Al Gore, Krugman, Feinman, Prof Michael Berube, etc

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Obama, Axelrod, Joe Trippi, Pete Rouse, Howard Dean

Somebody to balance out voices like Amitai Etzioni -- we could use a truly social liberal with an even libertarian attitude towards consensual or victimless crimes. We could also use a truly liberal foreign policy voice who could balance out all of the "concert of democracies" stuff that's been published here on and off for the last couple of years.

Seconding Howard Dean (although he's probably even a bit busier than usual next week) and Howard Zinn.

I took from what you wrote, Lila, maybe incorrectly, that the discussion will be on how to grow the Democratic party as an institution that can work effectively in tension with, and be responsive to, a growing progressive political "movement". (maybe "movements" is more accurate) in our country.

Paul Hawken has written, in Blessed Unrest, on the flowering, globally, of progressive movements and organizations. He might have an interesting perspective.

Consider an unorthodox choice such as Linda Stout, a grassroots organizer from a modest background and author of Bridging the Class Divide: and Other Lessons for Grassroots Organizing. I'd be interested in whether she sees changes in recent years in the possibilities for a progressive political mobilization or mobilizations at the grassroots level, and what her experiences are continuing to teach her.

Getting farther "out there", University of Notre Dame professor Jackie Smith has studied and written on transnational social movements, specifically in connection with the World Social Forums, which I read a bit about recently in her short Global Democracy and the World Social Forums but some folks here may not be aware of. Her insights might be interesting.

I like hearing from the cafe's own Nathan Newman on this because it seems as though he actually talks to organizers and people at the grassroots level who are working locally or regionally trying to build infrastructure for progressive politics.

Maybe Matt Bai, for the abbreviated postscript he'd write to The Argument if he wrote it next week. I'd be interested in what he considers to be the most interesting responses to his book and how his thinking has continued to evolve since he wrote it, including what he's both more sure and less sure about.

If you could get him, Al Gore I am sure would have interesting things to say on this.