Abstract

Camp Wellstone

The author outlines the work being done by Wellstone Action and Camp Wellstone, organizations dedicated to carrying on the work of progressive U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone, who died in a plane crash on October 25, 2002. Paul Wellstone won elections as a progressive by energizing and mobilizing a large base, staying close to community organizing efforts of all kinds and fearlessly pressing a bold agenda. His model of successful political action is one that can be applied by others, and that is what the Camp Wellstone training program--coining to a political battleground state near you--is all about. Camp Wellstone is a training program put on by Wellstone Action, the nonprofit, nonpartisan group set up by sons Mark and David to carry on the work of their parents. The program started because Mark and David believe that the best tribute possible to the life of Paul Wellstone is to have many thousands of others embrace his legacy of organizing, advocacy and winning elections. Camp Wellstone is a fast-paced, two-and-a-half-day traveling crash course that blends the concepts of community organizing, large-scale grassroots campaigns and progressive leadership with intensive training in the nuts and bolts of effective political work. Building the progressive infrastructure that Paul Wellstone cared about will take time, so the camp program will be a long-term endeavor.