Who Would Wellstone Caucus For?

A hearty thank you to Lynn Fox (who’s with Fox Insurance Agency in
Dallas
Center) for mailing me a recent article from The Minneapolis
Star Tribune.  The article is about the late Senator Paul Wellstone (In
The Name Of His Father, August 28), and it discusses Democrats who
refer to themselves as “Wellstone Democrats.”  In fact, I’m mentioned
in the piece as “small-town Iowa state Rep. Ed Fallon.”  (Des Moines, a
small town?  Who knew?)



After questioning claims to the
Wellstone mantel by Howard Dean, Chris Dodd and Dennis Kucinich, the
article goes on to quote Bill Lofy.  Bill was a Senate intern for
Wellstone years ago and a former campaign staffer. He wrote a biography
about Wellstone and is currently the communications director for
Wellstone Action.  In the Trib article, Lofy is quoted as saying,
“Whether you call yourself a Wellstone Democrat or not, are you
speaking to the issues that he spent a career fighting for ?  What it
really comes down to is fundamental messages.  In reality, those are
reflected by John Edwards.”



The article goes on to say, “Indeed,
some of Edwards’ policies and actions seem to mirror those of
Wellstone.  Wellstone embarked on a poverty tour in 1998 that followed
the model of Robert F. Kennedy’s in 1968.  Edwards did the same this
year.  The former North Carolina senator also has made mental health
parity a part of his campaign, something for which Wellstonians still
fight ardently in Congress.”





CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM



On
Wednesday, September 26 at 6:30 p.m., Common Cause and Iowa Citizens
for Community Improvement are hosting an event featuring former U.S.
congressmen Berkley Bedell (D-Iowa) and Bob Edgar (D-Pennsylvania). 
The event will be at the Des Moines Public Library, 1000 Grand Avenue
in downtown Des Moines. 



Common Cause is working to build a
statewide, grassroots effort to raise the profile o f campaign finance
reform legislation at both the state and national levels.  They’re
helping organize volunteers to quiz presidential candidates on their
stance on the issue.  If you’d like to sign-on to help, go to
http://www.commoncause.org/askthequestion.



A NEW OIL REFINERY??

Also
on September 26, at 7:00 p.m. in the lower-level meeting room of the
American Legion Building, 103 E. Main Street in Elk Point, Nebraska
(across the river from Sioux City), Karen Hall will lead a public
awareness workshop regarding a proposed oil refinery in Elk Point. 
Karen is an environmental engineer who worked at the Flint Hills oil
refinery in Rosemount, Minnesota.  She is also a novelist.   The event
is sponsored by the Save Union County Committee in association with the
Sierra Club and the Coalition Opposing Oil Pollution. 

 

Recently,
Iowa Governor Chet Culver attended a news conference with the
refinery’s developers, along with the gover nors of Nebraska and South
Dakota.  Culver was quoted in The Des Moines Register, saying “Any time
you can talk about creating thousands of jobs, that gets my attention”
(Oil executive promotes possible refinery site, August 22). 



Well,
if you want to talk jobs, let’s talk about wind, solar, biofuels,
geothermal, and (most important) conservation.  But there is simply no
way that a new oil refinery near Sioux City – or new coal plants in
Waterloo and Marshalltown – are compatible with making Iowa the
renewable energy capital of the world.  Culver and other policy leaders
need to hear from us on this.



STEP IT UP, PART III

Last
April, Lynn and I helped coordinate Iowa’s participation in the
National Day of Climate Action.  We also helped promote the March to
Re-energize Iowa from Ames to Des Moines in August.  The next step in
the campaign is a set of local actions across the country scheduled for
November 3.  Now is the time to get on board to help organize an event
in your community.  Global warming is probably the most serious
challenge we’ve ever faced, and we all need to do more than change
light bulbs.  For more information, visit StepItUp2007.org.



GREEN BIKE TOUR

We’re
going to join the 2007 Green Bike Tour at the Center for Energy and
Environmental Education on the UNI campus in Cedar Falls.  The group
will bike from UNI to Wartburg College in Waverly to call attention to
the need for new energy initiatives.  It’s again being organized by the
Iowa Policy Project, and you can contact Kristi at
klohmeier@iowapolicyproject.org for more information.





PEACE FAIR, DES MOINES

This
Saturday from 11:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., the Des Moines Peace Fair
will take place on the Court Avenue Bridge in downtown Des Moines. 
Organizers are expecting over 500 people, and there will be a wide
range of activities for the whole family.   Contact Kathleen at (515)
274-4851 (x22) for more information.



As always, thanks for reading, and keep in touch.



Ed Fallon