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> Finding A Primary Challenger
The New Progressive Alliance has begun contacting prospective challengers to Barack Obama for the 2012 Democratic Party presidential nomination.
A new and growing organization, the NPA is dedicated to shifting the electoral paradigm in America from one that is largely closed, and in which voters are given only two choices - bad and worse, and both beholden to for-profit conglomerates - to a truly open system which enables genuine social democracy.
As the first of its two-stage strategy for achieving this goal, the NPA is actively seeking a 2012 primary challenger who will commit to turning the electoral process as we know it on its head.
Readers of the progressive blog "MyFDL" chose ten current and former Democrats as prospective primary challengers to Mr. Obama last fall. Elizabeth Warren placed first, followed by Russ Feingold, Howard Dean, Richard Trumka, Alan Grayson, Cynthia McKinney, Al Franken, Paul Krugman, Dennis Kucinich, and Jane Hamsher.
We seek a challenger who recognizes the rare opportunity 2012 provides for boldly stating and conveying Americana' broad support of real Progressive policy and programs. Our challenger must pledge to oppose Mr. Obama throughout the primary season, and to play a key role in the second stage of our strategy, by changing the familiar, "traditional" script, and throwing their support not to Mr. Obama, but to a yet-to-be-determined independent or third-party candidate who earns the NPA's endorsement.
That endorsement will not come easily. Both the primary challenger and the general election candidate we eventually endorse must publicly pledge to uphold the NPA's core values, also chosen by readers at MyFDL last fall: Full Employment, Medicare for All, Civil Rights / Human Rights / Civil Liberties, Fair Trade, and Ending the Wars Immediately. (See related story, "Steering Committee Supports Work on a Unified Platform," below.)
NPA volunteer Ed has written a terrific recruitment letter customized for each of the prospective primary challengers. We gratefully acknowledge his hard work.
> Coming Soon: NewProgs.org
Thanks to the efforts of two more volunteers, Tenisha and Jay, the NPA will soon have an online home!
NewProgs.org will list the members of the NPA Steering Committee; link to every issue of The NPA Update; report on our work toward a Unified Progressive Platform; detail the organization's short, mid, and long-term goals; list membership and volunteer opportunities, and offer many more features.
We'll send out a notification when NewProgs.org goes live.
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Without the help of volunteers like Jay, Tenisha and Ed, the progress you're reading about would be impossible. Survey after survey has shown more than 60 percent of Americans favor Progressive policy initiatives, but a relatively small number of professional corporate and political elites prevent those voices from being heard, and America from joining the global community of social democracies. We will not change this reality without the help of large numbers of everyday people who are committed to doing so. The NPA seeks State Founders, writers, organizers, researchers and legal and accounting pros. If you can't volunteer, become a paid member; your membership donation will support our work. Either way, we'd love to hear from you. And thanks.
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> Spotlight: United Progressives
Several weeks ago, former Massachusetts gubernatorial candidate and NPA Steering Committee member Jill Stein's suggested United Progressives as a potential member of the NPA. Her idea has created what looks to be a promising partnership. From the United Progressives' "About" page:
"A policy group was formed following the end of the 2008 Presidential bid of Dennis Kucinich by seven people from his campaign who sought ways to advance the objectives of progressives through alternative avenues.
"It was clear, through our experience with the campaign and from long experience with the American system of government, that change was needed. American citizens are not being adequately represented.
"One of the alternatives our policy project decided to act upon is United Progressives, a union intended to unite progressives on issues rather than candidates. By uniting progressives on issues rather than candidates, we believe that the change we seek in our lives and to our political system of government is possible."
After representing United Progressives in an observing role during the March meeting of the NPA Steering Committee, Paul Barrow, one of the organization's founders, received a terrific response to this diary, which he posted both at his organization's site and the progressive blog, "MyFDL."
We urge you to consider joining United Progressives - a group which shares the NPA's underpinning beliefs of issues over identity and strength in Progressive unity.
> Steering Committee Supports Work on a Unified Platform
In its March phone conference, the NPA Steering Committee supported efforts to assemble a Unified Progressive Platform.
Jill Stein, Cindy Sheehan, Paul Barrow, and Norman Bie joined NPA facilitator Anthony Noel via phone March 28th. Labor organizer Alan Maki could not join the call but provided his thoughts via an advance email. Absent due to prior commitments were Richard Winger, Cornel West, and David Swanson.
The Unified Platform is being worked on now by NPA volunteers. Five more simply stated values, incorporating beliefs stated in existing platforms of various Progressive organizations, will be added to the five chosen last fall by MyFDL readers, and all ten will be supported in a detailed position paper.
When completed and approved by the Steering Committee and its members organizations, the Unified Platform will be housed at the NPA website and presented to other Progressive organizations to encourage them in joining the Alliance.
> Calling All Artists: Design the NPA's Logo!
As NewProgs.org is readied to go live, we're seeking the definitive graphic representation of the NPA's mission. If you painted "our" picture, what would it look like?
Submit your design as a .jpg file, by June 1, 2011. We're looking for a bold, immediately recognizable logo that conveys a theme of unity. It should also remain crisp and clear when reproduced in a variety of sizes.
The winning design will appear in all NPA communications. Enter as many designs as you like, but each must include the acronym "NPA" and/or the words "New Progressive Alliance." Five finalists will be chosen by the NPA Steering Committee, with final voting to take place online at "MyFDL."
The winning designer receives a lifetime membership in the NPA; a one-year Benefactor's Membership to FireDogLake; and the pride of knowing they've contributed to a movement seeking to fundamentally change the way politics is done in America.
Click here to email your design - and good luck!
(All entries become property of the NPA; entry constitutes assignment of each design's copyright and ownership to the New Progressive Alliance.) | 
