Charging That 'Enron Conservatives' Are Endangering Nat'l Unity, Progressive Activists Will Assemble April 10-12 To 'Reclaim America' 4/9/2002
From: Tasha Spindler of Campaign for America's Future, 202-955-5665 News Advisory: On April 10, 11 and 12 hundreds of progressive activists and leaders will assemble for a conference that organizers are calling "RECLAIMING AMERICA: A Conference on Progressive Strategies for the New Era." Leaders of labor, women's groups, the environmental movement, and their local activists are restive and more than a little frustrated. They generally support post-September 11 consensus that the United States should fight terrorism, but they feel the Bush administration has manipulated national unity to push harmful domestic policies benefiting only the wealthy and corporations -- what they call the Enron conservative agenda. They have begun to challenge House and Senate members who voted for what they characterize as the Enron tax cuts, the Enron energy program, and the "Enronization" of Social Security and Medicare. The conference in April will challenge progressive legislators to be more aggressive in attacking these policies, and the conference will be an opportunity to frame a positive program that will give Americans a choice for the 2002 elections. The conference is sponsored by the progressive advocacy group, Campaign for America's Future (www.ourfuture.org) and its sister research organization, the Institute for America's Future. Over three days, key leaders and experts will outline the opportunities for national problem-solving they believe is being thwarted by the Enron conservatives and special interest money. Basic agenda for RECLAIMING AMERICA follows: WEDNESDAY, APRIL 10 -- AWARDS DINNER The Capitol Hill Hyatt Regency 400 New Jersey Ave., N.W. 7 p.m. Gala Awards Dinner MC Molly Ivins -- Columnist, Author Rep. Nancy Pelosi -- House Minority Whip Dennis Vegas -- former Enron employee Gerald McEntee -- President, AFSCME Sen. Jon Corzine (D-N.J.) --- THURSDAY, APRIL 11 -- POLICY CONFERENCE (See below for complete agenda ) National Press Club 529 14th Street, NW (14th & F) Speakers include: Gov. Howard Dean, Vt., Rep. Richard Gephardt, Sen. John Edwards --- FRIDAY, APRIL 12 -- GRASS-ROOTS CAMPAIGNETRAINING AND STRATEGY SESSIONS (See below for complete agenda) National Education Association 1201 16th Street, N.W. Speakers include: Paul Begala, Jim Hightower, Celinda Lake, Joel Rogers ------ Complete Agenda follows: WEDNESDAY, APRIL 10 -- AWARDS DINNER The Capitol Hill Hyatt Regency 400 New Jersey Ave., N.W. 7 p.m. -- Gala Awards Dinner MC Molly Ivins -- Columnist, Author Rep. Nancy Pelosi -- House Minority Whip Dennis Vegas -- former Enron employee Gerald McEntee -- President, AFSCME Sen. Jon Corzine (D-N.J.) --- THURSDAY, APRIL 11 -- POLICY CONFERENCE National Press Club 529 14th Street, N.W. (14th & F) 9 a.m. Uniting America -- Rejecting the Enron Future: Press Conference -- Robert Borosage -- Campaign for America's Future -- Stanley Greenberg -- Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research -- John Sweeney -- President, AFL-CIO -- Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) -- Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) 10 a.m. Gov. Howard Dean, Vermont 10:20 a.m. A Program for a Strong Homeland -- Katrina vanden Heuvel -- editor, The Nation -- Robert Kuttner -- founder and co-editor, American Prospect -- Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) -- Chellie Pingree -- Candidate for U.S. Senate in Maine -- John Podesta -- Senior Fellow, Natural Resources Defense Council 11:45 a.m. House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt 1 p.m. Lunch Session -- Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.) 2 p.m. Breakout Workshops -- Confronting Enronomics -- Arianna Huffington, Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) -- Retirement Security -- Rep. Robert Matsui (D-Calif.) -- Health Care -- Rep. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) -- Global Crisis -- Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) -- Poverty and Family Support -- Expanding Democracy 3:30 p.m. Building a Coalition That Can Win in 2002 -- Rev. Jesse Jackson -- President, Rainbow-Push Coalition -- Kim Gandy -- President, National Organization for Women -- Eliseo Medina -- Executive Vice President, SEIU -- Deb Callahan -- President, League of Conservation Voters -- Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-Minn.) --- FRIDAY, APRIL 12 -- TRAINING AND STRATEGY SESSIONS National Education Association 1201 16th Street, N.W. 9 a.m. Panel of Pollsters -- Celinda Lake -- President, Lake Snell Perry and Associates -- Rodolfo de la Garza -- Professor, Columbia University; Vice President, Tomas Rivera Policy Institute -- Ron Lester -- President, Lester and Associates -- Gloria Totten -- Director, Progressive Majority PAC 10:15 a.m. Workshop Strategy Sessions: -- Social Security -- Health Care -- Enron -- National Campaign for Jobs and Income Support -- Living Wage -- State Progressive Activism confronts State Fiscal Crisis -- National Housing Trust Fund Campaign -- Mobilizing Young Voters -- Internet Activism 11:30 a.m. -- Paul Begala -- Political activist; co-host, CNN Crossfire; Author, with James Carville, of the new book, "Buck Up, Suck Up...and Come Back When You Foul Up." -- Ben Cohen -- founder, Ben and Jerry's, and organizer of Contract With the Planet, a project of the Priorities Campaign. -- Jim Hightower -- populist political agitator, media commentator, organizer of Rolling Thunder Down Home Democracy Tour -- Joel Rogers -- Professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison For more information on RECLAIMING AMERICA and to view a regularly updated conference agenda, go to www.ourfuture.org. |