Nader/Kerry Coalition

I know it runs counter to my general belief that the more parties the merrier, but the best case scenario for both Ralph Nader and John Kerry is for Nader to stay in the race until the final month or two and then bow out endorsing Kerry. As it stands, Nader can be an unfortunate spoiler for Kerry come November, like Ross Perot in '92, like Nader himself in 2000.

But it doesn't have to be that way. In Europe, where parliamentary systems reign, the minority parties play a larger roll nationally than mere spoiler. Sometimes they form alliances with a larger, not quite majority, party, which in turn begets a larger party that may have the votes to defeat a challenger, which on an individual basis is larger.

Once in power that minority part of the alliance may not have the ultimate say in decision making, but it does hold significant influence in ensuring that their specific platform is addressed. For instance, a green party minority will likely call its majority partner to support and push through its environmental reforms, etc., or risk loss of support.

Back to Nader and Kerry, Nader should stay in the race until the last minute. Both Nader and Kerry have the same goal, defeating Bush. But the likelihood of Nader defeating Bush '43 is as likely as my mechanic pencil right here is a magic wand that has the power to turn people into Ewoks. It just unfortunately isn't going to happen.

Maybe Nader can capture enough votes this time to ensure the Reform Party national funding and increased ballot access for future elections. But realistically, Nader is likely less popular now than he was in '00 when the election was essentially between the lesser of two evils.

Today, the goal for many discontents is defeat of Bush at all costs. If Nader stays in the race, he will make it more difficult for this to occur. Another four years of George W. Bush also means four more years of undermining environmental laws such as the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act, four more years of denying that global warming exists, and four more years of supporting big business over the little consumer--all these central tenets of Nader's platform.

By staying in the race until late, Nader can push Kerry to not only to adopt certain Reform Party programs and push for military pullout in Iraq, but also Nader can mobolize the scattered discontents to dust off their weathered tie dyes and get out and eventually vote for Kerry--their best bet for any sort of real change.