Future Hope column, June 28, 2004
Green and Growing
By Ted Glick
The Green Party of the United States took a huge step forward on
Saturday, June 26th in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. And it wasn't because the
assembled delegates nominated someone, David Cobb, for President.
It was because of HOW it was done.
Going into the convention there was deep concern on the part of many
Greens around the country about what was going to happen. For a year or
longer there has been a sometimes-bitter internal debate about what should
be done as far as "the presidential question." The perceived threat of an
emboldened, second Bush administration has led some to work for Dennis
Kucinich. A small group is now working for Kerry, although it is a very
small group. Some have said that they will be voting for Kerry and are
urging others to do the same.
The three main positions going into Milwaukee were to neither nominate
nor endorse anyone, to nominate former GPUS general counsel David Cobb, or
to nominate no one and then endorse Ralph Nader. A variant of the pro-Nader
position, one pushed by California GP leader Peter Camejo, called for no
nomination and then an endorsement of both Cobb and Nader.
A nominated candidate would get the Green Party ballot line in 22
states and Washington, D.C. An endorsed candidate would get some measure
of political support but not necessarily a state Green ballot line; it
would be up to each individual state party to determine what it wanted to
do. In some states a lack of a nomination would probably mean no candidate
would be on the ballot because of state election law.
The political struggle over these positions was intense, and it went
down to the wire.
Convention week was begun on Monday with a huge announcement by Nader
that he was choosing Camejo to be his Vice Presidential candidate. Score
one for the pro-Nader forces.
Two days later Medea Benjamin, like Camejo a California Green Party
leader, issued a statement headlined, "Want to Get Rid of Bush and Grow
the Greens? Support David Cobb." Touche.
As people gathered in Milwaukee for the official first day of the
convention on Wednesday, the battle was joined. A primary "stage" for the
on-going debate was the lobby of the Hyatt Regency hotel, a union hotel
where many delegates were staying and where many meetings and caucuses
were held. Proponents of Nader/Camejo and Cobb, as well as those
supporting other positions, set up their leafleting and lobbying teams and
for three days mingled with each other and with other delegates trying to
gather the necessary 50% plus one needed to win.
Significantly, there were no physical altercations or, as far as I am
aware, even any nasty emotional outbursts between those on the respective
sides, while there was a great deal of reasoned discussion, as well as
robust, vigorous and competitive debate.
This same process of debate and discussion went on at state caucuses,
in the room full of literature tables, in the hallways and throughout the
convention.
A Close Race
Everyone knew that it was close. David Cobb went into the convention
with about 33% of the delegates pledged to him. Those supporting Nader, as
well as candidates Camejo, Lorna Salzman, Carol Miller and Paul Glover,
all of whom personally supported Nader, had about 28% of the delegates.
23% of the delegates were officially uncommitted, 12% were for no nominee,
and the remainder were for Kent Mesplay and other candidates.
Thursday evening was set up by the Green Party convention planners as
the one time prior to Saturday's decision-making when all the candidates
would meet in an open forum. For close to two hours Camejo, Cobb, Mesplay
and Salzman (Miller and Glover were not there) answered a series of
questions put to them by the moderator in front of a room completely
jammed with many hundreds of delegates, observers and press.
Camejo and Cobb, as the two main protagonists, were both "on their
game." Both came across as articulate and passionate in support of their
positions. Toward the end of the forum/debate, things got heated as Camejo
accused Cobb of being a supporter of John Kerry and Cobb countered by
articulating what he has been calling a "smart growth" strategy which
prioritizes building the Green Party while also running a campaign which
helps to get Bush out of office.
One piece of hard news emerged at the debate when Cobb announced that
his campaign had chosen Pat LaMarche, a 43 year old single mother of two
and radio personality from Maine, to be his Vice Presidential running
mate. In 1998, running as the Maine Green Party's candidate for Governor,
she received 7% of the statewide vote, winning ballot status for the
party.
Friday morning began with the Cobb campaign distributing a statement
they called, "The True Position of the Cobb/LaMarche Campaign on the Iraq
War: End the Occupation, Bring the U.S. Troops Home Now." The statement
quoted from press releases issued in April and May and posted on the
votecobb.org website, while also criticizing Camejo for "misrepresent(ing)
the position of the Cobb/LaMarche Campaign on the Iraq war" at the
Thursday evening debate.
Throughout the day the pro-Nader people distributed a leaflet urging
those who supported Nader/Camejo to vote a certain way on Saturday. In the
first round, they said, vote as mandated by your state. In the second
round, when almost all states released delegates to vote their conscience,
vote for no nominee, the Nader forces urged. If a majority on the second
round voted no nominee, this would then allow for a vote to endorse Nader/Camejo,
or endorse both Cobb/LaMarche and Nader/Camejo, on the third round.
In late afternoon both campaigns put out another piece of literature.
The Nader campaign distributed a letter from Ralph Nader in which he
explained that he would not be coming to the convention but articulated
the rationale for why the convention should endorse him. Nader spoke later
that evening via telephone hook-up to a pro-Nader rally of, according to
reports, about 200 delegates and observers.
The Cobb campaign leaflet highlighted what it called an inconsistency
between Ralph Nader's position of trying to influence Kerry/the Democrats
and "retire Bush," and Camejo' s position, articulated Thursday evening,
that "Greens should never, ever vote for a Democrat." The leaflet asked,
"What is the Nader/Camejo strategy?"
Day of Decision
As people began arriving at the Midwest Airlines Convention Center
Saturday morning the politicking continued. Cobb forces were buoyed by an
unexpected endorsement in that morning's major Milwaukee daily newspaper,
the Journal Sentinel. The headline read, "David Cobb for the Greens."
The day's historic events began with the adoption of a comprehensive
and impressive, updated national Green Party platform that had been worked
on for many months with much input prior to Milwaukee from Greens all over
the country. Then we got down to the main event.
Matt Gonzalez had been decided upon as the Election Administrator by
the GPUS' national coordinating committee. Gonzalez is the Chair of the
San Francisco Board of Supervisors and nearly won last year in a
nationally publicized election for Mayor of San Francisco.
In the first round there were no major surprises. David Cobb led with
308 votes, followed by Peter Camejo with 119, Ralph Nader with 117, no
nominee with 109, Lorna Salzman with 40, Kent Mesplay with 24 and various
other candidates with smaller numbers, including Joann Beeman, a "favorite
daughter" and elected drain commissioner from Michigan.
Both sides were nervous as Gonzalez adjourned the session for lunch.
Over lunch caucusing continued with appeals to hold firm by Camejo to both
the California and New York delegations, two Nader/Camejo strongholds.
Cobb campaign leaders felt hopeful but not certain that they could win on
the second round. The outcome depended primarily on how the 109 first
round no nominee votes were cast on the second round.
Prior to Saturday both the Cobb and Nader campaigns had "worked" the no
nominee delegates. The Cobb campaign argued that those who held that
position-people who, in general, wanted the Green Party to focus its
limited resources on local campaigns this year-should see a Cobb
nomination as their second preference, that a Nader endorsement would be a
worse alternative for those who wanted to build up Green Party strength
via local campaigns given David Cobb's first priority of using his
campaign to build the Green Party.
The convention readjourned about 2:30 to start the second round of
voting. It was reported that there were four options for delegates. One
option was David Cobb. Another was no nominee. The third was Kent Mesplay,
and the fourth was Joann Beeman. There were no other options because,
unlike the first round, the convention rules mandated that only no nominee
and candidates who signed a statement affirming that they would accept a
GP Presidential nomination would be eligible to receive votes after the
first round. Cobb, Mesplay and Beeman were the only candidates who signed
that statement.
It was obvious to everyone that the big question was whether or not
David Cobb and Pat LaMarche would be able to gain the additional 77
delegates needed to have 50% plus one. If they failed to do so, that would
give a major boost to the Nader/Camejo side and continue the voting into
future rounds.
The first three states, Alabama, Arizona and Arkansas, reported no
movement toward Cobb. But the fourth state, California, was a different
story. Cobb gained 22 votes as compared to the first round, going from 13
to 35. The pro-Cobb delegates cheered.
As the reports continued, a clear trend began to emerge. Cobb was
holding his own in every state, gaining one, two or three up until Maine,
home state of Pat LaMarche, which thrilled the pro-Cobb delegates by going
from 7 in the first round to 18 in the second.
A few rounds later, Minnesota gave Cobb an additional 10 delegates as
compared to the first round, and as the reports continued the Cobb vote
kept gaining ground. By the time it got to Virginia, he was right there
with, unofficially, 77 additional votes. When Virginia gave him six more
votes that pretty much sealed it. All that was needed was for the same
trend to continue, for Cobb to lose no ground in the remaining four
states.
When Wisconsin went 33-1 for Cobb, a gain of eight votes, everyone knew
it was over. All that remained was for Texas, which had passed when they
were called earlier, to announce that 34 of their 35 votes were for Cobb.
Texas is where David Cobb was born, lived and did Green Party organizing
until a year or so ago.
For many the celebration began, genuine joy over a hard-fought victory.
Hugs and kisses and dancing in the aisles erupted until David burst onto
the stage and introduced Pat LaMarche for her first speech to the
assembled delegates. Following it, David came to the podium and spoke
graciously about Ralph Nader and Peter Camejo as he called for a strong
campaign by the Green Party, indicating his intention to go to Ohio,
Pennsylvania "and New York, if you want me," to help efforts in those
states to get Cobb/LaMarche on the ballot.
For others, the feelings certainly ranged from mixed to deep
disappointment. But as the session was adjourned by Matt Gonzalez, many of
us left the convention center feeling extremely proud not just about the
results but about the political maturity displayed by the convention as a
whole in the way we had just dealt with a hugely difficult, months-long,
often-painful issue.
Green and Growing
This was an amazing week, an emotional roller-coaster for those of us
immersed in it. For large numbers of the delegates, it was a strengthening
experience and not just because we successfully navigated the dangerous
shoals of decision-making regarding the big Presidential question. There
were the many dedicated activists we met from all over the country who we
know will keep building this important organization at the key, local,
grassroots level for months and years to come. There were the local Green
elected officials like Matt Gonzalez, Jason West, Joyce Chen and Brenda
Konkel and many others that we met and interacted with, as well as the
candidates running for office all over the country. There were the
valuable workshops and caucuses on a whole range of issues, the great
street party Friday evening, the general spirit of unity and common
purpose that pervaded the deliberations. The women's caucus, youth caucus
and black caucus all took steps forward. International visitors and
speakers reminded us that we are part of an international movement
worldwide and that we have major responsibilities to the world's
struggling peoples and threatened ecosystem.
The numbers show it: there is clear, persistent, quantitative growth on
the part of the Green Party of the United States, now with affiliates in
44 states, with 205 Greens in office and ballot-qualified in 22 states and
D.C. But just as important, Milwaukee '04 demonstrated that there is also
qualitative growth.
As David Cobb said in his inspiring speech Saturday night, the Green
Party is chock full of "ordinary people doing extraordinary things." In
this time of great danger but also great possibilities, this is no small
thing.
Ted Glick is the National Coordinator of the Independent Progressive
Politics Network (www.ippn.org), although these ideas are solely his own.
He was a Cobb delegate from New Jersey and worked actively as part of the
core Cobb campaign team.
