As President Bush pushes for a $550 billion tax cut, 2000 Green Party presidential candidate Ralph Nader discusses his view of the economy.

A week ago President Bush decked out in a flight suit, landed on an aircraft carrier to declare the war in Iraq over. As a sign he is afraid to follow his father’s footsteps, this week his focus is no longer war but the economy.

A decade ago President George H.W. Bush lost the 1992 election despite being victorious in the first Gulf War. The lagging economy was the often cited reason.

Now his son is attempting to portray the economy as his top concern. Last week he met with the chief executives of the big three automakers — General Motors, Ford Motor Co. and the Chrysler group. They all endorsed his $550 billion tax cut.

Well today we’re going to hear from the man who began his career as an activist promoting auto safety, Ralph Nader.

For more than 35 years, Nader has been an advocate and activist around issues related to health, safety, economics, environmental pollution, workers rights and corporate influence. He has been an outspoken critic of the Bush Administration’s economic policies and spending priorities — the tax cut for the wealthy and the massive build up in military spending.

Nader founded the Public Interest Research Group and the Women’s Policy Studies among other groups He was the Green Party presidential candidate in 2000.

• President George W. Bush, recorded May 5, 2003.
• Ralph Nader, 2000 presidential candidate for Green Party, speaking in New York at the American Spirit, Values & Power: Resisting “Empire,” Affirming Our Vision. The conference took place at the CUNY Graduate Center in New York.