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Editor’s Note: Paul Begala, a Democratic strategist and CNN political commentator, was a political consultant for Bill Clinton’s presidential campaign in 1992 and served as a counselor to Clinton in the White House. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his. View more opinion articles on CNN.
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As he was planning his 2000 third-party bid for the presidency, Ralph Nader asked me to meet with him. Nader strongly believed that he could launch a viable Green Party, seizing at least 5% of the national vote, which would qualify the Greens for federal matching funds, and begin to erode what he called “the two-party duopoly.”
“I’m not sure if you can do that,” I told Nader. “But I am sure of this: If you succeed, you’ll elect George W. Bush.” Nader vehemently disagreed. He thought that then-Vice President Al Gore would still have enough votes to win comfortably, and he wanted to pull him to the left.
I failed to dissuade Nader, obviously. The rest, as they say, is history. Bush was credited with a win in Florida by just 537 votes. Nader received 97,488 votes in Florida.
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Opinion: The move that’s sure to elect Trump in 2024
Editor’s Note: Paul Begala, a Democratic strategist and CNN political commentator, was a political consultant for Bill Clinton’s presidential campaign in 1992 and served as a counselor to Clinton in the White House. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his. View more opinion articles on CNN.
CNN —
As he was planning his 2000 third-party bid for the presidency, Ralph Nader asked me to meet with him. Nader strongly believed that he could launch a viable Green Party, seizing at least 5% of the national vote, which would qualify the Greens for federal matching funds, and begin to erode what he called “the two-party duopoly.”
“I’m not sure if you can do that,” I told Nader. “But I am sure of this: If you succeed, you’ll elect George W. Bush.” Nader vehemently disagreed. He thought that then-Vice President Al Gore would still have enough votes to win comfortably, and he wanted to pull him to the left.
I failed to dissuade Nader, obviously. The rest, as they say, is history. Bush was credited with a win in Florida by just 537 votes. Nader received 97,488 votes in Florida.

Opinion: The move that's sure to elect Trump in 2024 | CNN
Paul Begala writes groups organizing a moderate third-party candidacy for president in 2024 would, despite their stated intentions, likely reward the most extreme, most divisive, most angry forces in our politics.