Kucinich Says Boost Health Care, Education; Bring That Message to South Dakota!

My friend Leo sends me this heartening article about my man Dennis Kucinich and the rousing welcome he received from union workers in Washington state. He says we need more investment in universal health care and education, not less.

And when people ask him how we'd pay for such investments, he replies thus:

They never ask that question when it comes to war. They never ask that question when it comes to bailing out Wall Street. They never ask that question when it came to the Bush tax cuts - a trillion dollars to the top, most of it to the top 1 percent. They never ask that question. They only ask it when it comes to meeting the social economic needs of our community [Rep. Dennis Kucinich, quoted in Jim Brunner, "Kucinich Gets Hero's Welcome at Union Confab," Seattle Times, 2011.08.04].

Kucinich is considering moving from his redrawn Ohio district to another state to seek re-election to Congress. I've wondered why Dennis doesn't come check out South Dakota for his 2012 prospects. My friend Leo says Dennis is concentrating on places where he could actually win an election.

But hope springs eternal. Maybe a vegan union man with a sophisticated British wife and anti-war cred would be the perfect man to electrify the South Dakota liberal base (there's more than four of us!). Maybe he could challenge minarchist strangling of South Dakota's education system. Maybe he could lead the populist charge to convince farmers and labor that the Tea they're tempted to drink is really Coke—i.e., Koch— and that the Dems serve the working man's interests much better than the GOP.

Maybe Dennis couldn't win in South Dakota. But I can tell you this much: if he did come to visit, he wouldn't charge you $500 to have pancakes with him. (Note this May pancake breakfast: $25 suggested donation, event still open to all.)