Dennis Kucinich | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2010 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromOhio's10th district | |
| In office January 3, 1997 – January 3, 2013 | |
| Preceded by | Martin Hoke |
| Succeeded by | Marcy Kaptur (redistricted) |
| Member of theOhio Senate from the23rd district | |
| In office January 3, 1995 – January 2, 1997 | |
| Preceded by | Anthony Sinagra |
| Succeeded by | Patrick Sweeney |
| 53rdMayor of Cleveland | |
| In office November 14, 1977 – November 6, 1979 | |
| Preceded by | Ralph Perk |
| Succeeded by | George Voinovich |
| Member of theCleveland City Council from Ward 12 | |
| In office August 9, 1983 – December 31, 1985 | |
| In office January 1, 1970 – December 31, 1973 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Dennis John Kucinich (1946-10-08)October 8, 1946 (age 79) |
| Political party | Democratic (before 2024) Independent (2024–present) |
| Spouse(s) | Helen Kucinich (divorced) |
| Children | Jackie |
| Education | Cleveland State University Case Western Reserve University (BA,MA) |
| Website | Official website |
Dennis John Kucinich (/kuːˈsɪnɪtʃ/koo-SIN-itch; October 8, 1946) is an American politician. Originally aDemocrat, Kucinich served asU.S. Representative fromOhio's10th congressional district from 1997 to 2013. From 1977 to 1979, he served a term asmayor ofCleveland, where henarrowly survived a recall election and successfully fought an effort to sell the municipalelectric utility before losing his reelection contest toGeorge Voinovich.
Considered one of the most politicallyliberal members of Congress during his tenure, Kucinich unsuccessfully ran for president in the2004 and2008 Democratic primaries. Duringhis 2004 presidential campaign, he ran as a staunch opponent of theIraq War, garnering him support among some anti-war activists.[1] Despite not winning a singleprimary contest, Kucinich was the last opponent of eventual nomineeJohn Kerry to drop out.[2]
As a2008 presidential candidate, Kucinich ran in support ofsingle-payer health care, the impeachment of then-Vice PresidentDick Cheney, and the establishment of a "Department of Peace".[3] He dropped out early during the2008 primary contest after faring poorly in early states.[4] During his final two terms in Congress, Kucinich at times criticized then-PresidentBarack Obama, and argued in favor ofObama's impeachment following the2011 military intervention in Libya.[5]
As a result of redistricting following the2010 census, redrawn congressional boundaries forced Kucinich to face RepresentativeMarcy Kaptur in the newly-drawn9th district. Kaptur defeated Kucinich in the Democratic primary, and Kucinich left office in 2013.[6] In January 2013, he became a contributor on theFox News Channel appearing on programs such asThe O'Reilly Factor. He ran forgovernor of Ohio inthe 2018 election, losing in the primary toRichard Cordray. Kucinich was also an unsuccessful primary candidate in the2021 Cleveland mayoral election.[7] He ran forOhio's 7th congressional district as anindependent in2024 and finished third, garnering 12% of the vote.[8]
Kucinich was born inCleveland's West SideTremontneighborhood, the oldest of the seven children of Virginia (née Norris) and Frank J. Kucinich.[9][10] His father, who was ofCroat ancestry,[11] worked as atruck driver and was a member of theTeamsters for 35 years;[12] his Irish American mother was ahomemaker.[11] Growing up, his family moved 21 times and Dennis was often charged with the responsibility of finding apartments they could afford.[13]
Kucinich graduated from St. John Cantius High School in 1965.[14] He attendedCleveland State University from 1967 to 1970.[15] In 1973, he graduated fromCase Western Reserve University with both aBachelor and a Master of Arts degree in speech and communication.[16]
Kucinich's political career began in 1967 when he ran unsuccessfully for office. In 1969, he was elected to theCleveland City Council at the age of 23.[11][17] In 1972, Kucinich ran for the U.S. House of Representatives, losing narrowly to incumbentRepublicanWilliam E. Minshall Jr. After Minshall's retirement in 1974, Kucinich sought the seat again, this time failing to get the Democratic nomination, which went toRonald M. Mottl. Kucinich ran as anIndependent candidate in the general election, placing third with about 30% of the vote. In 1975, Kucinich became clerk of the municipal court in Cleveland and served in that position for two years.[18]
.jpg)
Kucinich was elected mayor of Clevelandin 1977 and served in that position until 1979.[19] At age 31, he was the youngest mayor of a major city in the United States,[11] earning him the nickname "the boy mayor of Cleveland".[20] Kucinich's tenure as mayor is often regarded as one of the most tumultuous in Cleveland's history.[20][21]
After Kucinich refused to sellMunicipal Light (now Cleveland Public Power), Cleveland'spublicly owned electric utility, theCleveland mafia sought to murder him in acontract killing. Ahit man fromMaryland planned to shoot him in the head during theColumbus DayParade, but the plot fell apart when Kucinich was hospitalized with a bleeding ulcer and missed the event.[22] When the city fell into default shortly thereafter, the Mafia leaders called off the contract killer.[23]
In 1984, John F. Sopko, then assistant counsel to the Minority Subcommittee staff, testified to the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, "Intelligence information gleaned by the Maryland State Police and Cleveland Police Department confirmed that the murder contract was, in general terms, due to the fact that Kucinich had caused considerable problems for local dishonest businessmen, politicians and criminals." Sopko said, "It was alleged that Kucinich had been impeding organized criminal activities and its ability to make money in the city. As a result, someone decided to do away with the mayor."[24]
TheCleveland Trust Company suddenly required all the city's debts be paid in full, forcing the city into default, after news of Kucinich's refusal to sell the city utility. For years, these debts were routinely rolled over, pending future payment, until Kucinich's announcement was made public. In 1998, theCleveland City Council honored him for having had the "courage and foresight" to stand up to the banks, which saved the city an estimated $195 million between 1985 and 1995.[25]
_(cropped).jpg)
After losing his reelection bid for mayor toGeorge Voinovich in 1979, Kucinich initially kept a low profile in Cleveland politics. He criticized a taxreferendum Voinovich proposed in 1980, which voters eventually approved. He also struggled to find employment and moved to Los Angeles, where he stayed with a friend, actressShirley MacLaine.[26] For the next three years, Kucinich worked as aradio talk-show host, lecturer, and consultant.[15] It was a difficult period for him financially. Without a steady paycheck, Kucinich fell behind in his mortgage payments, nearly lost his house in Cleveland, and borrowed money from friends, including MacLaine, to keep it.[26] On his 1982income tax return, Kucinich reported an income of $38.[26] Of this period, Kucinich has said, "When I was growing up in Cleveland, my early experience conditioned me to hang in there and not to quit... It's one thing to experience that as a child, but when you have to as an adult, it has a way to remind you how difficult things can be. You understand what people go through."[26]
In 1982, Kucinich moved back to Cleveland and ran forSecretary of State; he lost the Democratic primary toSherrod Brown.[26] In 1983, Kucinich won aspecial election to fill the seat of a Clevelandcity councilman who had died. His brother, Gary Kucinich, was also a councilman at the time.[27]
In 1985, there was some speculation that Kucinich might run for mayor again. Instead, his brother Gary ran against (and lost to) the incumbent Voinovich. Kucinich, meanwhile, gave up his council position to run forgovernor of Ohio as an independent againstRichard Celeste, but later withdrew from the race. After this, Kucinich, in his own words "on a quest for meaning," lived quietly in New Mexico until 1994, when he won a seat in theOhio State Senate.
In 1996, Kucinich was elected to representOhio's 10th district in the U.S. House of Representatives, defeating two-term Republican incumbentMartin Hoke by three percentage points. He never faced another general election contest that close and was reelected seven times.[28]
Kucinich served as chair of theCongressional Progressive Caucus from 1999 to 2003, after founding chairBernie Sanders, and was succeeded byPeter DeFazio.
Kucinich was one of the 31 House Democrats who voted to not count the 20electoral votes fromOhio in the2004 presidential election, despite Republican president George Bush winning the state by 118,457 votes.[29][30]
In 2008, Kucinich introduced articles of impeachment in the House of Representatives against PresidentGeorge W. Bush for the invasion and occupation ofIraq.[31]
Although his voting record was not always in line with that of theDemocratic Party, on March 17, 2010, after being courted by PresidentBarack Obama, his wife and others, Kucinich reluctantly agreed to vote with his colleagues for theAffordable Care Act without a public option component.[32]
Kucinich criticized theflag-burning amendment and voted against the impeachment of PresidentBill Clinton. His congressional voting record was stronglyanti-abortion, although he has noted that he never supported aconstitutional amendment prohibiting abortion altogether. In 2003, however, he began describing himself aspro-abortion rights and said he had shifted away from his earlier position.[33]Press releases indicated that he supported abortion rights, endingabstinence-onlysex education and increasing the use ofcontraception to make abortion "less necessary" over time. His voting record since 2003 received mixed ratings from abortion rights groups.[34]
Kucinich was criticized during his 2004 campaign for changing his stance on the issue of abortion.[33] His explanation was, "I've always worked to make abortions less necessary, through sex education and birth control. But the direction that Congress has taken, increasingly, is to make it impossible for women to be able to have an abortion if they need to protect their health. So when I saw the direction taken, it finally came to the point where I understood that women will not be truly free unless they have the right to choose."[35]
On December 10, 2003, theAmerican Broadcasting Company (ABC) announced the removal of its correspondents from the campaigns of Kucinich,Carol Moseley Braun andAl Sharpton.[36] Previously critical of the limited coverage given his campaign, Kucinich characterized ABC's decision as an example of media companies' power to shape campaigns by choosing which candidates to cover and questioned its timing, coming immediately after the debate.[36]ABC News, while stating its commitment to give coverage to a wide range of candidates, argued that focusing more of its "finite resources" on the candidates most likely to win would best serve the public.[37]
In the2004 Democratic presidential nomination race, national polls consistently showed Kucinich's support in single digits. In theIowa caucuses, he finished fifth, receiving about 1% of the state delegates,[38] far below the 15% threshold for receiving national delegates. He performed similarly in theNew Hampshire primary, placing sixth among the seven candidates with 1% of the vote.[39] In theMini-Tuesday primaries, he finished near the bottom in most states. His best performance was inNew Mexico, where he received over 5% of the vote but still no delegates.[39] Kucinich's best showing in any Democratic contest was in the February 24 Hawaii caucus, in which he won 31% of caucus participants, finishing second behind SenatorJohn Kerry.[40] He also had a double-digit showing inMaine on February 8, receiving 16% percent in the state's caucus. OnSuper Tuesday, March 2, Kucinich had another strong showing in theMinnesota caucus, receiving 17% of the vote. In Ohio, he received 9%.[39] Kucinich campaigned heavily inOregon, spending 30 days there during the two months leading up to the state's May 18primary. He continued his campaign because "the future direction of the Democratic Party has not yet been determined"[41] and chose to focus on Oregon "because of its progressive tradition and its pioneering spirit."[42] He won 16% of the vote.
Even after Kerry won enough delegates to secure the nomination, Kucinich continued to campaign until just before the convention, citing an effort to help shape the agenda of the Democratic Party. He was the last candidate to end his campaign. He endorsed Kerry on July 22, four days before the start of the Democratic National Convention.[43]
On December 11, 2006, in a speech at Cleveland City Hall, Kucinich announced he would seek the Democratic nomination for president in 2008.
Kucinich told his supporters in Iowa that if he did not appear on the second ballot in a caucus that they should back Barack Obama.[44][45]
At an October 2007 debate,NBC'sTim Russert cited a passage from a book byShirley MacLaine in which she writes that Kucinich had seen aUFO. Asked if it was true, Kucinich confirmed it.[46] In November 2007,Larry Flynt hosted a fundraiser for Kucinich that drew criticism from Flynt's detractors. Campaign representatives declined to comment.[47][48] Kucinich was endorsed by authorGore Vidal and actor Viggo Mortensen.[49][50] In January 2008, he asked for a New Hampshire recount based on alleged discrepancies between the machine-counted ballots and the hand-counted ballots. He stated that he wanted to make sure "100% of the voters had 100% of their votes counted."[51]
In January 2008, Kucinich was excluded from a Democratic presidential debate onMSNBC due to his poor showing in the Iowa and New Hampshire primaries. A ruling that the debate could not go ahead without him was overturned on appeal.[52] Later that month, Kucinich dropped out of the race and did not endorse any other candidate. He endorsed Barack Obama after Obama won the nomination.[53][54]
On August 27, 2008, he delivered a speech at theDemocratic National Convention.[55]
Until 2012, Kucinich was reelected to Congress by big margins in his strongly Democratic-leaning districts.
Kucinich defeated a Democratic primary challenger by a wide margin and defeated Republican Mike Dovilla in the general election with 66% of the vote.
His opponents includedCleveland City CouncilmanJoe Cimperman andNorth Olmsted Mayor Thomas O'Grady. In February 2008, Kucinich raised around $50,000 compared to Cimperman's $228,000,[56] but through a YouTube fund-raising campaign he managed to raise $700,000, surpassing Cimperman's $487,000.[57][58]
Cimperman, who was endorsed by the mayor of Cleveland andThe Plain Dealer, criticized Kucinich for focusing too much on campaigning for president and not on the district. Kucinich accused Cimperman of representingcorporate and real estate interests. Cimperman described Kucinich as an absentee congressman who failed to pass any major legislative initiatives in his 12-yearHouse career. In an interview, Cimperman said he was tired of Kucinich and Cleveland being joke fodder for late-night talk-show hosts, saying: "It's time for him to go home."[59][60] A Cimperman campaign ad stated that Kucinich had missed over 300 votes, but the actual number was 139.[61] It was also suggested that Kucinich's calls foruniversal health care and an immediate withdrawal fromIraq made him a thorn in the side of the Democrats' congressional leadership, as well as his refusal to pledge to support the eventual presidential nominee, which he later reconsidered.[59]
Kucinich took part in a debate with the other primary challengers.Barbara Ferris criticized him for not bringing as much money back to the district as other area legislators and authoring just one bill that passed during his 12 years in Congress. Kucinich responded: "It was a Republican Congress and there weren't many Democrats passing meaningful legislation during a Republican Congress."[62] He won the primary with 68,156 votes out of 135,589 cast, beating Cimperman 52% to 33%.[63]
Kucinich defeated formerstate representativeJim Trakas in the November 4general election with 157,268 votes, 57.02% of those cast. Trakas received 107,918 votes (39.13%).[64]
Kucinich defeated Republican nominee Peter J. Corrigan and Libertarian nominee Jeff Goggins in the November 2 general election with 101,343 votes, 53.1% of those cast.[65]
Redistricting after the 2010 census eliminated Kucinich's district. The new map shifted the bulk of Kucinich's territory, including his home, to theToledo-based 9th District, represented since 1983 by fellow DemocratMarcy Kaptur. Kucinich had been endorsed by another House member,Barney Frank ofMassachusetts.[66] The two competed in the Democratic primary on March 6, with Graham Veysey, a small-business owner from Cleveland, also on the ballot. Kaptur won the primary with 56% of the vote to Kucinich's 40%.[67][68] The redrawn district contained roughly 60% of Kaptur's former territory.
In the general election, with 73% of the vote, Kaptur won a 16th term against RepublicanSamuel "Joe the Plumber" Wurzelbacher andLibertarian Sean Stipe.[69]
Kucinich had been mentioned frequently as a possible 2012 candidate for Congress inWashington's newly created10th district, but he decided to retire from Congress when his term ended in January 2013.[70][71][72]
In 2024, Kucinich announced his campaign to representOhio's 7th congressional district as an independent. He placed third with 13% of the vote, losing to incumbent RepublicanMax Miller. This was the best result for an independent candidate running for Congress in Ohio sinceJim Traficant's 16% finish in2010.[73]
In January 2018, Kucinich announced his candidacy forgovernor of Ohio in the 2018 election.[74] He was criticized for working as aFox News contributor.[75][76] Tara Samples, anAkron city councilwoman, was his running mate.[77]Our Revolution, a grassroots progressive organization founded byBernie Sanders, endorsed Kucinich, but Sanders did not.[78] Kucinich lost the primary toRichard Cordray, 62.3% to 22.9%.[79]
In December 2020, Kucinich announced his candidacy for mayor of Cleveland in the 2021 election.[80] Though seen as likely to qualify in the seven-way nonpartisan primary for the two runoff spots, Kucinich finished in third place with 16.54%.[81]
In May 2023,Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s 2024 presidential campaign announced that Kucinich had been selected as its campaign manager.[82] He served until October 2023, shortly after Kennedy switched from a Democrat to an independent.[83]
In January 2013, Kucinich joinedFox News Channel as a regular contributor.[84][85] He appeared onThe O'Reilly Factor and other Fox News shows.[86] Kucinich quit Fox News in January 2018 as he announced plans to run for governor.[87] Since running for governor, Kucinich has reappeared on the network, in 2019 discussing Democratic primary debates,[88] and has appeared onLarry King'sPoliticKING program, speaking against the Democrats' push toimpeach President Trump.[89]
After being elected to Congress in 1996, Kucinich began to position himself on theleft.[90] Based on his voting record in Congress, theAmerican Conservative Union (ACU) gave Kucinich a conservative rating of 9.73%,[91] and for 2008, the liberalAmericans for Democratic Action (ADA) gave him a liberal rating of 95%.[92] He was often regarded as one of the mostliberal members of theUnited States House of Representatives.[93][94][95] Describing his views in the2008 Democratic Party presidential primaries, he said, "I'm from theuniversal-health-care wing of theDemocratic Party. I'm from theRoe v. Wade-litmus-test wing of the Democratic Party. I'm from theabolish-the-death-penalty wing of the Democratic Party."[96]
Until 2002, Kucinich's voting record was stronglyanti-abortion, but he maintained apro-abortion rights stance thereafter. In 1996, he was quoted as saying that "life begins at conception", and he voted in favor of banningpartial birth abortion and preventing the transport of minors to undergo abortion procedures. He said in a 2003 interview that he had a "journey" on the abortion issue that "caused me to break from a voting record that had not been pro-choice".[97]
On June 10, 2008, Kucinich introduced 35articles ofimpeachment against PresidentGeorge W. Bush on the floor of the House of Representatives.[98][99][100] On June 11, the resolution was referred to theHouse Judiciary Committee.
Calling it "a sworn duty" of Congress to act, co-sponsorRobert Wexler said, "President Bush deliberately created a massive propaganda campaign to sell the war in Iraq to the American people, and the charges detailed in this impeachment resolution indicate an unprecedented abuse of executive power."[101] On July 10, 2008, Kucinich introduced an additionalarticle of impeachment accusing Bush of misleading Congress into war.[102][103] On July 14, 2008, Kucinich introduced a new resolution of impeachment against Bush, charging him with manufacturing evidence to sway public opinion in favor of the war in Iraq. This resolution was also sent to the judiciary committee.
On April 17, 2007, Kucinich sent a letter to his Democratic colleagues saying that he planned to file animpeachment resolution againstDick Cheney, then Vice President of the United States.[104] Kucinich planned to introduce the impeachment articles on April 24, 2007, but in light of Cheney's visit to his doctor for an inspection of ablood clot, Kucinich postponed the press conference "until the vice president's condition is clarified."[105]
Kucinich held a press conference on April 24, 2007, revealingHouse Resolution 333 and the threearticles of impeachment against Cheney. He charged Cheney with manipulating the evidence of Iraq's weapons program, deceiving the nation about Iraq's connection toal-Qaeda, and threatening aggression against Iran in violation of the United Nations charter. Kucinich opened his press conference by quoting from theDeclaration of Independence, and said, "I believe the Vice President's conduct of office has been destructive to the founding purposes of our nation. Today, I have introduced House Resolution 333, Articles of Impeachment Relating to Vice President Richard B. Cheney. I do so in defense of the rights of the American people to have a government that is honest and peaceful."[106]
On November 6, 2007, Kucinich used specialparliamentary procedure and moved for a vote on impeaching Cheney.[107]House Majority LeaderSteny Hoyer andHouse Speaker Pelosi opposed the measure and stood by previous comments that "impeachment is not on our agenda", and they initially moved to table the bill. When that attempt failed, Hoyer moved to refer the bill to the House Judiciary Committee. That motion succeeded.[107]
Kucinich criticized thebank bailout of 2008[108] as a "handout to Wall Street" lackingworkouts for homeowners.[109] He introduced theNEED Act, a monetary reform bill.[110]
In March 2011, Kucinich said that President Obama's decision to approve air strikes against Gaddafi's forces in the Libyan Civil War was an "impeachable offense."[111][112]
During his 2004 presidential campaign, Kucinich expressed support for a drug policy that "sets reasonable boundaries formarijuana use by establishing guidelines similar to those already in place for alcohol".[113] He stated: "Most marijuana users do so responsibly, in a safe, recreational context. These people lead normal, productive lives–pursuing careers, raising families and participating in civic life."[114] Kucinich also released a detailed plan for cannabis policy reform during his 2018 campaign for Ohio governor.[115]
Kucinich has opposed theUSA PATRIOT Act since its inception. He voted against the act in 2001, and against its renewal in 2006. He voted for an amendment to the constitution outlawing flag burning and desecration, but later took the opposite stance, voting against a similar amendment in 2005.[116]
In 2007, Kucinich voted to require the Department of Defense to present a detailed plan for transferring prisoners out ofGuantanamo Bay detention camp.[116]
Kucinich has praised and defended PresidentDonald Trump in Fox News appearances.[78] He praised Trump's inaugural speech, calling it "GREAT" and a "message of unity".[117][118]
According toThe Washington Post, Kucinich "was a rare left-wing voice attacking 'the deep state' for undermining the president."[78] On Sean Hannity's show, Kucinich said he believed that a deep state intelligence community worked against Trump and that it was "very dangerous to America", "a threat to our republic" and "a clear and present danger to our way of life."[112] In February 2017, Kucinich defendedMichael Flynn, saying that the intelligence community had treated him unfairly; in December 2017, Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI.[118][119] Kucinich defended Trump's claims that he was being wiretapped, saying that he himself had been wiretapped.[120] He also defended Trump's efforts to improve relations with Russia.[118]
Kucinich criticized some House Democrats for attempting to start impeachment proceedings against Trump.[121] He said, "The Democratic Party had best be identified with something more than impeachment."[121] He said that efforts to assess Trump's mental and physical fitness to be president were "destroying the party as an effective opposition."[112]
After theJanuary 6 United States Capitol attack that attempted to overturn Trump's defeat, Kucinich denounced the storming as "an affront to the U.S. Constitution".[122]
Kucinich had a 100% rating during 2005 and 2006 from theLeague of Conservation Voters, indicating pro-environment votes.[123] He has said that clean water is "a basic human right".[124]
As mayor of Cleveland, Kucinich favored the city's existingMunicipal Light System and opposed construction of theDavis-Besse Nuclear Power Plant andPerry Nuclear Power Plant onLake Erie. He opposed a planned regionalradioactive waste dump, and has long advocatedrenewable energy andefficient energy use.[125]
Kucinich was involved in efforts to bring back theFairness Doctrine, requiring radio stations to give liberal and conservative points of viewequal time, which he and other critics of talk radio argue is not presently the case. Fellow DemocratMaurice Hichney, Vermont's independent SenatorBernie Sanders, and others have joined him in this effort.[citation needed] Conservatives have criticized these plans, alleging that what they believe to be a liberal-dominatedHollywood,academia,new media, andmainstream media would not be subject to these regulations.[126][127][128]
Kucinich is a supporter of anon-interventionist foreign policy and has called war a profitable racket.[129]
Kucinich voted against the authorization of military force againstIraq in 2002. He also voted consistently against funding the war.[130]
In a visit to the rest of the Middle East in September 2007, Kucinich said he did not visit Iraq because "I feel the United States is engaging in an illegal occupation."[131]
Kucinich objected to the2011 military intervention in Libya missile strikes and suggested they were impeachable offenses. He also asked why Democratic leaders didn't object when Obama told them of his plan for US participation in enforcing the Libyan no-fly zone. He said Obama's action in Libya was "a grave decision that cannot be made by the president alone", and that failing to first seek Congress's approval was unconstitutional.[132][133]
On August 31,Al Jazeera reported that a document had been found in the Libyan intelligence agency's headquarters that according to the author appeared to be a summary of a conversation between Kucinich and an intermediary forSaif al-Islam Gaddafi in which Kucinich asks for information about the anti-GaddafiNational Transitional Council (NTC), possible links between it and al-Qaeda, and evidence of corruption, to lobby US lawmakers to put an end to NATO airstrikes and suspend their support for the NTC.[134] It also listed information necessary to defend al-Islam againstInternational Criminal Court war crimes charges.[134] Kucinich defended himself in a message toThe Atlantic Wire, saying that the document was simply a summary of Kucinich's public positions on the Libyan campaign by a Libyan bureaucrat who never consulted Kucinich. "Al Jazeera found a document written by a Libyan bureaucrat to other Libyan bureaucrats. All it proves is that the Libyans were readingThe Washington Post... Any implication I was doing anything other than trying to bring an end to an unauthorized war is fiction."[134][135]
In March 2011, Kucinich criticized theObama administration's decisionto participate in theNATO intervention in Libyawithout Congressional authorization. He also called it an "indisputable fact" that Obama's decision was animpeachable offense since he believes theU.S. Constitution "does not provide for the president to wage war any times he pleases", but he did not introduce a resolution to impeach Obama.[136] In response, Libyan officials invited Kucinich to visit that country on a "peace mission", but he declined, saying that he "could not negotiate on behalf of the administration."[137]
Kucinich was criticized for his visit toSyria in 2007 and praise of PresidentBashar al-Assad on Syrian national TV.[138] He praised Syria for taking in Iraqi refugees. "What most people are not aware of is that Syria has taken in more than 1.5 million Iraqi refugees," Kucinich said. "The Syrian government has actually shown a lot of compassion in keeping its doors open, and being a host for so many refugees."[139]
Kucinich has met with Assad on several occasions.[140][141][142] He has supported Assad, citing him as a lesser evil in the Syrian Civil War.[141] Asked byTucker Carlson how he could defend a war criminal, Kucinich said the choice was to let ISIS take over Syria or "try to stabilize the region and let the people of Syria make their own decisions about who their leaders are going to be".[141] He helped Fox News get an interview with Assad.[140]
In October 2016, Kucinich warned against a prospective United States military intervention against Russia in Syria.[143] He argued that "a concerted effort is being made through fearmongering, propaganda, and lies to prepare our country for a dangerous confrontation, with Russia in Syria"[144] and said that Russia was being demonized as part of a "calculated plan to resurrect araison d'être for stone-cold warriors trying to escape from the dustbin of history by evoking the specter of Russian world domination."[144]
Kucinich is graded "F" by theNRA Political Victory Fund, indicating a pro-gun control voting record. He also received a 100% lifetime rating from theBrady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence.[145]
Kucinich believes that health care is a "right in a democratic society".[146] He is a critic of the for-profithealth insurance andpharmaceutical industries, and is concerned about the large number ofuninsured and underinsured in the United States.[96] He contends that if the for-profit insurance system's overhead, such as "stock options, executive salaries, [and] advertising", were used for medically necessary care, there would be enough money in the system to cover everyone at no extra cost.[146]
In July 2009, theHouse Education and Labor Committee approved an amendment by Kucinich to its version of the unsuccessfulAmerica's Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009 by a vote of 27-19, with 14 Democrats and 13 Republicans voting for it.[147] The amendment empowers theSecretary of Health and Human Services to waive the federal law that preempts state law on employee-related health care, theEmployee Retirement Income Security Act, in response to state requests.[148] It has been speculated that the amendment's bipartisan support was for its appeal tostates' rights in supporting progressive legislation.[147] In the past, states attempting to enactsingle-payer reforms had been sued and stopped under ERISA.[148] It has also been speculated that the law would open up vital new avenues for promoting and implementing a single-payer system, as newly unbound states would show single-payer's success, just asSaskatchewan did forCanada.[147] But the Kucinich Amendment was stripped from the merged House bill. SpeakerNancy Pelosi said that it would have violated Obama's promise that Americans who liked their health insurance could keep it.[149]
In March 2010, Kucinich announced that he supported the Affordable Care Act, after previously indicating opposition.[150] According toThe Washington Post, his switch was the first in a vital flurry of holdout representatives switching to yes votes.[151]
Kucinich supportssame-sex marriage.[152] He voted for the expansion ofhate crime laws in the United States and against banningLGBT adoption in Washington, D.C.[153]
Kucinich has consistently opposedfree trade, claiming that it costs American jobs and enables abusive working conditions in other countries.[154]
In a Democratic debate during the 2008 Presidential Election, Kucinich andMike Gravel were the only two candidates to favor lowering thelegal drinking age to 18. Kucinich also supported lowering thevoting age to 16.[155]
In 2003, Kucinich received theGandhi Peace Award, an annual award bestowed by theReligious Society of Friends-affiliated organizationPromoting Enduring Peace.[9] In 2010, theUS Peace Memorial Foundation awarded himThe US Peace Prize "in recognition of his national leadership to prevent and end wars".[156]
After Kucinich lost toMarcy Kaptur in the 2012 Democratic primary, RepresentativeKeith Ellison said of Kucinich, "At the end of the day, we're really going to miss Dennis. Dennis is a transformative leader. He stood up and spoke eloquently, passionately about Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran. He was a consistent voice for peace... He almost didn't vote for the health care bill because it wasn't good enough."[157]
Kucinich was baptized aCatholic.[15] His first marriage, to Helen Kucinich, ended in divorce.[158] He married Sandra Lee McCarthy in 1977; they had a daughter,Jackie, in 1981 and divorced in 1986.[159] He married his third wife,British citizenElizabeth Harper, on August 21, 2005. They met while Harper was working as an assistant for the Chicago-basedAmerican Monetary Institute, which brought her to Kucinich's House of Representatives office for a meeting.[160] Kucinich, avegan since 1995, is an advocate of veganism, like Elizabeth.[161][162]
Kucinich had four brothers and two sisters. Perry Kucinich, his youngest brother, died in 2007.[163] His youngest sister, Beth Ann Kucinich, died in 2008.[164]
In 2011, Kucinich sued a Capitol Hill cafeteria for damages after a 2008 incident in which he claimed to have suffered a severe injury biting into a sandwich and breaking a tooth on an olive pit. The broken tooth became infected, and complications led to three surgeries for dental work. The lawsuit, for $150,000 in punitive damages, was settled with the defendant agreeing to pay Kucinich's costs.[165]
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)Of course, they should be able to drink at age 18, and they should be able to vote at age 16
Media from Commons
News from Wikinews
Quotations from Wikiquote
Texts from Wikisource
Textbooks from Wikibooks| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Mayor of Cleveland 1978–1979 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromOhio's 10th congressional district 1997–2013 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Chair of theCongressional Progressive Caucus 1999–2003 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former U.S. Representative | Order of precedence of the United States as Former U.S. Representative | Succeeded byas Former U.S. Representative |
Articles and topics related to Dennis Kucinich | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||||||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
