Ralph Nader enters presidential race

From: www.cnn.com

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Ralph Nader is entering the presidential race as an independent, he announced Sunday.

Ralph Nader is running for president as an independent.

In an interview with NBC's "Meet the Press," the consumer advocate said great changes in U.S. history have come "through little parties that never won any national election."
"Dissent is the mother of ascent," he said. "And in that context I've decided to run for president."
Nader, who turns 74 this week, complained about the "paralysis of the government," which he said is under the control of corporate executives and lobbyists.
It marks his fourth straight White House bid -- fifth if his 1992 write-in campaign is included.
Nader's entry into the race did not come as a surprise to political watchers.
On Sunday, Sen. Barack Obama criticized him. "My sense is that Mr. Nader is somebody who, if you don't listen and adopt all of his policies, thinks you're not substantive," Obama told reporters when asked about Nader's possible candidacy.
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"He seems to have a pretty high opinion of his own work."
Obama added that Nader "is a singular figure in American politics and has done as much as just about anyone for consumers."
And Obama added, "I don't mean to diminish that." But he added, "There's a sense now that if someone's not hewing to the Ralph Nader agenda, he says they're lacking in some way."
Responding to those remarks during his "Meet the Press" interview, Nader encouraged people to look at his campaign Web site, votenader.org, which he said discusses issues important to Americans that Obama and Sen. John McCain "are not addressing."
Nader called Obama "a person of substance" and "the first liberal evangelist in a long time" who "has run a good tactical campaign." But he accused Obama of censoring "his better instincts" on divisive issues.
He also said political consultants "have really messed up Hillary Clinton's campaign."
Nader also wrote off any suggestions that his entry into the race could draw enough votes from the Democratic candidate to help the Republican win. "If the Democrats can't landslide the Republicans this year, they ought to just wrap up, close down, emerge in a different form," he said.