The Little Guy's Little Man
by James Hall, Senior Associate Editor
October 28, 2002
"Leaning Left"
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Perhaps
it's hard to take yourself too seriously when you're five feet five. But when
asked about his chances to win the 2000 Democratic nomination for president,
Paul Wellstone (right) responded by saying, "I'm short, liberal, and Jewish
--- what do you think my chances are?" Though Wellstone never thought too much
of himself, he cared a great deal for his native Minnesota and for the underdog,
dedicating his work to them. With his death, liberals lose their clearest voice
in the Senate and the little guys, one of their most vocal champions.
From the very beginning of his political career, Paul Wellstone relished being the underdog and winning the come-from-behind battle. In 1990, his first political race for the Senate, he crisscrossed Minnesota in a green and white bus, slept in the homes of supporters, and challenged his opponent, Sen. Rudy Boschwitz, to debate using a series of quirky ads with a "Where's Rudy?" theme. He won that election, shocking his party, the state, and the nation.
When Paul Wellstone entered the Senate, he was largely regarded as a flake by the orthodox body, but soon made friends on the both sides of the aisle with his considerable personal style, his wit, humor and compassion. He never descended into the harsh political invective that's become characteristic of Washington politics, and his liberal idealism, rather than party partisanship, made it possible for him to work with senators on both sides of the aisle.
Paul Wellstone's concern for human rights led to an alliance with Sen. Jesse Helms (R-NC) in the fight over the admission of Red China to the World Trade Organization. Though not a veteran himself, he worked hard with Republican and Democratic senators to improve benefits for veterans, particularly homeless veterans. He fought a bankruptcy reform bill that benefited the banks and finance companies over destitute Americans who'd lost their jobs. His last, unfinished collaboration was with Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM) on a Mental Health Parity Act which would give patients with mental health conditions the same insurance coverage as those with physical conditions.
On the other hand Wellstone never minded voting in the minority, so long as the cause was right. At a time when corporate-friendly New Democrats were ascendant in his party, Wellstone became one of the principal voices for Great Society liberalism, fighting the efforts of a coalition of Republicans and Democrats to roll back the welfare entitlement and fighting tax breaks for corporations like Enron while millions of the unemployed faced the loss of their benefits. He challenged the underfunded education bill compromise worked out between George W. Bush and Ted Kennedy ---"education with a tin cup," as he put it.
Paul Wellstone proved his idealism with his final vote as a senator when he voted against the Senate resolution to authorize a war against Iraq. Wellstone argued that military force should be a last resort, and that Congress should wait to let President Bush exhaust every other opportunity before authorizing it. Wellstone was the only Democratic senator up for reelection to defy the president, and confided to aides that he thought the vote would cost him his reelection.
But it's likely that Wellstone was wrong. Polls showed him gaining on opponent Norm Coleman as Minnesotans responded yet again to a man who let his conscience be his guide in the Senate, even if they disagreed with him on this issue. At a time when our national politicians move their positions to the center, driven by polls, Paul Wellstone stood out as man who steered his course by his beliefs. Minnesota will miss him, but so will the nation's disadvantaged and "the little guy," in a Washington that increasingly caters to the "big guys" of both parties. ***
© 2002 James Hall
COPYRIGHT © 2002 BY THE AMERICAN PARTISAN. All writers retain rights to their work.
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