Campaign for America's Future

Campaign for America's Future (CAF) is an American political organization of progressives. Its main issues of concern include the environment, energy independence, health care reform, Social Security, and education. "The Nation" editor Katrina vanden Heuvel, AFL-CIO president John Sweeney, and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa serve on its board of directors.

Within the Democratic Party, it often serves as a counterweight to the Democratic Leadership Council (DLC). [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/01/AR2005060101798.html] , June 2, 2006. Retrieved June 23, 2007.] CAF argues that the Democratic Party should draw sharp contrasts with the Republicans and advance a progressive agenda, while the DLC argues that the party should pursue a centrist policy.

CAF is a 501(c)(4) non-profit organization. It has a sister organization called the Institute for America's Future which is a 501(c)(3) non-partisan think tank that conducts research and analysis and publishes reports about political and economic policy issues.

The Institute for America's Future and the Center on Wisconsin Strategy sponsor a joint project called the Apollo Alliance, a coalition of environmentalists and labor unions, which seeks to commit the United States to energy independence while providing opportunity for what new "green-collar" jobs in the energy sector. It is named after John F. Kennedy's Apollo program. [http://www.apolloalliance.org/about_the_alliance/] , June 20, 2007. Retrieved June 23, 2007.]

Founders and advisors

CAF has listed the following 130 people as founders:

* Gar Alperovitz, National Center for Economic Alternatives
* Ira Arlook, Fenton Communications and New Economy Communications
* John Atlas, National Housing Institute
* Morton Bahr, Communication Workers of America
* Peter Barnes, Redefining Progress/Working Assets
* Ann Beaudry, People for the American Way
* George Becker, United Steelworkers of America
* Berkley Bedell, former member of Congress
* Lara Bergthold, Act III Communications
* Paul Berman
* Jules Bernstein
* Mary Frances Berry, United States Commission on Civil Rights
* Susan Bianchi-Sand, National Committee on Pay Equity
* Moe Biller, American Postal Workers Union
* Norman Birnbaum, Georgetown University Law Center
* Arthur Blaustein, University of California, Berkeley
* Barry Bluestone, Northeastern University
* Julian Bond, NAACP Board Chair
* Heather Booth, founder, Midwest Academy
* Robert Borosage, Campaign for America's Future
* Jim Braude, Critical Mass Media
* Thomas Buffenbarger, Machinists Union
* Marc Caplan, Northeast Action
* David Carley
* Hodding Carter
* John Cavanagh, Institute for Policy Studies
* Bob Chase, National Education Association
* Richard Cloward, Columbia University
* Jeff Cohen, Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR)
* Mitchell Cohen, "Dissent", co-editor
* Barry Commoner, Queens College
* Ken Cook, Environmental Working Group
* G. William Domhoff, University of California, Santa Cruz
* Douglas H. Dority, United Food and Commercial Workers
* Peter Dreier, Occidental College
* Dudley Dudley, Women Legislator's Lobby
* Barbara Ehrenreich, writer
* Robert Eisner, Northwestern University
* Jeff Faux, Economic Policy Institute
* Diane Feldman, The Feldman Group
* Edward Fire, International Union of Electronic Workers
* Dick Flacks, University of California, Santa Barbara
* Nancy Folbre, University of Massachusetts Amherst
* Steve Fraser, Houghton Mifflin
* Betty Friedan
* Jeannette Galanis, United States Student Association
* James K. Galbraith, Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs, University of Texas at Austin
* Herbert Gans, Columbia University
* Paul Gaston, University of Virginia
* Thomas Geoghegan, author, "Which Side Are You On?"
* Todd Gitlin, New York University
* Chester Hartman, PRRAC
* Heidi Hartmann, Institute for Women's Policy Research
* Tom Hayden, California Legislature
* Denis Hayes, Earth Day founder
* Roger Hickey, Campaign for America's Future
* Jim Hightower, Hightower Radio
* Adam Hochschild
* Patricia Ireland, National Organization for Women
* Amy Isaacs, Americans for Democratic Action
* Jesse L. Jackson, Rainbow Coalition
* Christopher Jencks, Northwestern University
* Jaqueline Jones, Brandeis University
* Michael Kazin, author, "Populist Persuasion"
* Jackie Kendall, Midwest Academy
* Charles Knight, Commonwealth Institute
* George Kourpias
* Jonathan Kozol
* David Kusnet, former White House speechwriter
* Robert Kuttner, "American Prospect"
* Rev. Peter Laarman, Judson Memorial Church
* Thea Lee, AFL-CIO, Assistant Director of Public Policy
* Nelson Lichtenstein, University of Virginia
* Judith Lichtman, National Partnership for Women and Families
* David Liederman, Child Welfare League of America
* Rev. Joseph Lowery, Southern Christian Leadership Conference
* Ray Marshall, University of Texas at Austin, former Secretary of Labor
* Steve Max, Midwest Academy
* Jay Mazur, UNITE
* Michael McCloskey, environmentalist
* Gerald W. McEntee, AFSCME
* Howard Metzenbaum, former U.S. Senator
* Harold Meyerson, "LA Weekly"
* S.M. Miller, Commonwealth Institute
* Lawrence Mishel, Economic Policy Institute
* Nan Grogan Orrock, Women Legislator's Lobby, Georgia House of Representatives
* Paul Osterman, MIT Sloan School of Management
* Maurice S. Paprin, Fund for New Priorities in America
* Richard Parker, Harvard University
* Wallace Peterson, University of Nebraska
* Frances Fox Piven
* Ron Pollack, Families USA Foundation
* Robert Pollin, University of Massachusetts Amherst
* Steve Protulis, National Council of Senior Citizens
* Miles Rapoport, President of Demos; former Secretary of the State
* Robert Reich, Brandeis University, former Secretary of Labor
* Frank Riessman, Social Policy
* Mark Ritchie, Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy
* Dennis Rivera, Health and Human Service Employees
* Cecil Roberts, United Mine Workers of America
* Joel Rogers, University of Wisconsin
* Richard Rorty, University of Virginia
* Sumner Rosen, Jobs for All
* Richard Rothstein
* Lillian Rubin, Institute for the Study of Social Change
* Arlie Schardt, Environmental Media Services
* Tom Schlesinger, Financial Markets Center
* Susan Shaer, Women's Action for New Direction
* Stanley Sheinbaum
* Jack Sheinkman, Americans For Democratic Action president
* John Simmons, Participation Associates
* Theda Skocpol, Harvard University
* Francis Smith, GreenVote
* Paul Soglin
* Andrew Stern, Service Employees International Union
* John J. Sweeney, AFL-CIO
* Linda Tarr-Whelan, Center for Policy Alternatives
* John E. Taylor, National Community Reinvestment Coalition
* Ellen Teninty, Just Economics
* Robert Theobald, Dynamic Learning Consortium
* Richard Trumka, AFL-CIO
* Katherine Villers, Families USA Foundation
* Philippe Villers, Families USA Foundation
* Ron Walters, University of Maryland, College Park
* Michael Walzer, "Dissent" co-editor
* Roger Wilkins, George Mason University
* Linda Faye Williams, University of Maryland, College Park
* William Julius Wilson, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University
* Leslie R. Wolfe, Center for Women Policy Studies
* Stephen P. Yokich, United Auto Workers

"Take Back America" conference

For the last five years, CAF has organized its annual Take Back America conference, a gathering of progressive activists, elected officials, bloggers, left-leaning media outlets, and others.

At the 2006 conference, Hillary Clinton was booed for her stance on the Iraq War. [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/13/AR2006061301449.html] , June 14, 2006. Retrieved June 27, 2007.]

In 2007, she was similarly booed, but not as loudly because since then, she has modified her position on the war. [http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/06/20/clinton-gets-better-reception-on-iraq/] , June 20, 2007. Retrieved June 23, 2007.] The Politico sponsored a straw poll in that Senator Barack Obama won with 29% of the vote. [http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0607/4573.html] , June 20, 2007. Retrieved June 23, 2007.]

The 2007 conference also honored the "progressive bloggers" with the Paul Wellstone Award, crediting them for driving the political debate. The once anonymous blogger [http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/ "Digby"] accepted the award, and in doing so, revealed that Digby was a woman from Santa Monica.

References

External links

* [http://www.ourfuture.org/ Campaign for America's Future]
* [http://www.ourfuture.org/institute/ Institute for America's Future]