Kucinich To Announce Candidacy at Noon

ABC News’ Nitya Venkataraman Reports: He’s run for president once before. He’s fed up with his party’s failure to end the war in Iraq. And this time around, he’s married.

At noon today, 2004 presidential wannabe and current Democratic Rep. Dennis Kucinich — a six-term congressman from Ohio with a liberal lean — will announce his second presidential bid in front of Cleveland’s City Hall.

When Kucinich makes his noon announcement, there will be nothing “exploratory” about his plans: the man who was once known as Cleveland’s “Boy Mayor” will join Gov. Tom Vilsack (D-IA) as a fully declared 2008 presidential candidate.

Kucinich will focus his presidential bid on the alleged "reluctance" of the newly elected Democratic leadership in Congress to heed the message that voters delivered in the midterm elections. This is expected to include a call for Congress to exercise its power of the purse.

"Democrats were swept into power on Nov. 7 because of widespread voter discontent with the war in Iraq," Kucinich said in a statement released Monday. "Instead of heeding those concerns and responding with a strong and immediate change in policies and direction, the Democratic congressional leadership seems inclined to continue funding the perpetuation of the war."