Each summer here in DC, we are overwhelmed with young folks who are ready to make their mark on the world. Most of them will end up as fellows or interns on Capitol Hill or with political organizations around the city.
In another example of conservative infrastructure being more advanced than progressives', several organizations put together events specifically targeted at these conservative leaders of tomorrow to ensure they are indoctrinated with bad conservative ideas today.
Here at 21st Century Democrats, we are pushing back with our own Youth Leadership Speaker Series.
Our goal is to have as many progressive leaders as we can speak to the next generation of progressives. We ask them to speak about how progressives can change the world and how young people can be actively involved in the process.
This year we are jazzed to have:
# Senator Barbara Boxer
# Senator Tom Harkin
# Senator Amy Klobuchar
# Representative James Clyburn
# Representative John Lewis
# Representative John Sarbanes
# Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz
# Representative Henry Waxman
# Jeff Blum
# Robert Greenstein
# Gene Karpinski
# Nancy Keenan
# Jamal Simmons
# Joe Trippi
Our first event was last week and well attended. We had Jamal Simmons, Robert Greenstein and Senator Klobuchar.
Our own Summer Fellows have written up some excellent highlights of each speaker. Corey Goldiner wrote about how Robert Greenstein "ridiculed the Bush Administration’s careless and unprincipled fiscal policy. Recalling that in 2000(only 8 years ago!) Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan was testifying before Congress that taxes may need to be cut so the surplus does not get too big; Greenstein described a struggling economy ready for new leadership."
Summer Fellow, Jeffrey Phillips, penned that Senator Klobuchar "had all of the attendees laughing the entire time and even invited everyone over to her office for breakfast anytime that the Senate is in session. For anyone interested the breakfast offered in Senator Klobuchar’s office is for Minnesotans and friends of Minnesota. She made sure to point out to all of the Hill interns that their internships would serve them well. One of the members of her staff who attended the event with her had started out as an intern in her office, and the Senator herself had started off as an intern on Capitol Hill."
And Summer Fellow, Leonora Hanks, captured how Jamal Simmons, "After a question and answer session, Simmons offered some last wise words of advice to all of us listening. He warned us against shortsightedness, saying not to sacrifice what we want most for what we want right now. Simmons also spoke about karma, quoting his father who used to say 'If you’re angry and it feels good, don’t do it.'"
We have 3 more events and we hope that those young progressives you've entrusted to the DC establishment this summer return with wisdom and energy to remake America in a progressive image.