{"id":34509,"date":"2024-04-06T09:21:11","date_gmt":"2024-04-06T07:21:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/?p=34509"},"modified":"2024-04-06T09:25:45","modified_gmt":"2024-04-06T07:25:45","slug":"united-states-cornel-west-on-his-2024-presidential-bid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/?p=34509","title":{"rendered":"United States: Cornel West on His 2024 Presidential Bid"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION .<\/p>\n

Excerpts from video interview by C-Span<\/a> on April 2<\/p>\n

2024 Independent presidential candidate\u00a0Cornel West\u00a0talked about his candidacy, platform, and views on U.S. politics today.
\n
\nPedro Echevarria<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you had to boil down your candidacy to a few sentences what would you tell people?<\/p>\n

Cornel West<\/strong><\/p>\n

It would be\u00a0based on the legacy of Martin\u00a0Luther King Jr\u00a0and Fannie Lou\u00a0Hamer, which is trying to get beyond all the lies, all the revenge. I try to talk\u00a0about truth, justice\u00a0and love\u00a0in a\u00a0context where it seems it is very, very difficult to\u00a0have\u00a0any moment\u00a0of\u00a0substantive morality, where politics has become legalized\u00a0corruption and\u00a0normalized bribery,\u00a0where they will say anything\u00a0to stay\u00a0in\u00a0office and\u00a0where there is no genuine\u00a0concern\u00a0for people, let\u00a0alone poor people,\u00a0working\u00a0people, people\u00a0who have been\u00a0subjugated\u00a0and degraded.\u00a0 This is not just empty moral rhetoric. If we give up\u00a0on\u00a0serious\u00a0commitment to public life\u00a0and\u00a0citizens being\u00a0human\u00a0beings, as opposed to being objects to be manipulated. then the country is over, the American project as\u00a0we have understood\u00a0it will\u00a0be over. I want to raise\u00a0my voice to\u00a0mobilize people and\u00a0get people\u00a0to\u00a0see that Trump is\u00a0leading us\u00a0toward second\u00a0civil\u00a0war and\u00a0Biden is leading\u00a0us to a third world war. We’ve got to do better than those two as an option at this particular moment of history.<\/p>\n

\"\"Video of interview<\/a><\/center><\/p>\n

Pedro Echevarria<\/strong><\/p>\n

Do you have a political background? And what do you think about electing someone to office without a political background? <\/p>\n

Cornel West<\/strong><\/p>\n

Well, I think what we need, Brother, is we\u00a0need\u00a0new\u00a0persons, new characters and new visions injected into our system. \u00a0My political background is that I have been fighting\u00a0for poor\u00a0and working people for 55 years. I’ve worked with a\u00a0number of different candidates.\u00a0Sometimes\u00a0they\u00a0were\u00a0within the Democratic\u00a0party, sometimes they have been outside. More and more they have been outside, because the\u00a0Democratic party, itself, has succumbed to capture by Wall Street and the Pentagon, by the war profiteers, on the one hand, and the money-makers, on\u00a0the\u00a0other. The\u00a0Republican party has given up for a long time, captured\u00a0by big money.\u00a0 It’s true that people look at me and\u00a0say, “Well, you have\u00a0never been an elected official.” That’s exactly right.\u00a0I have been\u00a0an active citizen\u00a0trying to ensure that\u00a0truth and\u00a0justice can procure\u00a0a place in\u00a0American\u00a0politics and that\u00a0is very much what i\u00a0would do as president.\u00a0i would\u00a0set a completely\u00a0different\u00a0tone,\u00a0a\u00a0completely different vibe coming\u00a0from the White House.\u00a0And that would be “working people\u00a0you are at the\u00a0center of public policy.\u00a0not\u00a0Wall Street, not looking at the stock\u00a0market\u00a0but rather Main Street and looking at access\u00a0to\u00a0health care, access to quality education,\u00a0access to safe\u00a0communities, access\u00a0to housing as\u00a0a\u00a0human\u00a0right just like\u00a0health care is a human\u00a0right.\u00a0we have\u00a0to push back\u00a0these predators\u00a0that have\u00a0been pushing out so many\u00a0poor and working people when it comes to housing a whole host of other rights.<\/p>\n

Pedro Echevarria<\/strong><\/p>\n

On your website one of the\u00a0things\u00a0you advocate for is a\u00a0wealth\u00a0tax on all billionaire holdings and transactions, a $27\u00a0minimum\u00a0wage and establish a federal universal basic income commission.\u00a0 As far as the\u00a0wealth\u00a0tax is concerned, I know that President\u00a0Biden\u00a0has called for increased taxes on the wealthy, but\u00a0what\u00a0is\u00a0your definition\u00a0of a wealth tax? How would that work? <\/p>\n

(Article continued in the column on the right)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Questions related to this article:<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n

\n

Where in the world can we find good leadership today?<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

How should elections be organized in a true democracy?<\/a> <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

(Article continued from the column on the left)<\/p>\n

Cornel West<\/strong><\/p>\n

Well, a wealth tax, really, is something that is very difficult\u00a0to enforce.\u00a0as much as i\u00a0would put it on\u00a0paper,\u00a0we know that\u00a0the\u00a0wealthy are so clever\u00a0with\u00a0their lawyers and create loopholes.\u00a0I am much more\u00a0concerned about disinvesting from the military. 62 cents for every one dollar in the discretionary budget in Washington goes to the military. \u00a0We\u00a0have 800 military units\u00a0around the world and special\u00a0operations in 130\u00a0countries.\u00a0We have to cut\u00a0back massively on military spending and put it directly\u00a0into\u00a0universal\u00a0basic\u00a0income.\u00a0 Alaska was the first state to endorse me and the Aurora Party, in part because we agreed\u00a0there\u00a0should\u00a0be a\u00a0basic\u00a0universal\u00a0income, a social net below which people cannot fall. It’s so much easier to\u00a0disinvest from the military and reinvest\u00a0directly into satisfying\u00a0basic\u00a0social\u00a0needs\u00a0than to follow through on a wealth tax, because we can have\u00a0some of the\u00a0most marvelous\u00a0wealth taxes on\u00a0paper and you can’t\u00a0execute it\u00a0because these\u00a0loopholes are\u00a0still\u00a0there and the lawyers are hired, and\u00a0there’s tax\u00a0evasion\u00a0in the Cayman Islands. \u00a0You know the story, how difficult it is to follow through. Yes, I do support that on paper, but in terms of actually gaining\u00a0resources for poor and working\u00a0people we need to support\u00a0a strong\u00a0minimum wage and\u00a0strong\u00a0wing\u00a0of the trade union movement as\u00a0well as the fight for benefits\u00a0and\u00a0contribute\u00a0to a robust\u00a0public life in the country,\u00a0we have\u00a0to\u00a0engage\u00a0in\u00a0a significant disinvestment of the military into satisfying basic social needs of our citizens.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I go\u00a0to schools\u00a0all the\u00a0time and\u00a0I see more policemen\u00a0in\u00a0elementary schools\u00a0than nurses and counselors.\u00a0 Can\u00a0you imagine if that was the\u00a0case when we went to school? Good God Almighty, these are precious students, in the hood, in the barrios, the reservations,\u00a0poor whites. \u00a0What kind of\u00a0future are we talking\u00a0about with\u00a0that\u00a0militarized\u00a0context? I was just at Atlanta, where we see the militarization, not just\u00a0of the\u00a0police, but any security\u00a0officer. Why?\u00a0Because as\u00a0the society\u00a0begins to decay we appeal to\u00a0the military and we end up with more\u00a0and more\u00a0mass\u00a0shootings and militaristic\u00a0ways of dealing\u00a0with\u00a0conflict. That is the sign\u00a0of a\u00a0country going under.\u00a0 We’ve got to\u00a0fight\u00a0back as\u00a0countervailing\u00a0forces against\u00a0organized\u00a0greed and\u00a0institutionalized\u00a0hatred\u00a0and routinized indifference to the most\u00a0vulnerable.\u00a0The 25th chapter of\u00a0Matthew is a fundamental lens of which to view the world. What you\u00a0do to prisoners, poor,\u00a0the elderfly, the children,\u00a0the widow, the orphan, the fatherless, the motherless.\u00a0that is the criteria. . . .<\/p>\n

Pedro Echevarria<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dr.\u00a0West, I want to address a couple of things on your platform, making news even as we are talking today: one step to codify\u00a0abortion\u00a0rights as a constitutional mandate and to nationalize\u00a0the health\u00a0care industry, including the pharmaceutical industry. \u00a0Why\u00a0do you think that\u00a0is necessary?<\/p>\n

Cornel West<\/strong><\/p>\n

We have\u00a0to have a\u00a0fundamental\u00a0commitment to women having control\u00a0over their bodies.\u00a0We know that if there were a debate and a\u00a0conversation\u00a0over\u00a0abortion in men and men were the only ones\u00a0who gave\u00a0birth there would be a very\u00a0different conversation.\u00a0Let’s\u00a0be honest about the patriarchal context of the discussion\u00a0over abortion.\u00a0Abortion is in many ways a difficult and delicate\u00a0issue but we have to have\u00a0a\u00a0sensitivity to\u00a0the woman and the\u00a0child.\u00a0I am firmly\u00a0committed to women having control\u00a0over the\u00a0reproductive\u00a0rights, and I\u00a0am firmly\u00a0committed to taking\u00a0the greed out\u00a0of our health system.\u00a0I\u00a0don’t know\u00a0why we can’t\u00a0have the same kind of health care\u00a0system\u00a0that the\u00a0congress\u00a0has, that the military\u00a0has. They call\u00a0that single payer because those\u00a0are\u00a0the offices tied to national\u00a0security.\u00a0i believe that health care\u00a0like\u00a0poverty and the human right\u00a0to\u00a0housing those are\u00a0issues of\u00a0national security too.\u00a0 The\u00a0pharmaceutical\u00a0companies\u00a0and medical\u00a0systems have been\u00a0obsessed with profits\u00a0and makes it\u00a0difficult to satisfy the fundamental basic needs\u00a0of the most\u00a0vulnerable,\u00a0and that is why i am\u00a0committed\u00a0to ensuring that every\u00a0citizen\u00a0has access to quality\u00a0health\u00a0care, quality education, safe\u00a0neighborhoods with\u00a0communities having oversight\u00a0over\u00a0the\u00a0police . . .<\/p>\n

Pedro Echevarria <\/strong><\/p>\n

How much ballot access do you have?<\/p>\n

Cornel West<\/strong><\/p>\n

We\u00a0began\u00a0with Alaska with the Aurora Party, and then we moved\u00a0to\u00a0the United\u00a0Citizens Party in\u00a0South\u00a0Carolina. Very interesting because that was the party that\u00a0brother\u00a0Cliburn helped\u00a0to found\u00a0in the 60’s and\u00a070’s.\u00a0I always\u00a0applaud\u00a0his early years, and that is the party that endosed me. I’m on\u00a0the ballot in Utah.\u00a0on the ballot in Oregon\u00a0with\u00a0the Progressive\u00a0Party. We are on the move.\u00a0We have\u00a0low hanging fruits\u00a0in terms\u00a0of states where we’re able to get on the ballot once I make the announcement of a Vice-President candidate and they open up their particular dates to get on the ballot. \u00a0We are very\u00a0much on\u00a0the move\u00a0and trying to make\u00a0sure\u00a0that truth,\u00a0justice and love has a place\u00a0in\u00a0a\u00a0moment of overwhelming barbarity.<\/p>\n

– – – – – –<\/p>\n

If you wish to make a comment on this article, you may write to coordinator@cpnn-world.org with the title “Comment on (name of article)” and we will put your comment on line. Because of the flood of spam, we have discontinued the direct application of comments.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION . Excerpts from video interview by C-Span on April 2 2024 Independent presidential candidate\u00a0Cornel West\u00a0talked about his candidacy, platform, and views on U.S. politics today. Pedro Echevarria If you had to boil down your candidacy to a few sentences what would you tell people? Cornel West It would be\u00a0based on the … Continue reading United States: Cornel West on His 2024 Presidential Bid<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19,15,91],"tags":[5],"class_list":["post-34509","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-democracy","category-information","category-north-america","tag-north-america"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34509","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=34509"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34509\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=34509"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=34509"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=34509"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}