Good to know that there are still optimists to be found in the treacherous field of American politics, and that Dennis Kucinich still counts among them. Though his experience as mayor of Cleveland gave him plenty of opportunities to become cynical and crooked—risks that only intensified later as he became a member of U.S. Congress and a presidential and gubernatorial candidate—to this day, Kucinich still relies on his belief in a more powerful force that can beat even the corruption on Capitol Hill.
That would be the human heart, as Kucinich tells Lee Camp in this recent clip from Camp’s RT show, “Redacted Tonight.” In combination with what he calls the kind of “implausible confidence that believes I can beat a rigged game,” Kucinich’s enduring philanthropic conviction still drives him more than 50 years since he entered local politics in his mobbed-up Ohio hometown. “We must be careful not to capitulate to a pessimistic and cynical view of the world,” Kucinich says.
This kind of talk would come off as the stuff of wishful thinking, better suited for the milquetoast rhetoric of the life-coaching industry, if Kucinich hadn’t encountered the series of reality checks he did in his various roles, starting with his time as upstart mayor of the “bombing capitol of America,” as he recalls in conversation with Camp. Turns out his time battling corporate takeover attempts in the smaller (yet undoubtedly feisty) Cleveland arena would serve him well on Capitol Hill and on the campaign trail.
Tune into the above clip to hear more about Kucinich’s battles and (anti-) war stories, as well as what he thinks of President Biden’s performance so far, from his “Redacted Tonight” interview.
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