John Edwards spoke to potential caucus-goers at Davenport, Iowa's North High School on Monday, November 19th. His remarks were preceded by musical performances from Jackson Browne and Bonnie Raitt, who performed harmony on numbers with lyrics such as "Sun going up on the USA." Ms. Raitt described Edwards as "a man of the people, all of the people, all of the time. We had a choice and we're here on purpose. You can count on it!"
After those remarks, which followed on the heels of twenty minutes of close harmony with guitar accompaniment, including one member of Ms. Raitt's band, Jackson Browne introduced John Edwards as "the next President of the United States." The audience gave him a standing ovation.
Edwards was on his game Monday. He immediately began hammering away at the "disconnect" between a government that says it is "Mission Accomplished" when thousands of servicemen and women are dying daily and they still have no lights in Baghdad. Moving to the incompetence (as Edwards dubbed it) at home, Hurricane Katrina and its lingering effects were noted, with over half the schools still closed. Edwards noted that he had gone to New Orleans with 700 students to help build housing with Habitat for Humanity.
On a happier note, Edwards smiled when he commented, "A little over a year from now, we won't have Bush or Cheney to kick around any more." However, he warned, the corruption in Washington, D.C. is epidemic, with no-bid contracts to agents like Halliburton and hired mercenaries like Blackwater wreaking havoc.
Closer to home, Edwards asked about NAFTA and CAFTA and its effect on America. "What did the American people get in return? Millions and millions of dangerous Chinese toys!" He noted, "The easy thing to do is to turn your head, but Americans have never ever walked away from a challenge. The American people are up to this challenge. We never take the easy way out. We have a fight in front of us. We have to take their power away from them on behalf of the American people." When indicating who "them" might be, Edwards cited drug and insurance companies and moved on to the topic of global warming.
Iraq…the hot-button issue of the campaign….had Edwards vow that he would not keep permanent bases in Iraq, he would not continue combat troops in Iraq and he would move immediately to get the troops out by the end of his first year in office. Citing Bush's request for $600 billion for the war effort, Edwards said, "Keeping troops there for ten years could cost $2.8 trillion, which is $37,000 for every family of four in this country. I think if we're going to end the war, we have to end the occupation." Warning that war sabers are being rattled at Iran, with the recent attempts to categorize the Iranian National Guard as "terrorists," Edwards said, "If we're going to stop Bush and Cheney, we have to stand up to them every single time. We cannot let Bush and Cheney march us down the road to another war. Can we, as a Democratic party, finally find some backbone and courage? This battle against entrenched entitled interests must be won!"
Edwards noted that he has visited all 99 Iowa counties twice during this campaign and said, "It gives me so much pride and hope to go around Iowa and meet people. The strength and character give me hope that we can reclaim this democracy." He cited the familiar debate refrain that we must give our children a world that is better, not worse, than what their parents experienced.
Questions from the audience members dealt with coal power and other energy sources (he is opposed to building more nuclear power plants, but in favor of other alternative energy sources, such as solar and wind), and he called for a mandatory 40 mpg standard for fuel efficiency by 2016, saying that it is time for U.S. citizens to make some sacrifices, in keeping with JFK's inaugural urging to "Ask not what your country can do for you, but ask what you can do for your country."
When asked about the "No Child Left Behind" plan, Edwards was critical of education having become nothing more than filling in grids on a bubble test and teachers who spent half of their time teaching to tests, for fear of NCLB consequences. This, said Edwards, was not the way to encourage real learning. He quoted an Iowa farmer who told him, "You don't make a hog fatter by weighing it." He also cited help that students might get towards college expenses, in exchange for agreeing to work. In his own case, he said that he had spent hot North Carolina summers unloading tractor trailers to help pay for his own college education, and he commented that this was certainly a way to give a student "motivation."
A young Davenport student (Robert Schlue) asked an astute question about Social Security and its effects on his generation, and Edwards went on the record as being opposed to privatizing Social Security, against cutting its benefits, and not in favor of making people work longer. He is in favor of raising the cap, currently set at $97,000, and lifting the cap for those earning above $200,000, to help finance it in the future. Edwards said that "a new revenue stream" was going to be necessary to preserve Social Security for future generations.
In conclusion, Edwards noted that the current administration has failed. "Bush has destroyed trust relationships between the US and the people and between the President and the world. You are the guardians, in so many ways, of our democracy. I don't care if we elect the best politician to the White House; I care that we elect a person who is honest and trustworthy." With that, Edwards invited the audience to judge him and decide for themselves if he possesses those qualities. The crowd had to wait an hour for the rally to start, but, once it started, it heard an impassioned speaker who laid it on the line.
The End