Home > Programs
> Democracy
Now! > Tue., July 27, 2004
Democracy Now!
ATTN: ALL STATIONS
From: Democracy Now!
Re: Rundown 7-27-04
PRSS Channel: A67.7
2004 DNC Opens in Boston: Democracy Now! Speaks with Legislators
and Delegates Inside the Convention
Boston City Councilman and Fund the Dream Founder Chuck Turner
on the DNC, Security and Democracy
Cornel West on Bush vs. Kerry, Nader's Bid and the "Niggerization"
of America
Bill and Hillary Clinton Headline Opening Night of DNC
Democracy Now! Interviews Right-Wing Journalists Bill Kristol
and John McLaughlin at the DNC
Party On in Boston: How Corporations Spend Thousands to Wine
and Dine Legislators
Dolores Huerta and John Kerry's Sister, Peggy, Discuss Support
for Women for Kerry
Exclusive: Parents Mourn Son's Suicide After Returning From
Fighting in Iraq
2004 DNC Opens in Boston: Democracy Now! Speaks with
Legislators and Delegates Inside the Convention
Democracy Now! goes inside the FleetCenter to speak with
legislators and delegates at the opening session of the 2004
Democratic National Convention. We hear speeches by former
president Jimmy Carter and former vice president Al Gore and
we speak with Rep. Jerrold Nadler(D-NY), Rep. Jim Moran (D-VA),
Sen. Bob Graham (D-FL) as well as delegate for Rep. Dennis
Kucinich (D-OH). And we go from the halls of the convention
to the streets of Boston to speak with demonstrators staging
a "die-in" to protest the Israeli occupation of
Palestine.
This is Democracy Now! Breaking With Convention: War, Peace
and the Presidency. We are broadcasting from Cambridge Community
Television in downtown Cambridge, just across the river from
the Fleet Center where the Democratic National Convention
kicked off yesterday with a series of major addresses by some
of the heaviest hitters in the Democratic Party.
- Fmr. President Jimmy Carter
- Fmr. Vice President Al Gore
While Gore spoke out against voting for 3rd party candidates,
some delegates on the floor of the convention complained that
the speeches coming from the podium did not reflect a clear
enough distinction between the policies of President Bush
and the platform of John Kerry, particularly on the issue
of the occupation of Iraq and civil liberties. The events
last night were highly scripted and everyone in attendance
was expected to remain on message. And as Gore and other high
profile Democrats spoke, some delegates charge that their
rights to free expression were being denied last night. Delegates
for former presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich alleged
that they had some of their signs and placards confiscated,
as well as scarves they wore that identified them as peace
delegates. On the floor of the convention, as the speeches
wrapped up last night we caught up with 2 Kucinich delegates
from Minneapolis: Donna Cassutt and Charles Underwood.
- Charles Underwood, Kucinich delegate from Minn.
The halls of the FleetCenter yesterday were full of Senators
and Representatives. One of those we spoke with was New York
Congressmember Jerrold Nadler.
- Rep. Jerrold Nadler(D-NY)
Nadler's view on what some call Israel's apartheid wall is
certainly not shared by all of his colleagues from the Democratic
party. People like Virginia Representative Jim Moran. In 2003,
on the eve of the Iraq invasion, he was attacked by a number
of right-wing pro-Israel groups like AIPAC, the American Israel
Public Affairs Committee after he said "if it were not
for the strong support of the Jewish community for this war
with Iraq, we would not be doing this." Last night, I
caught up with Congressman Jim Moran.
Outside the center, beyond rows of riot police and US Army
MPs, and behind concrete barriers covered in razor wire, Palestine
was on the minds of demonstrators. In the so-called "free
speech zone" outside the convention center, dozens held
a "die-in", draped in Israeli and Palestinian flags,
representing the mounting death toll since the start of the
Intifada in 2000.
- Protesters speaking to Democracy Now!
This week in Boston there has been a lot of discussion about
the 2000 elections and the possibility of a repeat of what
happened in Florida. Sen. Bob Graham, who himself ran for
the democratic nomination against John Kerry, comes from Florida.
We talked to him about the prospects for a fair election for
November.
Boston City Councilman and Fund the Dream Founder
Chuck Turner on the DNC, Security and Democracy
We speak with longtime Boston city council member and founder
of the Fund the Dream Campaign, Chuck Turner about what effect
the Democratic National Convention is having on the city.
This is Democracy Now! Breaking with Convention: War, Peace
and the Presidency broadcasting from the National Democratic
Convention in Boston.
The Democratic National Committee is running up an estimated
$95 million tab for the 2004 presidential nominating convention
in Boston. The city itself has pledged $10 million for security
costs.
Thousands of people have descended on Boston for the convention:
there are more than 4,300 delegates, as well as protesters
and antiwar groups, and some 15,000 journalists. Security
in the city has been ramped up with local police, state troopers,
National Guard, Secret Service, FBI and Homeland Security.
In addition, some 40 miles of roads have been closed for the
convention.
All of these are concerns for the city officials, and we
are joined by one today - Chuck Turner is a member of the
Boston City Council and founder of the Fund the Dream campaign.
Over the course of almost four decades, Turner has established
himself as one of the city's best-known dissenters. In the
early '70s, he helped stave off construction of a stretch
of Interstate-95 that was slated to run through low-income
areas of the city, at one point lying across Columbus Avenue
to prevent construction.
From the end of the '70s through the early '90s, Chuck Turner
pressed Boston mayors for increased hiring of minorities and
blacks on city construction projects. In 1991, Turner led
a dozen protesters who occupied the mayor's office for four
hours and forced him to make key concessions. More recently,
he's railed against educational inequity in the city, the
onset of gentrification, and the wars in Iraq.
This month, Turner was a member of a coalition that sued
the city to allow protesters to march to the FleetCenter the
day before the Convention.
He has been a member of the Boston City Council for five
years and is the only Fund the Dream member on the council
.
- Chuck Turner, member of the Boston City Council and founder
of the Fund the Dream campaign.
Cornel West on Bush vs. Kerry, Nader's Bid and the
"Niggerization" of America
We hear a speech by professor, culture critic, and social
justice advocate Cornel West speaking in Boston. Cornel West
has been described as one of America's most vital and eloquent
public intellectuals. A professor of religion and African-American
studies at Princeton University, West is a critic of culture,
an advocate of social justice and an analyst of post-modern
art and philosophy. He has written and co-authored numerous
books on philosophy, race and sociology and also produced
a hip-hop CD entitled Sketches of My Culture.
- Prof. Cornel West speaking on July 26, 2004.
Bill and Hillary Clinton Headline Opening Night of
DNC
We hear speeches by Sen. Hillary Clinton and former president
Bill Clinton closing out the opening session of the Democratic
National Convention. And we hear why Rep. Maxine Waters thinks
Bill should have introduced Hillary at the convention instead
of the other way around.
This is Democracy Now!: Breaking With Convention: War, Peace
and the Presidency, I'm Amy Goodman. We are broadcasting from
Cambridge Community Television in downtown Cambridge, just
across the river from the FleetCenter where the Democratic
National Convention kicked off yesterday with a series of
major addresses by some the highest profile members of the
Democratic Party. Filmmaker Michael Moore was there in a sky
box, as were actors John Cusack and Glenn Close, as well as
singer Patti LaBelle. Former President Jimmy Carter spoke,
as did former Vice President Al Gore. But the biggest response
of the evening came when the last two speakers took the podium.
New York Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton got on stage to introduce
her husband, former President Bill Clinton.
This is Democracy Now!: Breaking With Convention: War, Peace
and the Presidency, I'm Amy Goodman. We are broadcasting from
Cambridge Community Television in downtown Cambridge, just
across the river from the FleetCenter where the Democratic
National Convention kicked off yesterday with a series of
major addresses by some the highest profile members of the
Democratic Party. Filmmaker Michael Moore was there in a sky
box, as were actors John Cusack and Glenn Close, as well as
singer Patti LaBelle. Former President Jimmy Carter spoke,
as did former Vice President Al Gore. But the biggest response
of the evening came when the last two speakers took the podium.
New York Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton got on stage to introduce
her husband, former President Bill Clinton.
- Sen. Hillary Clinton, (D-NY)
Bill Clinton then took to the stage to urge voters to rally
behind John Kerry. We will hear an excerpt of his address
in a minute. But first we turn to California Congresswoman
Maxine Waters. She spoke about Hillary Clinton yesterday at
an event held at the Harvard Club by the National Organization
for Women and the Feminist Majority.
- Rep. Maxine Waters, (D-CA)
After being introduced by Sen. Hillary Clinton, former president
Bill Clinton took to the stage for the final speech of the
night.
- Former President Bill Clinton
As we've made our way around the Fleet Center, talking to
many delegates from across the country, one of the main issues
of concern among the antiwar delegates is that both John Kerry
and John Edwards supported the invasion of Iraq and the war
against Afghanistan. Some delegates say that that there hasn't
been a clear enough antiwar position articulated from the
podium at the convention. Sen. Bob Graham of Florida, who
ran against Kerry for the party's nomination, is one the few
who voted against the war.
Democracy Now! Interviews Right-Wing Journalists
Bill Kristol and John McLaughlin at the DNC
We speak with conservative television host John McLaughlin,
host of the McLaughlin Group and Bill Kristol, one of the
chief spokespeople for the neocon movement and editor of the
conservative publication The Weekly Standard. [includes rush
transcript]
There are some 15,000 journalists who are here in Boston
to cover the convention. This week we are going to be taking
a critical look at the media. One of the people that we ran
into yesterday was the conservative television host John McLaughlin,
Host of the McLaughlin Group. He has been very critical of
the Bush administration's invasion and occupation of Iraq.
- John McLaughlin, host of the The McLaughlin Group.
Shortly after we spoke to John McLaughlin, we saw one of
the chief spokespeople for the neocon movement, Bill Kristol,
editor of the conservative publication the Weekly Standard.
Interestingly a few weeks ago, Kristol told the New York Times
that he might end up as a neoliberal defined as 'neoconservatives
who had been mugged by reality in Iraq.' Though Kristol wouldn't
stop for an interview we managed to catch up with him as he
quickly left the FleetCenter.
- William Kristol, editor, Weekly Standard.
Party On in Boston: How Corporations Spend Thousands
to Wine and Dine Legislators
Multinational companies are throwing dozens of parties here
in Boston this week for Democratic delegates, members of Congress,
their staff and their wealthy supporters. We hear a report
from CorpWatch on how companies spend thousands of dollars
to entertain industry and political guests. [includes rush
transcript]
Dolores Huerta and John Kerry's Sister, Peggy, Discuss
Support for Women for Kerry
Labor organizing pioneer Dolores Huerta, who was recently
named Chair of, Women for Kerry, says that there is still
no budget for the group. And we speak with John Kerry’s
sister, Peggy, to get a response. [includes rush
transcript]
One of the features of the opening session of the Democratic
National Convention yesterday was a Salute to Women Senators.
Barara Mikulski of Maryland, Barbara Boxer of California and
Hillary Clinton of New York were among those who took the
stage.
Earlier in the day at the Harvard Club, the National Organization
for Women and the Feminist Majority held an event for Kerry.
Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farmworkers Union
was one of those who spoke.
- Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farm Workers
of America with Cesar Chavez.
Also at the event was John Kerry's sister, Peggy Kerry. I
had a chance to ask Peggy Kerry about Dolores Huerta's comment
that Women for Kerry did not have a budget.
- Peggy Kerry, sister of John Kerry.
Exclusive: Parents Mourn Son's Suicide After Returning
From Fighting in Iraq
We speak with the parents of Jeffrey Lucey who killed himself
shortly after returning home from military duty in Iraq after
suffering post traumatic stress syndrome. We also speak with
the co-founder of Military Families Speak Out and with a former
U.S. soldier who spent 10 months in Iraq and is now a member
of the newly formed group Iraq Veterans Against the War. [includes
rush
transcript]
At the opening of the convention on Monday night, several
of the men who served with John Kerry in Vietnam were at the
FleetCenter to support the Democratic candidate. Inside the
hall, there are a large number of vets and on Monday, the
convention witnessed the first ever Veterans caucus at a Democratic
convention. Meanwhile Vets for Peace held a major conference
this weekend here in Boston. A number of vets who participated
in the invasion and occupation of Iraq spoke out, alongside
vets from Vietnam and other wars.
On Democracy Now! we have consistently given the microphone
to former soldiers and their families, who are speaking out
against the occupation of Iraq. Today, we are going to do
that again.
- Kevin Lucey, son Jeffrey served in Iraq.
- Joyce Lucey, son, Jeffrey, served in Iraq
- Nancy Lessin, co-founder of Military Families Speak Out
- Kelly Dougherty, spent 10 months in Iraq with the 220th
Military Police Company and is a member of the newly formed
group Iraq Veterans Against the War.
For a copy of today’s program, call 1 (800) 881 2359.
Our website is www.democracynow.org.
Our email address is mail@democracynow.org.
Democracy Now! is produced by Mike Burke, Sharif Abdel Kouddous,
Ana Nogueira, Elizabeth Press, Jeremy Scahill and Parvez Sharma.
Mike Di Filippo is our engineer.
Thanks also to Uri Galed, Angela Alston, Orlando Richards,
Simba Russeau, Johnny Sender, Rich Kim, Joe Murgio, John Randolph,
Chris Zucker, Karen Ranucci, Denis Moynihan, Eric Rweyemamu,
Jenny Filipazzo and Isis Phillips.
|
Listen
to the show
Help
whole
show
