The Conscience of a Liberal: Reclaiming the Compassionate Agenda

by Paul Wellstone

From his earliest childhood memories to the college classroom, from rural Minnesota farm fields and the defense of workers' rights to his 1990 election campaign promises of politics for the benefit of the people, The Conscience of a Liberal candidly discusses Wellstone's life experiences and the coming-of-age of his political views. What emerges is an intriguing inside look at Wellstone's crusade to assert an unabashedly liberal agenda. From the moment he was elected, Wellstone has passionately articulated a path to economic and social justice for all citizens, justice not contingent on the size of a person's bank account or their political influence. A call for personal politics and deep commitment to beliefs, Wellstone's tenure as a U.S. senator has been a vigorous, at times outraged, and always active fight for support for farmers, working families, and other Minnesotans; for decent jobs, improved health care, a good education, and retirement security. At once responding to the conservative hijacking of compassion as a political yardstick and explaining his own political record, Wellstone engagingly elucidates what contrasts conservative and liberal interests and, as always, rouses progressives to influence the future of American politics.

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction, Biography, Memoir, Economics, Biography Memoir, History

216 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Paul David Wellstone was a two-term U.S. Senator from the state of Minnesota and member of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, which is affiliated with the national Democratic Party. Before being elected to the Senate in 1990, he was a professor of political science at Carleton College. Wellstone was a liberal and a leading spokesman for the liberal wing of the national Democratic Party. He served in the Senate from 1991 until his death in a plane crash on 25 October 2002, 11 days before the US senate election in which he was running for a third term. His wife, Sheila, and daughter, Marcia, also died in the crash. They had two other grown children, David and Mark, who now co-chair the Wellstone Action nonprofit group.

Reviews

[Barb · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a tremendous man. What a tremendous loss to Minnesota and the nation. Just two points to show how good he was - he voted against authorizing the requested ability to go to war in Iraq, and he presented legislation in the US Senate for single payer health care.
Wonderful senator, great humanitarian, tremendous man. Paul, you are sadly missed, but it looks like Al Franken is on the right track.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

I moved to Minneapolis during the summer of 2002. A friend of mine, upon leaving IU, told me how much I was going to love living in Paul Wellstone's state. Within a short time of living there, I realized that everyone had their own Wellstone story. Be it about meeting him at a coffee shop or seeing him address a group of listeners off the back of the green bus...it was a movement that I was looking forward to being a part of.

Unfortunately, my Wellstone story is going to his memorial service at Williams Arena.

I watched a documentary the other day that talked a lot about Wellstone, and I realized i needed to learn more about him. This book is less about the progressive agenda, and more about Wellstone the Senator. I wrote a friend of mine "It almost makes me cry...to think about what could have been if Wellstone were still active in the Senate."

Anyone remotely interested in the progressive movement, and inspired by grass-roots politics, must read this book.

[Misha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I seriously cry when I think of this man (Mason Jennings' song does it, too). He's one of the best politicians this country has ever had, mainly because he was a PERSON first. He was passionate and unswerving in his support of what he thought was right, and never bowed to pressures or polls. The untimely death of Paul and Shiela Wellstone is one of the great losses in my lifetime. For reals.

http://www.metrolyrics.com/ballad-of-...

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Senator Wellstone's tragic death is a huge loss for the country and the state of Minnesota. His book really pushes the idea of being a senator with convictions. He won his senatorial seat not by out spending his opponent but by not not being afraid of know the needs of his community and by not being political (doing what he believes is right). There is a good amount of explanation on procedural politics in the book where Wellstone will state that several Senators wouldn't support a bill because they feared that that vote would not bode well for their re-election. What I loved about Senator Wellstone was that he admits that being re-elected is not a given and he believes in supporting the people, which includes a single payer health care system, living wages, lifting up those in poverty, and creating a system where our elders can retire in dignity. An America where most Americans don't have to worry about draining our life savings for a medical procedure (don't even get me started with gofundme pages to support medical operations) when American's live in one of thee most prosperous countries in the world. There's a lot of talk of grass-roots organizing to support and oppose ideas/legislation, almost ad nauseam. He also talks about how he dreaded raising money for re-election campaigns and was an advocate for campaign finance reform, as it would release people from begging for money. I wonder what he would think now seventeen years later with Citizens United (eye roll).

[Keenan · Rating 4 out of 5]

We all do better when we all do better.

[Clay H · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every Democrat needs to read this book. Wellstone perfectly explains what a liberal (Democrats in the U.S.) need to focus on and what being an American liberal is all about. Can’t recommend enough.

[Ujjal Bathla]

I finished this book a few months ago, some time before the success of Zohran Mamdani’s primary campaign. There was a quotation that stuck out to me when I read this book, but I kept it in my back pocket just to make sure what I was seeing would actually come to pass.

At the end of this book when Senator Wellstone is laying out the path forward for people who share progressive values he rightfully states that what is needed is

“not a third party but an independent political force that does a lot of organizing within the Democratic Party--especially candidate recruitment and elections. This new political force must introduce fresh perspectives into the political dialogue of our country; recruit candidates; provide the training, skills, and resources for winning campaigns; build an infrastructure of field directors and campaign managers; have a savvy media presence; apply effective grassroots organizing to electoral politics; and build political leadership at the local, state, and federal levels of government.”

[Max Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The famous abolitionist Wendell Phillips was once asked: 'Wendell, why are you so on fire?' He responded, 'I'm on fire because I have mountains of ice before me to melt'. So do we."

One of the better political memoirs I've read, and that's before taking into account the fact that it was so ahead of it's time. Senator Wellstone was advocating for Medicare For All back in 1994, he was talking about grassroots organizing like 2016 Sanders. His command of progressive causes was impressive on its own, but when you consider that this book was written in 2001, it's incredible.

The Senator touches on issues from mental health to corruption to winning an underdog campaign. His main message is simple: conventional politics is dying, we need to capture the energy of the "democratic wing of the democratic party" and build a movement. Grassroots organizing is the only way to overcome entrenched powers, so there's no reason to appeal to the moderates sitting on their couch. We must appeal to the people who are flocking to the streets.

Wellstone died in 2002, just before his third Senate election. All I could think when reading this is that as horrible as our politics are today, he would love the energy that's erupted around the country. The Climate Strikes, Women's Marches, it would have brought him immense joy.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

The most depressing part of this book is not that we have lost Senator Wellstone. Though bad enough, what is worse is how fresh his list of challenges is and how accurate his fears have become.

We've got a lot of work to make America "a more perfect union" and it seems we've only lost ground since this book was written.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was enthusiastically written (sometimes at break-neck pace) and thorough, but I couldn't tell if it was a memoir or a platform thesis.

Intense and sometimes a bit muddy, it is nonetheless a good, quick read for anyone interested in the work Wellstone was doing and the tragedy that his death truly was. We lost a great champion of the least, the lost and the lowly when he died.

[Lexi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Published shortly before Wellstone's death, a compelling rationale for fighting for progressive issues. These issues continue to be important even as politics seems to be more divisive than ever. I wonder when we'll find another willing to fight so hard for real people.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before reading this book I knew little to nothing about Senator Paul Wellstone, but this gave me an in-depth look into his progressive philosophy and how it applied to the 1990s-early 2000s era Senate culture. This was as much of a progressive manifesto as it was a unique perspective of the inner workings of US politics by a truly principled and honorable progressive politician.

I feel like anyone who reviews this book post-2016 is obligated to mention how similar his worldview and approach to politics is to Senator Bernie Sanders. I can only imagine how involved in the progressive fight Senator Wellstone would still be today. His tragic death came way too soon—I’m honestly disappointed I hadn’t read this book sooner.

More young progressives should familiarize themselves with Senator Wellstone, as he was a pioneer of the progressive movement we have today.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Paul Wellstone described very well the goals for progressives and liberals to reach for. One is to simply make people's lives better. Most people don't care about straight Democrat or Republican politics but they do care deeply about issues that affect them. The key to reaching these people and to create enough power to affect change and overcome the entrenched money, lobbying, and power is grassroots organizing. It means talking to people and asking them what the important issues are to them.

[Robin Gitelman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite highlighting how many of the issues we were fighting in the 90s are still with us, this left me optimistic, wanting to support more candidates that are liberal and progressive and knowing that "when we fight, we win".

It's a shame that we lost Wellstone to an airplane crash soon after this book was published. He would have been fighting as hard for us today as he was before he was killed if he were still here.

[Stephen Prince · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Sometimes, the only realists are dreamers. Robert Kennedy once said, “The future will not belong to those who are content with the present.” I think the future will not belong to those who are cynical or those who stand on the sideline. The future will being to those who have passion and are willing to work hard to make our country better. The future will belong to those in Eleanor Roosevelt’s words, “who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”

The Late Senator Paul Wellstone (1944-2002)

[Chaz Ricks · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I began this book I was interested in learning more about liberal ideology and schools of thought. This was not that book. However, I still enjoyed it and I think it shows how big the chasm is between Democrats and Republicans these days, compared to 12 years ago. I do feel like this book was written for his own ego... but I still learned a lot from reading it.

[Raina Meyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a gift to have, especially after losing Paul Wellstone far too soon. It’s a window into his mind, his political strategy, his passion, and the knowledge he earned through working in political organizing for years. It instills fear and knowledge in a way that leaves you feeling hopeful, something we desperately need nowadays. I will always come back to this book and I cherish it.

[Mary Warner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very appropriate reading for today's political climate. Paul Wellstone would be appalled at what has happened to our country, but he would double down and try even harder to fix things.

[John P. Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Decent summary of what is needed for progressives to move forward.

[Zack Rizzo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I moved to Minnesota nearly 17 full years after Paul Wellstone’s passing and the impact this man still has on local political discourse is electric. It’s nearly impossible to have a conversation about Minnesota politics without Wellstone’s name coming up in the first few minutes. He was a true grass-roots progressive whose moral compass seemed to always come first in his guidance. The ideas he presented 20+ years ago fit right into the discussions had today. His wish for our country, more palpable then ever, can best be summed up in his own often repeated phrase, “We all do better when we all do better.” Indeed.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent exposition of the Wellstone approach by the man himself.

[Kevin Hawkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some good advice for today. It's worth the read.

[Adam Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still remarkably prescient 20-some years later. Paul's convictions are still a powerful guiding force.

[Edith Lueke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book, am re-reading now after having first read this book just before Paul was killed in that plane accident.

[Aaron Arnold · Rating 5 out of 5]

While I was too young to have known much about Wellstone before he died in the tragic 2002 plane crash, I was old enough to appreciate the cosmic justice when Al Franken recaptured his seat from Norm Coleman in 2008. It should go without saying that Wellstone was one of the few Senators who weren't complete garbage, thanks to his unwavering support for economic fairness, which has been one of the main casualties of the Democratic Party's trans-Clintonian realignment. It's extremely reinvigorating to read through the sections where Wellstone talks about what moves him: unglamorous fights over issues like mental illness, drug addiction, and childhood poverty don't get the kind of glitzy TV coverage that gay rights campaigns do, but they are far more fundamental in terms of making a real difference in people's lives. It takes a lot of courage to take on economic interests the way that Wellstone did, and his comment that he represents "the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party" is both an inspiring message to those who care about the same issues that he did and a sad indictment of the pro-corporate corruption that has neutered a big chunk of the party that claims the "progressive" mantle. Only by actually standing for something can a party really endure as more than a cash-infused vampire, and the work that Wellstone did to keep real issues on the agenda is a small but absolutely indispensable part of the Herculean task of improving the world around us. If the Senate had 99 more Wellstones it would be ten thousand times better of an institution.

[Jim Hammer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although this book was dated...(Wellstone is deceased.)...it amazed me in how many of the issues that Wellstone dealt with in the Senate, and how many problems that he predicted have come to fruition. Wellstone was a quick study on the methods of the Senate and knew how to work within the confines of those parameters. His stories of dealing with senators of the opposing party, Dole, Mack, Helms, McCain and those he admired Simon, Harkin, Kennedy made me realize that there at one point in time were those willing to work with the opposing party, unlike today. He makes a strong case regarding the problem with money in elections and has interesting ideas about how to level the playing field. He encourages the reader and I believe other congressmen to vote his or her conscience rather than his or her campaign donor's conscience. Anyone who still believes in the power of the common person should read this book. Wellstone is what I want in a senator, something that seems to be becoming all too rare.

[S · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book could easily have been written today - were it not of course for the fact that Wellstone died the year after it was written. The issues presented in it are still issues today - and given that I was a child during all of the events he describes, it's actually quite shocking to learn how little progress we've made in 12-20 years. I did not know much about Wellstone or his career prior to reading this, despite being a native Minnesotan (I had just turned 15 a few days before his death) but having read this, I am struck with how sad it is that so many of the issues he writes about are even worse than they were in 2001 (the Citizens United decision, especially - the chapter on campaign finance reform was hard to read knowing that we've back-slid since then) and how desperately we could have used a progressive leader like him in our Senate now. I love how focused he was on economic justice and on poor people - one of the few senators who would ever even see poor people, much less fight for them. Definitely an example that those of us modern progressives need to look to.

[Rick Hogaboam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this when I was 20. Sen. Wellstone was the Bernie Sanders of that era. His life was tragically cut short. I didn't agree with everything in the book, but I recommend that folks read all sides of every issue, and I found this a passionate apologia for progressive liberalism. This is an obvious response of sorts to Barry Goldwater's *The Conscience of a Conservative*. When I say "passionate apologia," I don't suggest that I agree with all of his assertions, but you can't argue with the man's heart, which by all accounts was very sincere. And I read this, and many other books from the left, because some of my closest friends were progressives who hated cronyism. We detested cronyism and corporate welfare, together, albeit with differing ideas on the cause and ultimate solutions.

Seeing the popularity of Bernie Sanders makes me wonder what the future could've been for Sen. Wellstone, whom I found to be an even more persuasive voice and intellect for the very ideas that are capturing the moral imagination of so many young folks.

[Jeffrey Mervosh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this shortly after Paul Wellstone passed away, and to this day it is the closest I have to a personal inspiration. Paul truly believed in a politics for the people, something that is sorely lacking today. “A politics that is not sensitive to the concerns and circumstances of people's lives, a politics that does not speak to and include people, is an intellectually arrogant politics that deserves to fail.”

The simple belief that we should never separate the life we lead from the words we speak is one that I hold close.

“The future will not belong to those who sit on the sidelines. The future will not belong to the cynics. The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”

And those willing to stand up for them.

[Mike Edwards · Rating 4 out of 5]

To state my bias up front, Paul Wellstone has long been the politician that I admired most. Wellstone always fought to improve the lives of the underdogs and the downtrodden--which, to my way of thinking, is exactly what political leaders ought to do. This book is a reflection on many of his most hard-fought battles towards that end, and includes a lot of information about the tactics and strategies that he employed.

The book has a bit more of the feel of a memoir than I initially expected, and I can't say that I always agreed with everything Wellstone fought for. But his heart was always in the right place, and I strongly admire his energy and his attitude of "we know what to do, so let's go do it!", and those things come through very strongly here.