Saturday in New Hampshire

ABC had back-to back presidential debates yesterday, where they had close to all the Republican candidates, but then only 4 Democratic ones. It's understandable that they didn't have Chris Dodd or Joe Biden since they dropped out of the race after the Iowa caucuses, but Dennis Kucinich hasn't dropped out and they didn't invite him anyway. Whether he is a viable candidate or not, since he is an official candidate he should have been in that debate, especially since Bill Richardson was invited to it and Kucinich is at least as viable a candidate as him if not more.
Maybe it's a bit conspiracy theory-ish but the fact that Kucinich is an independent voice that doesn't play along with the corporate politics as usual seems to be a factor in it. He is outspoken about a single-payer not for profit health care system, which is different from universal health care that still includes for-profit insurance companies, even mandating coverage through them possibly enforced by fines.
It's certain that ABC and it's parent company Disney doesn't like his ideas for media reform with more public control of the broadcast spectrum. His bringing attention to the corporate owned nature of public resources and his related specific ideas and proposals, as opposed to non-specific lip service, doesn't sit well with the multinational corporations that have control of what we see and hear on the broadcast airwaves and publications.

On a positive note, John Edwards again talked about the world-wide elimination of nuclear weapons, including ours, something no other 'major' candidate has mentioned. Non-proliferation is well and good, but just not quite the same.

Elsewhere in New Hampshire yesterday, Bill O'Reilly is making news for getting in a scuffle with one of Obama's staff. Along with Guliani and McCain, he is making the hilarious trifecta of Republican self-caricatures.


Watch Kucinich on Bill Moyers