Dennis Kucinich. | AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File Kucinich: Public 'totally dissatisfied' with both parties

Walking down the Avenue of the Americas in Midtown this morning, ignoring the rain, was a downcast Dennis Kucinich, former congressman from Ohio who ran for president as a little-appreciated, anti-war, progressive in 2008.

What happened last night?


He said voters rejected all semblance of convention, and voted their rage — fueled by economic anxiety brought on by years of free trade agreements, Wall Street bailouts and expensive wars.

“This isn’t about a victory of the Republican Party over Democrats, and it certainly wasn’t a victory of conservatives over liberals, or right over left,” he said. “This is a very clear demonstration that the American people are totally dissatisfied with establishment politics. … Both parties held hands and bailed out the banks.”

Kucinich said the issue of “bread or bombs” was overlooked.

“It was submerged in the primaries because Bernie Sanders did not take Hillary Clinton on, on her bad choices in foreign policies,” Kucinich said. “She voted to fund those wars, to transfer the resources of the American people to more war and that’s an issue that isn’t resolved yet.”

Kucinich demurred when asked who speaks to those issues better, who he would like to see step forward.

“Is there anybody out there picking it up? No," he said. "Because the political establishment has been more or less wed to the Pentagon and the military-industrial complex. That’s the game that’s played. That no matter who wins, they win.”