Wellstone Action!

Wellstone's legacy in action with Progressive boot camp

Would-be candidates learn to hike the campaign trail

By Judith Davidoff

Beware, Wisconsin Rep. Jeff Fitzgerald and U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan: there are people gunning for your jobs. Ditto for state Rep. Jeff Stone and U.S. Rep. Tom Petri.

Wannabe office holders singled out the four, all of whom happen to be Republican, in making their introductions Friday night at a campaign training workshop hosted by Wellstone Action! and the Progressive Majority, which helps elect left-of-center candidates to office. The attendees had been instructed by workshop leader Erik Peterson to share their political ambitions, but to be succinct. "I want you to practice the first lesson of being a candidate, which is brevity," Peterson said. Wellstone Action! was founded in honor of U.S. Sen. Paul Wellstone, who died in October 2002 in a plane crash with his wife, daughter and three campaign workers. The senator from Minnesota was known for his passionate advocacy of social and economic justice. "A number of people who started the organization felt so strongly that the kind of politics Wellstone represented were what the country needed and we could not let the legacy die with him," Pam Costain, director of training at Wellstone Action!, said in an interview. People came as far away as Festus, Mo., and Duluth, Minn., to attend the weekend workshop, dubbed "Camp Wellstone," at the University of Wisconsin's Pyle Center. A few, including Dane County Supervisor Patrick Miles, already held office but many others were preparing a first run for seats on school boards, county commissions and city councils. Marj Passman, who has taught school for more than 20 years, said she can no longer stay out of the political fray. "My schools are in trouble," said Passman, who is running against Maya Cole for Madison School Board Seat 5, which is being vacated by Ruth Robarts. After introductions, Doug Burnett, state director for Progressive Majority, gave a PowerPoint presentation outlining the prep work he said needed to be done just to make an informed decision about running for office. When mulling such a run, he advised, "check in with yourself." "Why do you want to run? Do you have the time? You need to be able to manage your schedule." Over the course of the weekend, potential candidates will also prepare and deliver a stump speech. Separate training tracks for people interested in campaign work and citizen activism also run through the weekend. The trainings provide an overview to Wellstone's approach to politics and teach practical skills for winning, Costain said. "Paul was a very practical politician and passionate advocate for his beliefs." The candidate trainings have reaped concrete results. "In November, over 80 of our candidates got elected," Peterson noted at the beginning of his workshop. The first "Camp Wellstone" training was held in June 2003 in Minnesota. Workshops have since been held in 36 states, with more than 13,000 individuals completing the training. This is the third time a training has been held in Madison and, like the previous sessions, sold out quickly. Wellstone Action! also offers more individualized trainings for young people, labor organizers and community-based activists. Costain said all the trainings aim to be interactive and high on motivation and inspiration. "Our job is to get people to feel they actually can make a difference," she said.