Edwards Evening News: America Belongs to Us

Welcome to tonight's Edwards Evening News. Today, the Edwards campaign unveiled the America Belongs to Us campaign with a goal of getting one million voters to sign a pledge not to vote or caucus for any candidate who takes money from lobbyists and PACs. America belongs to all of us, and we're taking our country back! Click the image to sign the pledge.



Here's more on why America Belongs to Us from TomP's diary earlier today.

The "AMERICA BELONGS TO US" 2008 Pledge and website was anounced today by the Edwards campaign.

Lobbyists have taken control in Washington and America’s hard-working families pay the price. They've stopped universal health care. They've secured unfair and unsafe trade deals that have cost America good middle-class jobs. They've left our children at risk from unsafe toys. They've sabotaged clean energy legislation that would address global warming. And they've squashed efforts for cheaper generic prescription drugs. Enough is enough. America belongs to us.

If you want real change, Sign the Pledge:

Because I believe we need real change in America and an end to the broken system in Washington that works for special interests and not us, I pledge not to vote or caucus for a Democratic presidential candidate that accepts campaign contributions from Washington lobbyists and special interest PACs.

AmericaBelongsToUs2008.com

Edwards Walks the Picket Line with Striking Writers in New York

Yesterday, John Edwards walked the picket line in New York with striking members of the Writers Guild of America East. This is the second time during this presidential campaign that he has walked the picket line with striking workers, as Miss Laura pointed out in her front page diary earlier today. (It's definitely not the first time that he's showed up to support union workers, however, having participated in nearly 200 union events over the years.)




Edwards speaking to striking writers in New York

Edwards Explains His Healthcare Mandate

Today, Edwards explained the details of his healthcare mandate, which allows his healthcare plan to be truly universal.

"We need true universal health care reform that covers every single man, woman, and child in America. It is wrong to leave anyone without the care they need. A universal system will work better for all of us – delivering better care at lower cost.

"Barack Obama's plan leaves out 15 million people. The truth is that some people will choose not to buy insurance even though it's affordable, knowing that the rest of us will pay for their emergency room visits.

"But it is just as bad to say that everyone will have insurance without a plan to get there. Hillary Clinton says her plan will cover everyone through a 'mandate' but does not provide even the most rudimentary idea much less a detailed plan of how this 'mandate' would work. To get fundamental change in our health care system, we need a fundamental change in our politics. That starts with being clear and direct about what we are going to do and how we are going to do it."

Edwards' truly universal health care plan will ensure that every American has health insurance. He will require proof of insurance when income taxes are paid and when health care is provided. Families without insurance will be enrolled in Medicare, Medicaid, SCHIP or another targeted plan or be assigned a plan within new Health Care Markets.

Families who lose coverage will be expected to enroll in another plan or be assigned one. For the few people who refuse to pay, the government will help collect back premiums with interest and collection costs by using tools like the ones it uses for student loans and taxes, including collection agencies and wage garnishment.

Ezra Klein at Tapped had this to say:

Later today, John Edwards will announce the specifics of how his mandate works. And they're quite good. Whenever you come into contact with the health care system, or whenever you pay your taxes, you will be asked to provide proof of insurance, presumably a policy number or some similar identifier. If you cannot, you will automatically be enrolled in either a public plan that you qualify for (like Medicaid or S-CHIP) or the cheapest plan offered by his Health Insurance Market. Bills will then get sent out, and if they're not paid, will be collected just like the government collects on student loan debts, or taxes, or anything else, using tools up to and including collection agencies and wage garnishment. (It's notable, here, that Edwards doesn't shy away from saying what his stick will be.)

In this way, Edwards' plan is much less an individual mandate and much closer to a government mandate. The burden is less on the individual to seek new insurance and more on the government to simply enroll them in it. From there, they can opt in to a different insurer if they so choose, or simply stay with their default plan. It's a smart and efficient way to move towards universality, and, for now, it puts Edwards ahead of both Obama and Clinton on the substance of the policy, and the speed with which he presented it to the public.

PSSST! I hear a new ad is coming out in Iowa

I hear through the blogosphere grapevine that a new ad is coming out in Iowa in a couple of weeks, and our own Im4JRE, a longtime supporter from the Edwards blog, was there when they filmed it! So cool! Check out her first hand account:

John was relaxed and joked with all of us and he thanked us for our patience, hah...like it was an effort to see and listen to him...not.

I won't tell you what the ad was about as you will see it for yourselves in a week or two.

After the camera men were through, they took pictures of JRE just talking to the crowd, no sound, and it wasn't about politics, just ordinary people talking about this and that. I did ask JRE that when he won the Iowa caucus, would he wait for me to get to the celebration before he made his VICTORY speech... and he said for all to hear... Count on it!

I wanted to share this event with all of you to let you know that JRE is our man for President and that he is powerful and he will stand with us and for us to make America ours again.

You can read more in her diary. Congratulations, Im4JRE!



Send Out the E-Signal! Upcoming Events!

Edwards will be on Charlie Rose tomorrow, November 29th. Check your local listings. It's on at 12:35 PM where I am in Maryland. Thanks so much to Terre for this information! Charlie Rose also has a page of prior interviews with John Edwards.

UPDATE: Terre also tells me that Keith Olbermann will be interviewing John live from the campaign trail tomorrow on Countdown on MSNBC. Couldn't find confirmation on his web site, but anyway, Keith is always worth watching!

Also tomorrow:

John Edwards will deliver remarks to the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council
Nov 29, 2007
6:00 PM
Hotel Vetro
201 S Linn Street
Iowa City, Iowa
Click here to RSVP

John Edwards will speak to the DNC Fall Meeting outside of DC in Vienna, Virginia on Friday morning. I was at his speech to the DNC Winter Meeting much earlier this year, and it was fabulous! If you are in the DC area, come out to support John! You can RSVP for the event at the link above.

If you can come to an early state and volunteer, the campaign would love your help. Sign up here.

Some Cool Diaries You May Have Missed

Democratic Presidential Ads in NH and Iowa - What do you think? by Ellinorianne

A Plea to Early State Democrats From an Edwards Supporter by RDemocrat

John Edwards, in dead heat in Iowa, quietly starts to move up in NH and SC by JSamuel

John Edwards wins support of SEIU from 10 States

Today, 10 SEIU state councils announced their support for John Edwards, including Iowa, California, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Minnesota, Michigan, West Virginia, Ohio and Oregon.

"California SEIU members know that John Edwards will be the best labor president in the history of the United States," said Sal Rosselli, president of SEIU United Healthcare Workers West. "His proposals are far and away the best among the candidates on the issues that matter most to working Americans. Edwards has taken principled stands on workers' behalf, when others took more cautious positions on issues that demand bold action."

This brings his labor union support up to nearly 3 million union members nationwide.

Iowa SEIU endorses John Edwards

This morning, John Edwards won the endorsement of the Iowa SEIU. Endorsements from several other state councils are rumored to be soon to follow.

Here's a video of Edwards speaking about the right to organize at the SEIU conference in DC back in September.

Yet Another Union Endorsement for Edwards: Transport Workers Union

Today, John Edwards received his fourth union endorsement: the Transport Workers of America. Edwards has more union support than any other presidential candidate. With the addition of the Transport Workers Union, which represents over 200,000 workers, he has now been endorsed by unions representing over 2 million members.

The Transport Workers Union is a national union based in New York City. Hillary Clinton may have expected to get this endorsement, based on the location of their headquarters, but instead it went to Edwards.

"Some candidates seem to be figuring out how to best triangulate on campaign issues," said TWU President James C. Little. "John Edwards takes on subjects such as job security, health care, retirement and the growing gap in wealth between the rich and the middle class in a straight forward way that the country and working families desperately need."

Almost half of the Transport Workers Union's members live in states that will vote on or before February 5, including 8,000 active and retired workers in Nevada. This adds to Edwards's powerful organizing presence in the early states.

"I'm proud to stand in New York with members of the Transit Workers Union, who keep the city moving and help keep New Yorkers safe," said Edwards. "The men and women of the TWU serve on the front lines of our country's homeland security, protecting public transportation users, the nation's railways, and skies. These are the workers who get us to our jobs and our families.

"For too long, these good union men and women and millions of other working families have been ignored by a broken system in Washington. I'm looking forward to campaigning with them in early primary states and key general election battleground states, and as president I'll fight for them every day, so we can honor their hard work and make our transportation infrastructure safe and secure."

John Edwards has also been endorsed by the Carpenters Union with 520,000 members, the Steelworkers Union with 1.2 million members, and the Mine Workers Union with 105,000 members.

Check out this awesome video from the Steelworkers Union!

Edwards endorsed by Steelworkers and Mine Workers Unions

Today, John Edwards won the endorsement of the Steelworkers and the Mine Workers Unions. I have previously reported that the Steelworkers Union was set to endorse Edwards today, but the Mine Workers Union came as a pleasant surprise. These two great organizations join the Carpenters Union in endorsing Edwards. This makes him the candidate with the most union support so far. These three unions combined represent almost 2 million workers.

"I am especially honored to receive the support of the Steelworkers and Mine Workers unions," said Edwards, "These are the workers who built the middle class in America, and they are the backbone of the American labor movement. They understand how important it is to fight back when jobs, safety, standards and our values are at risk—and they know what's at stake in this election."

"These workers have felt the negative impact of a broken system in Washington that is rigged against America's working families for far too long—whether it's the tragic lack of oversight in mine safety, trade agreements written to benefit multinational corporations while they ship American jobs overseas, or the millions of working Americans who still can't afford health insurance," added Edwards. "As president, I will proudly lead the fight on behalf of working families with their support—and together we will win."

Check out what the union leaders had to say about Edwards:

"Senator John Edwards is committed, as he has been throughout his life, to going to bat for everyday Americans and to changing a broken political system that leaves millions of Americans without a voice in their government," said Steelworkers President Leo W. Gerard. "Edwards is right on the issues that matter to us, and he's the candidate with the best chance of winning in the general election. The big corporations don't need another president who does their bidding. It's time we had a president who will fight for working people—and that's what John Edwards will do."

"Senator Edwards' positions on the issues of importance to UMWA members make him the best fit of all the candidates for president," UMWA International President Cecil E. Roberts said. "We need a president who cares about ordinary working people instead of the richest Americans and the big multinational corporations. We believe John Edwards is that person, and we will work as hard as we know how on his behalf anywhere and everywhere we can."

I'd like to thank these great unions for supporting John Edwards, the best candidate for president of the United States. Happy Labor Day to everyone!

John Edwards Wins Two Key Union Endorsements

John Edwards has won two key union endorsements in his campaign for the presidency.

Yesterday, the Carpenters Union endorsed Edwards.

"Our endorsement is based on the Senator's outspoken support for all of organized labor and his focus on America's working families," said Carpenters President Douglas J. McCarron. "In addition to his support for labor, our leadership was particularly impressed with the Senator's strong stand on trade."

"We also believe that Senator Edwards will have a great appeal in a general election," McCarron continued. "He has the ability to reach out to moderate voters, including the members of our union, and to address their very real concerns about jobs, health care and the economy."

Their formal endorsement will come on September 8th, at a rally in New Hampshire.

On Labor Day, the Steelworkers Union will endorse Edwards at a rally in Pittsburgh.

Edwards has made support for unions a key feature not only of his campaign, but of his advocacy for many years before his campaign. I'm glad to see the unions are recognizing his work. These endorsements are well deserved.

John Edwards and ACORN

On Monday, I was in Philadelphia to see John Edwards speak at both the NEA annual meeting and the ACORN presidential forum. Yesterday, I posted a diary on his speech about education to the NEA. Today's diary covers his speech at the ACORN presidential forum. I can't think of anything more patriotic I could do for the fourth of July than publish a diary about John Edwards's and ACORN's efforts to help working Americans.

ACORN is a community organization that works to support the needs of low and moderate income families and promote social justice. They are well acquainted with John Edwards, who traveled around the country with ACORN President Maude Hurd, long before he announced his campaign for the presidency, trying to get the minimum wage raised in various states. They were successful in six states. When the New York Times recently smeared John Edwards with nasty innuendo about his poverty work, in an article where they refused to talk to any of the beneficiaries of that work, ACORN president Maude Hurd stood up strongly for John Edwards. This is her statement:

Press stories that question Senator John Edwards’ commitment to ending poverty require a strong response from those of us who spend our lives in that fight. ACORN is the nation’s largest grassroots community organization working to eliminate poverty in America.

As ACORN’s president, I can personally attest that Senator Edwards has been a steadfast ally in this struggle – from raising wages to rebuilding the Gulf Coast.

One of the best ways to end poverty is to pay workers fair wages. In the summer of 2005, I traveled with Senator Edwards to cities and states across the country, launching ballot initiative campaigns to raise the minimum wage above the shamefully low $5.15 an hour.

While Senator Edwards could have chosen to do anything else with his time, he chose to spend it on the road with low-wage workers and their allies who were fighting to lift workers out of poverty. Edwards worked directly with grassroots community-faith-labor coalitions on the ground, leading rallies and press conferences to galvanize public support and working outside the spotlight to help organize support and raise funds to bring wage increase proposals to the ballot.

Last November, voters rewarded the efforts of Edwards, ACORN and our allies by resoundingly approving six state ballot measures to raise the minimum wage. As a result, more than 1.5 million of the country’s lowest-paid workers will get a raise. The ballot measures were just the most high-profile victories in a year that saw an unprecedented 17 states raise their minimum wage – many for the first time – including Edwards’ home state of North Carolina.

This movement in the states helped create the public pressure for a long-overdue increase in the federal minimum wage, which was passed last month and will help another 12.5 million low-income workers make ends meet. In addition to his work to raise wages, Senator Edwards has made an ongoing commitment to work with ACORN and others in the struggle to rebuild the

Gulf Coast and help Katrina Survivors return home.
In making poverty the defining theme of his campaign, Senator Edwards has shown his true colors. It is a sad statement that someone working not only to raise the issue of poverty, but to offer ambitious solutions and his put his feet on the ground to end it -- is attacked rather than applauded.

Alicia Russell, the chairperson of Arizona ACORN, also lauded Edwards for his work with ACORN when she introduced him. Her state, Arizona, is one of the states where Edwards helped ACORN to get the minimum wage raised. It should be no surprise then that Edwards got an enthusiastic reception from ACORN members, who know his work well.

I want to thank Machka, who recorded the webcast and made the videos available on YouTube.

Edwards praised the Congress for recently raising the minimum wage nationwide, but said we have a lot more work to do. He announced that when he is president, he will raise the minimum wage to $9.50 an hour, and index it for inflation.

"I have a very simple view about this. I think that anybody working full time in the United States of America should not live in poverty. Period."

Just as ACORN has praised John Edwards, John Edwards praised them during his speech:

I have to be honest with you about something. I met with your board a few weeks ago. I was on the way over here looking for your agenda seeing if there's anything I -- there's nothing I need to study because your agenda is basically my agenda, and the things that I care about are the things that you care about. But I want to say one thing to all of you who are out there active, organizing, working. Sometimes people say to me, they say "ACORN: they get in your face, man!" And I say "GOOD! I hope they keep getting in your face. I hope they keep speaking out. I hope they keep standing up with backbone and courage for people in need someone to speak for them."

Edwards then went quickly through some of his proposals for ending poverty, including College for Everyone, supporting the right to organize and allowing workers to join unions by signing their name to a card, helping families to save, passing a national predatory lending law, true universal health care, and expanding the section 8 housing voucher program to provide more affordable housing. These are just some of his many excellent proposals, which he has laid out in detail on his website.

Edwards explains his College for Everyone program as follows:

"We say to every young person in America, graduate from high school, qualify to go to college, commit to work at least 10 hours a week your first year, we pay for your tuition and books. Very simple."

I find it disgusting that the mainstream media continues to smear John Edwards's dedication to fighting poverty. I have heard him speak on it many times, and I have seen what he has done on it, and I know he walks the walk. You can feel the depth of his passion for this issue when he says:

"This is the cause of my life. It always will be. You know, when we talk about these various policy ideas that all of us care so much about, and that you all have worked so hard on, and in some cases I've been able to work with you on, you know, it's a great thing to have policy ideas -- it is. But we need a President of the United States who wakes up every single morning and in their gut cares deeply about this cause. There are lots of issues facing the president. For example, ending this war in Iraq, which desperately needs to be done. But we need a president who wakes up every morning gnawing inside about ending poverty in America. You are looking at the candidate who has laid out a specific set of ideas and agenda to end poverty in America -- not to reduce it, to end it in the next 30 years, which I completely am convinced is achievable. We need a president who will go out on the White House lawn and say to America, to the entire country, that this is a huge moral cause for our country. It says something about the character of America what we're willing to do about the issue of poverty. It says something about America what we're willing to do about 37 million of our own people who wake up every single day worried about feeding and clothing their children. And I have to say to all of you, and I mean this, you know, Elizabeth and I had to make a decision a few months ago about what we're going to spend our lives doing. And we, like all of you, we've all faced these kind of challenges, we're faced with some serious challenges in our own family, but these causes, the plight of the poor, the disabled, the disenfranchised, all those who desperately need a voice in this country -- this is the cause of my life. It's the cause of Elizabeth's life. And I'm here to tell you, as long as I'm alive and breathing, I will stand up for that cause."

After a relatively brief speech, Edwards was asked a number of specific questions by ACORN leaders. The question-and-answer period was at least as important as the speech itself, and was a part of the program where people already familiar with Edwards's many proposals might gain new information.

The first question asked about the patchwork quality of government services, and the problem of people who are eligible for those services often not knowing about them. Edwards was asked if he would work with community groups like ACORN to reach out to and enroll everyone in the services that they are entitled to.

To paraphrase his answer, it doesn't do any good to have programs that people don't know about them. The responsibility for educating people about these programs should not just be left up to community groups like ACORN, but is the responsibility of the president of the United States.

The second question asked about protecting people's assets and stopping predatory lending practices.

Edwards said he would support federal predatory lending laws and would create a new consumer commission responsible for regulating and monitoring lenders. He said that beyond counseling for families in debt, we need a national home fund for families in danger of losing their homes.

Next, Maria Blanco from New York ACORN asked him about what provisions he would support for immigrants to become citizens.

He said he would consider it his responsibility as president to move the immigration reform issue forward. He considers it a moral issue, because we can't have a first-class group of citizens and a second-class group of laborers. He spoke of America as a nation of immigrants and proposed creating a realistic path to citizenship. He said it's not doable for prospective citizens to have to pay $10,000. He said there should not be a touchback provision, where immigrants have to return to their country of origin in the process of applying for citizenship, because this is not realistic for many. He would support having illegal immigrants pay a fine for having broken the law and require that immigrants who want to become citizens learn to speak English. He also would require better policing of our southern border.

Sonia Mercer Jones from Baltimore city asked him about rebuilding American cities. There were three parts to her question:

1. Would he support a requirement for community impact statements?

2. What would he do to expand affordable housing?

3. What would he do to expand public school programs?

Edwards said he would absolutely support community impact statements and that programs for cities need help everyone in the cities. He pointed out that, just like we have two Americas, most American cities also have two cities, where some residents are neglected.

He repeated his call for a million new section 8 housing vouchers and for rebuilding and restocking our affordable housing supply.

He also talked about making sure that all schools in America provide quality education, no matter where they are located, and about providing incentive pay for inner-city teachers.

Bertha Brown from Pennsylvania ACORN asked about improving income, wages, and working conditions. There were three parts to her question as well, but she noted that Senator Edwards had already answered one of them and thanked him for it.

1. She was going to ask about an increase in the minimum wage, but instead just thanked him for the promise he had already made.

2. Would he support the healthy family act, which would provide sick leave for people to take care of their family members ?

3. Would he support an increase in the earned income credit?

Edwards pointed out that he had also addressed number three already, but expanded his answer, saying that he would expand the earned income credit, get rid of the marriage penalty in it, and also expanded to single people.

He said that a healthy family act, which provides a minimum of seven days for workers to take care of sick family members was only asking for very low amount of time, and is the least that we can do.

Next, Tony from Texas ACORN asked about what he would do to rebuild New Orleans. While asking her question, she acknowledged that Edwards had already talked about this a little bit, and said they know about his commitment to this issue. In fact, several of the people asking questions indicated in one way or another that they already knew that Edwards was committed to their issues.

She asked him whether he would support the Gulf Coast housing act introduced by Senators Dodd and Landrieu, and also what he would do as president to help rebuild New Orleans?

Edwards talked about going to New Orleans with several hundred college kids, an effort in which ACORN was also involved, to work in New Orleans over spring break.

He said that nothing has changed in New Orleans except with the efforts of community groups like ACORN. He said that yes, he would support the Gulf Coast housing legislation, but he would go far beyond that.

As president, he would appoint someone to be responsible for making sure progress was made in New Orleans, and he would ask that person for their progress report every day, making sure that whatever needs to be done gets done.

He spoke of the need to make sure people's lives are restored, and said that he would put the people of New Orleans to work rebuilding it, so that residents could have jobs. He also said he would rebuild the levees.

The final question was about protecting the right to vote. Maxine Nelson from Arkansas asked the question and pointed out that there has been an organized campaign to keep people from voting, especially in minority areas. Her question also had three parts:

1. Will an Edwards Department of Justice to enforce the voter registration act?

2. Does he support the ballot integrity act introduced by Senators Feinstein and Dodd?

3. There have been false claims of voter fraud that were made in the past couple of elections as a way to suppress voting. Will John Edwards work with groups like ACORN to speak out on this?

Edwards gave a very strong answer on these questions, and it was particularly satisfying to me, because this is an issue I have been very concerned about.

He said he will work with ACORN to speak out against false claims of voter fraud. He noted that those false claims are nothing more than an excuse to keep legally registered voters from voting. He spoke of the need to make sure voter registration organizations are able to do their job, and said he would support the ballot integrity act. He spoke of the need to stop voter suppression, and added that we need to get rid of black box voting and vote on paper ballots, so that were sure that votes are getting counted. (Edwards is the first presidential candidate to call for open source voting on paper ballots, although he did not specifically mention open source in this speech.)

Hearing John Edwards speak is always delightful and refreshing, and the ACORN forum was another such experience.

As long as he's breathing: John Edwards’ commitment

John Edwards has said he'll continue to fight to lift people out of poverty and help working people, as long as he's breathing. His commitment to it runs so deep that he opened a poverty center at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, started a college for everyone program to send poor kids to college, co-edited a book of essays by poverty experts, has traveled the country to work with unions to organize workers, and last year he gave the proceeds of a book and at least 28% ($350,000) of his $1.25 million earned income to charities like Habitat for Humanity and International Rescue Committee. He's not afraid to get his hands dirty, either. On more than one occasion, he's participated in Habitat for Humanity building projects in the ninth ward of New Orleans.



Edwards is the only presidential candidate with a comprehensive universal health care plan. He’s the only candidate with a plan for fighting poverty.

In this diary, I’ll quote from just a few of the many sources around the tubes showing Edwards’ commitment to lifting people out of poverty and to helping working Americans.

Videos:

Edwards and Danny Glover in New Orleans

Edwards: "What are we going to do about at least 37 million -- that's the government's estimate -- at least 37 million of our own people, who wake up every day worried about feeding and clothing their children? Because, I don't know about you, but I think it says something about the character of our country, how we treat those among us who are literally worried just about surviving."





Edwards speaking to the IAFF




Edwards: "I have been all over this country organizing workers into unions, because I believe in my heart and soul, if we want to grow the middle class in this country, if we want to strengthen the middle class, if we want to lift millions of Americans out of poverty, the most important piece of that, certainly one of the most critical pieces of it, is to grow the union movement."

Edwards at Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO (full speech):

Edwards: "I think we desperately need comprehensive labor law reform in this country. And I want to be very clear with all of you about what I believe. I think if someone can join the Republican Party by signing their name to a card, any worker in America ought to be able to join a union by doing exactly the same thing. That's democracy in the workplace." (standing ovation).

"And, before you sit down, we ought to ban the hiring of permanent replacements for strikers and make that the law of the land."

Walk A Day In My Shoes: John Edwards/Elaine Ellis

Elaine Ellis: "I will remember the Senator as a very nice person. I think that he is eager to learn the fact that health care workers need more attention from the government. It was a good day all around."

Will You Stand Up? (excerpt from speech to DNC)

Edwards: "We can not walk away from our people. We can not walk away from the heart and soul of what the Democratic Party is and should be."

John Edwards – Rural Recovery in Iowa

Edwards: "We want to help family farmers, and the best way to help family farmers, in my judgment, is to create a level playing field, and that means cracking down on and being tougher on these big conglomerate, corporate farming operations."

John Edwards – Iowa Women’s Town Hall

Edwards: "If we really want to empower women in this country, if we want to give force to the women's movement in this country, then we want women to have self-esteem, and strength, and respect, and they can't continue to not have health care coverage, or live in poverty, or get paid $.77 on the dollar for doing the same work men are doing. That's not right!"

John Edwards and the Minimum Wage

Before he announced his candidacy for president, John Edwards worked on successful campaigns to get the minimum wage raised in six states.



Danny Glover: "Somebody that cares about working people, somebody who cares about the right for working people to organize and cares for the right for working people to have a decent wage and benefits: Senator John Edwards!"

Edwards on college costs

at town hall in Newton, Iowa 3/10/2007



Edwards on his college for everyon program: "There was no government money in it. I raised the money for it, got the community involved. This is what we did. We said to every kid in the area, if you graduate from high school, and you're qualified to be in college, and you commit to work at least 10 hours a week while you're there, we pay for your tuition and books. It was pretty much that simple."

Articles:

The Post Gets It Wrong: Edwards’ Poverty Policy Is Just What’s Needed, by Jared Bernstein

Quote: Here’s what he gets. It’s not just that those baking the pie ought to get fair slices. It’s not even the simple fact that too many poor people are playing by the rules yet still struggling to make ends meet with terribly insufficient incomes. Nor is it the glaringly obvious fact that kids who grow up poor have tremendous disadvantages that it is in all of our interests to avoid.

All those are true and important. But what Edwards gets—and you really want a president who feels this in his or her bones—is that these inequities undermine America. They quietly, slowly, and perniciously erode people’s support for our system of democracy and free markets. Untreated, they lead to distrust and defunding of government, diminished participation in the political system, protectionism and nativism, and a means-spiritedness that is as divisive as it is pessimistic. And I’d argue strongly that this is exactly where we’re headed.

More Piling on the Post’s Edwards and Poverty Article, by Greg Anrig, Jr.

Quote: What’s “new” and “fresh” that Edwards should be praised for is the political courage to focus the public’s attention on this subject after decades of neglect and a set of ideas that, based on research and experience -- as opposed to focus groups and right-wing salesmanship – have the best chance of making significant progress.

John Edwards wants a new Labor Movement (Fortune)

Quote: "The difference between union and non-union is literally the difference between poverty and middle class," Edwards told Fortune. "Hotel workers, restaurant workers, home health workers, hospital workers - at last count there are some 50 million people who work in the service economy. Those jobs aren't going anywhere else. They have to be done in the United States."

Senator Edwards Walks a Day in My Shoes by Elaine Ellis

Quote: Everyday, I provide basic care for nine residents who need attention from the time they wake up to the time they go to sleep. I've been doing this for eighteen years, and while it might look easy on TV, I'm sure the Senator will now be able to tell you otherwise.

Sometimes I feel like nursing assistants like me are at the bottom of the health care debate, but we are the ones who are holding everything up. We know what's wrong, and we know what we need to do to fix things. If politicians listened to us, then we might be able to get some real changes.

Walk a Day in My Shoes by SEIU

Quote: As part of SEIU’s program to ensure that presidential candidates experience firsthand what life is like for working people in America, Sen. John Edwards on April 11th walked a day in the shoes of SEIU member Elaine Ellis.

Protecting Homeowners and Fighting Predatory Mortgages

Quote: Homeownership is the foundation of the American Dream. For most families, the equity they build up in their home is a source of security and the primary source of their wealth. But for millions of families, the dream of homeownership is slipping away. Home foreclosure filings rose to 1.2 million in 2006 — a 42 percent jump — due to rising mortgage bills and a slowing housing market. In Iowa, 3,445 families experienced foreclosure last year, up 64 percent from 2005. Nationally, as many as 2.4 million subprime borrowers have either lost their homes or could lose them in the next few years. Problems in the housing market could weigh down the economy.

Can Edwards win with an ‘us vs. them’ pitch? (USA Today) March 14, 2007

Quote: Murphy, 50, likes Sen. Barack Obama but says the Illinois freshman "hasn't been around long enough." New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is "too much of a Washington politician." Edwards, he says, "is pretty down to earth and knows what's going on with people at my income level."

David Kuo: Is John Edwards for Real? (Beliefnet)

Kuo: “I believe John Edwards. I believe his passionate statements on behalf of the poor. I believe that the faith he says animates him is real. I believe that he has made quiet and selfless trips to care for the suffering around the world. I believe he knows what poverty is like and that his faith in Jesus requires him to care for the poor. I believe that those who criticize him for living in a huge house while talking about the poor should shut up - by that standard should only the sick get to talk about health care? I really, truly, absolutely believe John Edwards.”

Rural Recovery plan

Quote: "Rural America has been ignored for too long," said Edwards. "Across America, too many small towns have turned into ghost towns. We need to help small towns and rural communities create and keep new businesses and good jobs, and we need a President who will make sure all our communities have good schools, good health care and the support systems they need. As President, I will make sure rural America is never left behind."

Working Society

Quote: Edwards has outlined a Working Society initiative to lift 12 million Americans out of poverty in a decade and beat poverty over the next 30 years. In the Working Society, everyone who is able to work hard will be expected to work and, in turn, be rewarded for it.

More Than Just Talk by Bob Herbert, New York Times

Quote: Mr. Edwards, who announced his campaign for the presidency in the Ninth Ward, has stood by his commitment to make poverty one of his big campaign issues. I mentioned that poverty has not gotten much attention from the national media, and asked why middle-class Americans should care about the issue.

"First, you should care because it's a moral issue," he said. "It tells us something about the character of our country. And, by the way, I think most people do care about it. And second, you should care because if you want to see the American economy grow and strengthen over time, the strength and breadth of the middle class is a critical factor. When we have middle-class families struggling on the edge, falling into poverty or near poverty, those things weaken the American economy."

John Edwards: ‘My Faith Came Roaring Back’

Edwards: What I intend to continue to do, though, if I can bring us full circle back to the beginning of this discussion, is no matter whether anyone asks, no matter whether any other candidate ever raises the issue, as long as I'm alive and breathing and as long as I am a presidential candidate, I will be speaking up for the little guy. And I think that a lot of that has been lost in American politics for strategic political reasons. And their voice needs to be heard--desperately needs to be heard. And if I do nothing else, their voice will be heard through me.

Think a rich guy can't care about poverty or working Americans? John Edwards cares about as much as another rich guy: FDR. That's right. I'm comparing him to the president who effectively ended poverty for millions of American families. Edwards will not rest until he does the same.