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...Fifteen Minutes (FM): What’s changed in politics in general since you left office 30 years ago? Mike Gravel (MG): We’re coming off an area of conservatism, of selfishness, of individualism, and maybe we’re moving towards a more cooperative approach in society. I hope that’s the case, because certainly when you look at the environmental problem we face, it’s very serious. In fact unless we make some fundamental changes we’re going to cook ourselves off the planet in the next hundred years...
...FM: How would you compare the level of youth activism now to when you were in the Senate? MG: Probably it was more shrill when I was last in office because we were at the height of the Vietnam War. It had just been completed. The youth had really taken to the streets because of what the amount of death and what the country was doing. After the conservative revolution with Ronald Reagan, it almost seemed like the youth went to sleep or focused on a new area of interest...
...FM: Are you disappointed with this new political apathy? MG: The youth have never, never been a large voting bloc, and there are reasons for that. They don’t get to have a full stake in society and they’re not motivated like people who have a stake. Whether you have a house, a job, or the loss of a job, it changes your whole approach. Jack Kennedy with his charisma certainly did bring out idealism in youth, and of course Hubert Humphrey probably in greater detail than did Jack Kennedy. We don?...
...FM: What’s the most important thing for college students to know about your campaign? MG: The fact that I’m the first one in American history that is campaigning on the basis of “Fine, I don’t mind being president.” I don’t have a burning desire to be president, but if I were president I would be a very unusual one. The most important thing is I want to empower the American people to become lawmakers. Even if I became president and the people...
...FM: If you do make it to the White House, what should we expect? MG: I would use the office to bully the American people to empower themselves to make fundamental changes. Only the people can do this. The Congress can’t do this. The Congress won’t buy into changing the tax code and making it really fair. The Congress won’t stop the whole military-industrial complex being the top priority of the economy. The Congress won’t do that. The people would, if the people have the power...