 Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer made waves in the 2006 election cycle by running against long-time fifth district Congressman Martin Sabo before Sabo decided to retire, setting off a frenzy of campaigning for the seat. The professor and social activist has now set a new challenge before himself: deciding whether to run for a chance to face Norm Coleman for the U.S. Senate seat once occupied by Paul Wellstone. I sat down with him on Saturday for an interview.
Pallmeyer said right off the bat that he has not decided for sure to get into the race. Rather, he is checking with Minnesotans on "whether you'll partner with me to address the issues we face. I hope to decide by the end of the summer, and I'm not just running an exploratory committee so I can announce, and then announce again. I really want to have a statewide conversation about where we are as a country. If it proves impossible, then I'll use my voice in other ways."
Pallmeyer has spent decades focusing on the political and economic roots of poverty. He has traveled to Chile, Ethiopia, Sri Lanka, the Middle East, and spent significant time in Nicaragua during the turbulent 1980s.
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| On his entry into the political arena in 2006: "A lot of progressive Democrats were upset about Iraq. At one point I debated [Congressman] Jim Ramstad, and it's really telling that everything he said about Iraq was wrong. So I had been speaking about the Bush Administration's agenda, which is pretty clearly projection of power and control of oil, and when some progressive Dems asked me to run, I surprised myself by saying 'maybe'. I like Martin Sabo, but I needed to press issues, and I said that I would only run if lots of people would help. I think we changed the debate in that race, and we really modeled a different kind of politics, where yes, campaigning is hard work, but it can also be fun."
I asked Pallmeyer about the candidate who eventually won the DFL endorsement, primary, and general election in that 2006 race, Keith Ellison. He said Ellison was a good choice, an "authentic progressive": "He has a positive way of doing politics, and has a good record on environmental issues. I understand why he voted the way he did, but I disagreed with his vote on the Iraq supplemental bill."
Going forward, Pallmeyer reiterated that he has not decided for sure whether to run, but explained why his website is not entitled "Jack for Senate" or something similar: "'Most Important Decade' comes from a quote by a NASA scientist speaking on global climate change, who said that we have ten years not to decide what we're going to do, but to dramatically change the way we affect our planet. I take the term very seriously -- there's a sense of urgency about this issue, and our politicians need to reflect that urgency."
On his major issues, Pallmeyer did not mince words: renewable energy was number one. "There's tremendous potential in a renewable energy economy. We can create millions of good jobs, revitalize our manufacturing base -- it's not just a climate change issue.
"The purpose of good government should be to make sure that the benefits of the economy are dispersed widely and that taxes are invested for the common good. The rules of the economic game are undermining the health of our families." Pallmeyer said that he supports Single Payer health care, which he says will bring efficiency to the health coverage in America.
In terms of campaign mechanics, Pallmeyer said that if he gets into the race, he will abide by the DFL endorsement, and hopes to bring the issues of public campaign finance and instant runoff voting to the fore. He is currently limiting donations to $250 per individual, a shade over 10% of the legal limit, in an effort to inform Minnesotans that "democracy is threatened by the corrosive influence of money...running statewide would definitely be a geographic challenge, but my goal is an interactive process. I want to hear from Minnesotans and hopefully galvanize a public movement." |
