key constituencies that the Democratic Party candidate will need to win in November, notably younger voters, independents, and progressives." However, according to pollster Mark Blumenthal, such an effect is overstated. Campaign developments After announcing his run on Meet the Press Nader said he had chosen former San Francisco Board of Supervisors president and Texas native Matt Gonzalez as his running mate on February 28, 2008. Gonzalez was a supporter of Nader in 2000 and 2004, and had a background as a public defender and civil rights attorney. He narrowly lost the San Francisco mayoral election to Democrat Gavin Newsom in 2003. While campaigning at his alma mater Princeton University, Nader gave a lecture titled "The Corporate State and the Destruction of Democracy." He discussed the "political bigotry against third parties" and the lack of limitations on the power of corporations. Nader described his plans for reform, including single-payer national health insurance, cuts to the military budget, crackdowns on corporations, and a repeal of the 1947 Taft–Hartley Act. His campaign website outlined Nader's support for ending the war on drugs and the campaign's opposition to the death penalty. On March 9, Nader visited West Chester, Pennsylvania where he talked with the Chester County Historical Society about protection of the "victims" of "corporate crooks." He stated that taxes should be levied first on polluters, gamblers and corporations, and that taxes should be lowered on labor and necessities. He called for a withdrawal of American troops from Iraq criticizing the current presidential candidate's stance on the war, "Children not even born yet today will be in Iraq under these [current] candidates...We will bring our troops home". In April 2008, Nader praised Jimmy Carter's plan to visit the Middle East, saying: "It is time for all retired military, diplomatic and national security officials from both parties who agree with Carter — and there are many — to band together and launch the Washington Peace Show leading to what a majority of Palestinians and Israelis want — a viable two-state solution." Nader was selected as the presidential candidate by the Peace and Freedom Party at its convention on August 2. He received 46 delegate votes (60.7 percent) defeating Gloria La Riva, Brian Moore and Cynthia McKinney. The distinction gave Nader instant ballot access in California. In June, Nader accused Democratic Party candidate Barack Obama of trying to "talk white" and appealing to white guilt in