 50 states, and he has asked California to put his name on the Greens' presidential primary ballot for March, USA Today reported today, but he says he won't decide until December whether to jump in. You can bet that no one wants Nader to run more...