Ralph Nader wants another shot at the Presidency. Members of the Green Party in Denver say "no."

Democratic contender Wesley Clark said today that he supports a trial in Iraq and the death penalty for Saddam Hussein.

The retired general said in prepared remarks in Concord he would urge that an Iraq tribunal make execution a possibility for the deposed Iraqi dictator.

‘‘I believe that the death penalty should be applied to war criminals, those who've used chemical weapons, and those responsible for genocide," he said. ‘‘And as I believe the proceedings will show, Saddam is responsible for every single one of these heinous crimes and deserves the ultimate punishment."

In other Wesley Clark news, he received the endorsement of Madonna today.

[comments now closed.]

A new CBS News poll has Howard Dean pulling away from the pack. That's not surprising. What is unusual is that the poll has Al Sharpton ahead of John Kerry and John Edwards. With 28% undecided, we'd say it's still an open call.

Howard Dean
23%
Wesley Clark
10%
Joe Lieberman
10%
Richard Gephardt
6%
Al Sharpton
5%
John Kerry
4%
John Edwards
2%
Carol Moseley-Braun
1%
Dennis Kucinich
1%
Don't Know
28%

We wonder if Lieberman got his bounce from Gore's endorsement of Dean or his neanderthal comments about Saddam. Either way, we don't expect it to last.

Juan R. Cole, a Middle East expert and professor of history at the University of Michigan, who has an excellent weblog, says:

The commentators on cable news shows on Sunday seemed to think that Saddam's capture guarantees Bush's reelection in November of 2004. Well, incumbents have great advantages, and most often do get reelected. But Saddam won't do it for Bush. In a way, the capture came too early for those purposes. It will be a very dim memory in October, 2004.

The Sunni Arab insurgency will continue at least for a while (see below), and the possibility that the Shiites will make more and more trouble cannot be ruled out. The US military is stuck in the country for the foreseeable future at something approaching current troop levels. The move to give civil authority to a transitional Iraqi government may not go smoothly. The administration will have to ask Congress for another big appropriation for Iraq sometime before the '04 election, and that won't help Bush's popularity. The Iraqi economy is still a basket case, the oil pipelines are still being sabotaged or looted, and a whole host of everyday problems remain that having Saddam in custody will not resolve. If Iraq is still going this badly in October of 2004, it would be a real drag on the Bush campaign. Yes, I said "this badly." One arrest doesn't turn it around, except in the fantasy world of political theater in which pundits seem to live.

Open Letter to John Kerry

Dear Senator Kerry,

We write this open letter as a group of bloggers whose audience you respect enough that you advertise on our web sites.

We are deeply disturbed that former staff members of your campaign and other Dean rivals now working at the so-called “Americans for Jobs, Health Care and Progressive Values” have resorted to the Willie Horton campaign tactic of linking Howard Dean to Osama Bin Laden. Vigorous competition among Democrats is expected and welcome, but all Democratic leaders should denounce these kinds of tactics.

Given your staff link to this attack through your former press secretary, Robert Gibbs—the new group’s spokesman— we feel it is incumbent on you and your campaign to make it clear that this kind of attack is unacceptable. Otherwise, there will be the appearance of covert cooperation by your campaign in supporting this effort.

If your campaign does not make clear that you have no link to this scurrilous attack, all of us will have to reevaluate our willingness to allow advertising by your campaign on our web sites.

We don’t expect to have to make that decision, since we have faith in your integrity and expect you to quickly make clear your denunciation of this destructive and anti-democratic operation.

Yours,

Atrios- Eschaton
Jeralyn Merritt- Talk Left
Nathan Newman- NathanNewman.org
Oliver Willis- Oliver Willis
Jesse Taylor and Ezra Klein- Pandagon

Update: Kerry and Gephardt deny they have anything to do with the ad.

Tell Ralph Nader not to run and why....you can do it here on his own website. [link via Oliver Willis]

Why is it when politicians try to appeal to centrist voters, they always resort to the "get tough on crime" game? Howard Dean has decided to jump on the anti-terrorism bandwagon. He sounds like you-know-who:

As president, Howard Dean says, he would mold a global alliance that would hunt down and do away with "sleeper cells" of terrorists capable of wreaking widespread damage with weapons of mass destruction

Dean will suggest several collaborative anti-terror ventures involving the United States and its various allies....He also will propose increased intelligence sharing and joint anti-terror military operations.

Dean, in an interview carried on The Washington Post's Web site Saturday, suggested that on some issues, the difference between President Bush and himself was more of tone and temperament.

We expected this from Lieberman, but not from Dean. Is he going to support Patriot Act II also? It's beginning to sound like it.

The good news is that support for Bush continues to decline. A brand new Newsweek poll has Bush at his lowest numbers ever since they began conducting polls:

...neither good news on the economy, the passage of a Medicare bill nor his surprise Thanksgiving visit to Baghdad seem to have boosted President George W. Bush’s approval ratings among all registered voters: with 51 percent approving and 42 disapproving, his ratings are the lowest in the NEWSWEEK poll’s history. And less than half (45 percent) of voters say they want Bush to be reelected.

34% say Dean can't beat Bush, and Bush would still win over any Democrat:

the president retains a 49 to 42 percent lead among all registered voters in a two-way race

Gore's endorsement helped Dean, no question, but it may not be enough:

Dean’s virulent opposition to the war is not necessarily appealing to voters, more of whom say Dean does not represent their views on Iraq (34 percent) than say he does (26 percent). Just 22 percent of them say Dean’s views on Iraq resonate with them. The man most Democrats (27 percent) consider best suited for the role of leader in Iraq is Clark; only 16 percent consider Dean the most qualified Democrat for that role and even fewer (12 percent) Lieberman.

Bob Herbert has the right prescription for a 2004 Democrat win and ouster of Bush in this column from today's New York Times.

Any Democrat will be a long shot next year. Without an infusion of new voters (young people, white working families, Hispanics and women) and another huge turnout by African-Americans, the Democrats are doomed.

The strongest ticket might be Dean-Clark. But the Democrats need more than a candidate or two. The party needs a plan. It needs a coherent, compelling, convincing narrative that shows how voters and the nation would be better off under Dr. Dean or General Clark or Dick Gephardt — take your pick — than they are now.

To regain control of the White House, the Democrats need to give voters, who are frightened by terrorism and disoriented by the pace of 21st-century events, new reasons to hope. That can only be done by a thoughtful, united, energized and creative party. A party with a plan and a ferocious will to win.

[link via Atrios.]

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) announced today that she and Rep. Rush Holt, (D-NJ) will introduce a bill to require that a receipt for electronic voting be provided at the ballot box. They will try to get the bill passed by the November, 2004 elections.

Boxer's bill would provide emergency funding for counties across the country to accommodate printers, expected to cost at least $500 per machine.

...Voting rights advocates and computer scientists have argued that paperless voting machines such as touchscreen terminals expose elections to hackers, software bugs and mechanical failures. But voting equipment companies and county registrars say requiring paper records would dramatically increase the cost and complexity of voting.

Some voting companies expressed doubt they could comply in time for the November elections. They need to try harder. Work overtime. Whatever it takes.

Daily Kos reports on the newest Iowa poll, taken after Al Gore officially endorsed Howard Dean:

Dec. 8 - 10 numbers (November results are in parentheses):

Dean 42 (32)
Gephardt 23 (22)
Kerry 19 (15)
Edwards 10 (11)
Other 7 (10)
Undecided 4 (6)

Gina Marie Santore beat out 80 contestants to win a date with Presidential hopeful Dennis Kucinich. The contest was sponsored by Politics NH with Kucinich's approval. Details of the date:

The two met Thursday morning in the lobby of a downtown hotel and later discussed health care, medical malpractice and prescription drugs over oatmeal at a restaurant.

[Santore] said she works as a confidential aide to the Camden County sheriff in southern New Jersey and lives with her boyfriend. Kucinich attracted her attention, she said, because she found his views "intoxicating."

Lives with her boyfriend? A breakfast date? Sounds like either the contest sponsors or Kucinich wanted to make sure the date didn't go anywhere.