John Edwards - Keep Talking, I'm Listening!
I saw John Edwards speak at the Exeter Town Hall on Monday. When I last heard him speak, back at a house party in May or June, I still felt like I did four years ago: What experience does he have? Does he simply want to be president so he's running for office? However, I now feel that I was quick to judge, and I found his message on Monday afternoon inspiring. I don't know if that means that he has my vote, but I'm listening more closely than ever before.
Edwards called the government inept and corrupt. He took it further yet when he talked about the power of lobbyists, and their ability to lobby Democrats and Republicans alike on the same issue. The fact that his campaign doesn't take money from lobbyists is really important to me. I like what he says about the green economy, ending the war in Iraq, the need for global leadership, and the problems with NCLB. I want more specifics on all of those issues. When he talks about lifting the middle class, I want to know how that can happen in this economy. How do we change the power structures of corporate America that have been whittling away at the social contract that used to exist between a company and its workers? How we do we restore government institutions so that they work for the people rather than against them? How do we truly repair public education rather than simply change NCLB? How does universal health care, paid for by a rollback of the Bush tax cuts, really work?
If I didn't live in NH, I'd believe that this was a two-candidate race. The top two candidates get the most news coverage. The majority of debate questions go to the two biggest fundraisers. But Edwards, Dodd, Richardson and Biden all have smart contributions to make to the conversation. I wish all of their voices could be heard more.