Introduction: Oaklandsocialist analyzes the candidacies of the two main “independent” lefts, Jill Stein and Cornel West. In Part 1 we analyzed the Jill Stein campaign. Here, we discuss the campaign of Cornel West. In Part 3 we will discuss the role of the left, socialist and otherwise, in relating to these two campaigns. We repeat below our main thesis:

1) The most important task in this election is to keep Trump/Vance out of the White House and prevent their fascist-connected cult from gaining a majority in either the Senate or the House.
2) The election campaigns of Jill Stein and Cornel West are systematically and knowingly undermining this task as well as undermining preparing a defense against the MAGA cult. They are also sowing disinformation on the actual dangers of MAGA cult. Nor have they hesitated from associating with some of the most reactionary forces in US and world politics today.
3) The majority of the “socialist” left is playing a sectarian role and is assisting Stein and West.

Cornel West’s Justice for All “Party”

Cornel West
Cornel West first sought the presidential nomination from the right wing populist “People’s Party”. He then jumped to the Green Party. Then, for unknown reasons, he decided to run as an independent. Because it’s easier to get on the ballot as the nominee of a political party, he then formed his own “party”, the “Justice for All Party,” but this is not a real party. It lacks any real membership or infrastructure. As a result, West must rely more directly on the Republicans to get on the ballot. As we will see, though, there is also a political link.

NBC reported that a dozen paid operatives of the Republican Party played a major role in gathering signatures to put West on the ballot in Arizona. In Wisconsin, the Republican aligned Blair Group helped put West on the Ballot, according to USA Today  Moveon.org reported that the Republicans’ role in North Carolina was especially blatant. There, Republican operatives collected signatures at a Trump rally, explaining that “it helps take votes away from Biden” (who was the Democratic candidate at that time). NBC News reported “Emails from elections officials, obtained through a request under North Carolina’s Public Records Law, show the pro-West Justice for All Party authorized three people to pick up and drop off signatures for them statewide — and all three are current or past employees of a Colorado-based Republican political firm called Blitz Canvassing…. The pro-West party received large batches of signatures from Republican-leaning counties like Brunswick and New Hanover, while there were proportionally fewer than expected from more Democratic-leaning counties and ones with large university campuses, where West’s progressive and pro-Palestine messaging would be likely to resonate.” It was similar in Arizona. In Colorado, West allowed himself to be placed on the ballot as the nominee of the red-brown “Unity Party”.

Cornel West’s patriotic theme images: red, white, and blue

It is more than just help in getting ballot signatures. On October 18, NBC broke the news that West had received a $3,300 donation from fascist-inclined Harlan Crow back in August. Two days later,  embarrassed by this revelation, West felt obligated to return it. At the same time, though, he defended both having accepted the donation and Crow himself, saying Crow is “is a staunch anti-Trump Republican who has ‘Never Forget’ collections of tyrants (Stalin, Mao, Hitler, and many others) and patriotic collections of Washington, Jefferson, and Lincoln. Does this disqualify him from contributing to my campaign? Most people holler yes, I say no.”

West’s defense of the fascist-loving Crow is no anomaly. 

In May of 2023, West co-authored a Wall St. Journal op-ed which defended Ron DeSantis’s education “reforms”. The title of the piece was Ron DeSantis’s revolutionary defense of the classics. The op-ed claimed that DeSantis’s “reforms” were apolitical and were simply a defense of “classical” education. In other words, West is a supporter of Ron DeSantis.

Christian nationalist schools like this one are associated with Classic Learning Test, which West supports.

West’s co-author was Jeremy Tate, who is the founder and CEO of Classic Learning Test. This is a Christian nationalist education NGO which is linked with such schools as the California Baptist University and Southeastern Baptist College and the right wing Hillsdale College. Hiding behind their call for “classic” education is Eurocentrism. And Cornel West sits on the board of academic advisors to CLT. 

West’s flirtations with the far right are deeper. On June 7 of 2023, MSNBC reported “West chose to promote his campaign with an appearance Monday on a web show hosted by Russell Brand, a comic who’s known for spreading right-wing conspiracy theories and misinformation. Brand’s show is platformed on Rumble, a video platform popular among QAnon conspiracy theorists. And the party in which West has chosen to launch his presidential bid — the People’s Party, it’s called — isn’t above promoting Tucker Carlson and other populists who traffic in reactionary politics.”

West on Syria
The Syrian counter revolution led by Putin and Assad is the most important one in the world, even still today. In 2016, West called for the impeachment of Obama because of his air strikes on Syria. But he had no criticism of the fascistic Assad regime’s use of chemical weapons. Since then, West has maintained a discreet silence on the issue. That is because both the far right and the campist left either directly support or apologize for Assad, so there is nothing in it for West to take a principled stand.

West on Ukraine
While West has made the ritual condemnation of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which he called “criminal”, the real meat of his position is the same as the rest of the pro-Putin “left”.

Russia’s atrocities in Bucha. As if NATO had anything to do with Russian atrocities.

In July, West issued a press release in which he said that the invasion was “provoked by NATO expansion and nuclear-capable missiles. He further said that “NATO’s been shunning peace talks and threatening Russia…” According to West, Putin’s dictatorial rule, his drive to rebuild a reactionary Russian empire, the threat of a democracy (however corrupt) sitting on Russia’s doorstep – none of that has anything to do with Putin’s decision to invade Ukraine.  And, of course, Russia’s nearly daily attacks on Ukraine’s civilian population went unmentioned by West. As with Syria, there is no direct mention of Ukraine in West’s election platform, although there are a lot of dog whistles for “peace” in the abstract, meaning the peace of the graveyard in Ukraine and Syria.

Cornel West with the rogues’ gallery of the Putinized “left”

West is thoroughly ensconced in the pro Putin/Assad/Islamic Republic of Iran “left”. For example, in the first week of October , of last year, the Iran government supporting Code Pink held a forum which was in part a fundraiser for code Pink. On Oct. 3, West appeared alongside Medea Benjamin (who supports the Iranian dictatorship), Eugene Puryear (of People’s Forum, which is deeply embedded in the Roy Singham pro-Putin web), Lee Camp (who is a former host on RT and also defends Putin), and Claudia de la Cruz (of the Party for Socialism and Liberation, which is also part of the Roy Singham, pro-Putin web). Mother Jones magazine explained the significance: “West has allied himself with a small coterie of far-leftists, … some of whom have voiced support for authoritarian regimes or partnered with Russia-controlled media operations.… West and his backers might argue that he is merely joining forces with those who also oppose US policies that he deems dangerous. Yet when a presidential candidate takes a stage, he or she can expect to be judged by those who share the platform. The current line-up for this forum places West in the company of radicals, Chinese apologists, and chums of Russia’s propaganda machine. Given his status as a prominent public intellectual and academic, his headlining appearance boosts the standing of his co-speakers and the organizing outfits. Choosing to appear with these people is a significant campaign decision.” 

Given that West lacks political principle, his decision to run for president seems to have the same motivation as Trump had in 2016 – to boost his “brand”. In West’s case, his financial situation seems relevant. He burns through money like a wildfire burns through trees on a hot August day. Despite the fact that he earned an estimated $15 million over the last 30 years, West claims he “lives paycheck to paycheck” today. In fact, it’s worse than that. According to the most recent reports, West is over $450,000 in debt, including $49,500 in unpaid child support. This is relevant to West’s political future. If Trump gets elected, and considering West’s ties to the Christian nationalist education world, it is entirely possible that a financially strapped Cornel West would take a well-paid job in an NGO connected to the Trump administration.

Conclusion
In conclusion: It is not possible that all those Republican operatives are mistaken in thinking that the presidential campaign of Cornel West will help Trump. West’s conscious reliance on their help has made it impossible for him to attack Trump and the male and white supremacist Republicans, even if he were inclined to do so. As with Jill Stein (as we saw) and as with the sectarian ultra-left (as we will see in Part 3 of this series), West fails to even mention the danger of the Republicans overturning the coming election, and West refuses to use his campaign to build any resistance to the onslaught of the Republicans, if they regain control in 2025, or the threat of the fascists aligned with the Republicans even if the Democrats win this November. 

Note: This article was corrected to reflect the fact that the Code Pink event with Cornel West happened last year and was not a fundraiser for Cornel West but was for Code Pink; it is not coming up this year as we originally had thought. Oaklandsocialist apologizes for not having looked at that closely enough.