The odd thing about Ralph Nader is how a man who has been in and out of the public eye for so long — making headlines since Lyndon Johnson was president — can remain an enigma. Even people who’ve known and worked with him for years don’t know much about him beyond his prodigious capacity for work.For decades, media accounts have depicted Nader as an ascetic policy wonk, a man married to his many crusades. For the most part, that seems accurate. Michael Richardson, who has worked on Nader’s campaigns, says Nader works “12 to 14 hours a day, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year.” Nader says he occasionally sees a movie (a recent selection, “Michael Clayton,” is about a compromised corporate lawyer) and likes watching sports. But he’s rarely is seen at social events or anything unrelated to his work.Outside of a fleeting rumour, the lifelong bachelor has never been romantically linked to anyone. Justin Martin, a Nader biographer, says in the 2006 documentary An Unreasonable Man that he searched for evidence of Nader’s personal life and came up with nothing. Paul Krugman, the New York Times columnist, called Nader “a rebel without a life.”Even close associates were surprised in 2000 when Nader filed financial disclosure forms revealing that he conservatively estimated his net worth at $3.9 million, thanks primarily to savvy investments in tech stocks. He also disclosed that he had made $512,000 in speaking fees during the preceding 16 months.Nader deflects questions about his finances today by saying he donates much of his income to advocacy groups and charities. He says he receives speaking fees — charging $1,000 to $15,000, depending on the group — although he adds that the invitations don’t come “all that often anymore.”Matthew Zawisky, a campaign aide who has travelled with Nader since 2001, says he’s never seen him drive a car or use a computer (aides print out relevant documents for him). “He’s purely an Underwood typewriter guy,” says Zawisky, a bit amused. Nader makes copies of his work using carbon paper. “I think he foresaw the computer revolution and stocked up on it,” Zawisky says.Joan Claybrook, who has known Nader since 1966 and worked with him on his pioneering auto-safety crusade against General Motors, says he reads 10 books a week and speaks seven languages (Chinese, Portuguese, Italian and Arabic among them) well enough to converse with native speakers.“Ralph is really a charming guy,” says Claybrook, who heads the advocacy group Public Citizen. “He has a great sense of humour. If the public knew him really well, they would be enthralled with him.”
