Edwards greets overflow crowd; message focused on health care, poverty, energy, global warming

Overflow crowd greets Edwards' tour
By Holly Ramer--Associated Press
Friday, December 29, 2006
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Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards asked an overflow crowd to join him Friday in taking responsibility for problems ranging from poverty to global warming.
Nearly a quarter of the crowd of more than 800 were left standing outside in 30-degree temperatures after the elementary school cafeteria where Edwards was to speak quickly filled up.
The former North Carolina senator and 2004 vice presidential nominee ended up giving his introductory remarks outside, using a microphone that broadcast his voice inside, before heading indoors.
"What we're asking is for you, the people of New Hampshire, not to wait for the next election to take responsibility," he said. "Identifying a problem and talking about hope is talking about tomorrow. We can't wait until tomorrow."
New Hampshire was the third stop on Edwards's six-state, three-day tour to announce his second candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination. The early announcement allows him time to build grass-roots support in states with early nominating contests, including Iowa, Nevada, South Carolina and New Hampshire, where Edwards finished fourth in 2004.
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Likely to face a larger field of competitors, Edwards is offering a new message focused on universal health care, poverty, energy and global warming. He continued to apologize for his vote to use force in Iraq, but New Hampshire Republicans weren't ready to let him off the hook.
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Read the rest here.

Maybe 1000 outside where he was. More than one candidate can get a big crowd in New Hampshire. With Edwards' message, bet the crowds keep coming.

He's hitting the early primary states early and often. Building a infrastructure in IA, NV, NH, and SC will be huge come primary day.

experience. Right now he has more experience campaigning, then he has actually in Government...hey wasn't that Bush's strength????? Campaigning????? Look where that got us. He can apologize all he wants about Iraq, he only did so when it became the politically "in" thing to do - he is so very calculating.

I would take Obamma, Clark, Gore (All (with brilliant judgement) knew Iraq was a mistake BEFORE it was in fashion and safe. Much classier guys by a longshot. And they don't need to apologize for their misjudgment, lack of knowledge, ignorance....for voting us into Iraq. No apologies needed for these wise and thoughtful men.

Obama and Clark. They are all good men. We would do well not be overly critical of fellow Democrats. One of these people will be our nominee if we are lucky.

and ethics and #2 The Democrats have better candidates to offer.

I value a candidate who agrees with my positions, like Iraq for instance. I knew that it was a huge mistake. This one huge mistake cost the U.S. and Iraq thousands and thousands of innocent deaths....think about it...all of the people that are now dead because of this one error. I Knew that this was wrong way back when so many of the Senators were voting to give Bush the authorization to go to war. I cannot and will not forgive those people for those votes that easily. And what is even more telling is to watch them and see when they decided to admit that their vote was wrong. Way too many of them (Edwards and Kerry for example) waited way too long to admit that their vote was wrong and furthermore, the timing of their admission too conveniently coincided with being "politically" correct, not ethically correct.

Edwards is a politician, I'll give him that, but as far as ethics - he never even finished his one and only term in Government before he was out campaigning (and not giving his job as Senator his full attention). THEN, not long after the electionwas over and he took a rest, he started going to Iowa over and over and over.....Maybe if he would have gone to Iraq over and over and over, I would have cut him some slack, but with Edwards, all I see in arrogance, ambition and calculation. Pretty scary combination. I don't care how good of a speaker the brylcream boy is, he has way too many handicaps.

Edwards is way too superficial for a Presidential Candidate and the Democratic Pary has so much better to offer.

he's the best of what we have to offer.

No other candidate talks about the economy and poverty like he does. No one even mentioned this idea of the two americas in the last campaign. He understands how important economic populism is for our future. I really like him. I haven't decided yet, but he's in the top tier with me.

MIGHT have a point. Iraq foreshadows everything right now and he made a bad judgment call on that. AND he didn't own up to it until it was "safe" to do so. I have a real problem with his integrity. Wes Clark has so much more to offer and though he didn't "package" his economic ideas, his plan was more detailed and comprehensive than was Edwards, (given that Clark graduated with triple majors, one of them being economics), I give more credit to Clark on his plan PLUS Clark is light years ahead of Edwards on International Affairs (given that over 40 diplomats endorsed Clark), Plus the guy has a chest full of awards from countries all over the world. Edwards doesn't have experience in foreign affairs, Government, Managing a society with all of the intricacies involved. Clark was in charge of all of the military bases in Europe which was much like a Governorship.

Then we have Gore, who was in the WH, called it right on Iraq and, again, light years ahead of Edwards on experience in Government and, as far as I am concerned has it all over Edwards on integrity.

We also have Obamma, who even outshines Edwards as far as charisma and his opinion on going to Iraq, "The wrong war at the wrong time". Obamma has more experience in Government that does Edwards to. Obamma's message is better, "we don't have a red or a blue, but a purple....." That is a much better statement, much more uniting...not divisive. This country is divided enough, and Edwards message adds to that division, Obamma's message pulls us together.

To say that Edwards is the "best" is really selling ourselves short. He is far from the best. I would take at least half of a dozen before I could even think of considering Edwards....no make that a dozen. Tell me, how would you feel if you hired somebody for a job. under a 4 year contract and while you were paying him he spent a great deal of his time trying to get a better contract while doing the bare minimum for you under your contract, yet you were still paying him. Do you feel as though this guy was worth another contract? Would you feel that this guy was doing right by you? OR Have you ever had somebody in your home hired by you to do work? And you were paying him hourly and while he was there he was on the phone trying to get more jobs, do you think you should pay for those hours of him trying to get other jobs????? Is what he doing ethical? I don't think so and I wouldn't want to pay him for trying to get other business while he was supposed to be working on mine. That is what he did to the people in North Carolina and from what I read, he wouldn't have been re elected in North Carolina either.

I know that is what many politic ans do, but the thing is, is that Edwards was a 1st term Senator, learning the ropes of his jobs and Washington....(So he goes to Washington not knowing a thing, while learning his job as a Senator he decides the WH is for him and starts running for that?????) He didn't complete his contract with the people that hired him before he cast them aside and focused on his own interests.

When he first announced he was running, I liked him, I watched him and I listened...the closer I looked and more I listened, I realized this guy is all ambition and superficiality with no real substance. It is that simple. Many other of my activist friends agree. Edwards is on the bottom of their lists too, he is just above pond scum.

is way over the line for any Democrat. Edwards is a good man. He would make a very good President. I won't cast aspersions on any of the other Dems running. They would all do good things for our country. Almost everyone I know likes Edwards. The people that know him like him. I'll take their word over your activist friends.

can do a job in Government? Edwards really hasn't proven anything except that he a good campaigner and a great attorney. That is all that we can see from him. His term in office was in part spent campaigning for a better job, while he cast the wrong vote for the most important vote of his career.

He never apologized or admitted that he was wrong until it was safe to do so politically. Doesn't that in itself give you pause to wonder about what drives this man??????

Right now we have a great example of a great man that deserved to be President, and that was Gerald Ford. He pardoned Nixon even though it cost him an elected term in office. He must have known the chance that he was taking but he followed his conscience, not his campaign advisors advice and it cost him the election.

This is the kind of leader that I want in office, the leader that would think of the good of the country before he would think of his own career. Edwards is not that kind of man. He is way too calculating and political - Whether you agree with what Ford did or not, you have to admire that he was willing to take the bullet for the good of the country. That is what I value, not good looks & good speech making but what the guy has done in office. What are Edward's votes? The few that he made during his short time in office? Edwards has a thin track record and what is worse is that he blatantly neglected his job as Senator in order to campaign for the 04' election, what is even more telling is that by many accounts he wouldn't even have been re elected in his own state if he were to run....what does all of that say about him?????

You seem like a decent person. I hope that you really look deeply at this guy, because I believe that if you really do, you won't put him as #1 on your list of Presidential hopefuls. We have so much more substance to offer. We are now paying the price of a President with no substance...just a political animal with no real regards to the people of the world. We need a leader with some real meat to help all of us mend. This is a very complex time and we need somebody with real knowledge and wisdom...

in the presidency after a much shorter time than did Edwards when he was a Senator? If you had stopped while merely being holier than thou about the IWR vote, you might have had a better case.

The inconsistency in treatment (you spent several paragraphs talking about how "unethical" this is by attempting to draw an analogy to a situation that is not analogous) combined with the vituperation, makes your arguments very unconvincing, and unfair to Edwards.

a Senator in Washington.

"Sworn into office January 4, 2005, Senator Obama is focused on promoting economic growth and bringing good paying jobs to Illinois. Obama serves on the important Environment and Public Works Committee, which oversees legislation and funding for the environment and public works projects throughout the country, including the national transportation bill. He also serves on the Veterans ’ Affairs Committee where he is focused on investigating the disability pay discrepancies that have left thousands of Illinois veterans without the benefits they earned. Senator Obama also serves on the Foreign Relations Committee.

During his seven years in the Illinois state Senate, Obama worked with both Democrats and Republicans to help working families get ahead by creating programs like the state Earned Income Tax Credit, which in three years provided over $100 million in tax cuts to families across the state. Obama also pushed through an expansion of early childhood education, and after a number of inmates on death row were found innocent, Senator Obama enlisted the support of law enforcement officials to draft legislation requiring the videotaping of interrogations and confessions in all capital cases."

http://obama.senate.gov/about/

Like I said while I was being "holier than thou", Edwards NEVER completed one term in Government.... serving the people, the people that elected him to do a job, before he was campaigning for the big chair in the WH and not doing the job that he was elected to do. AND combine that with him being wrong on the single most important vote of his career and his dragging his heels admitting that his vote was indeed wrong, shows me that this guy is more ambition than integrity and knowledge about something that was so so very very important to thousands and thousands of lives that have been lost.

I would sleep much better knowing that he and Elizabeth are living in the White House.

When he talked about his Iraq vote, and mentioned the dead and wounded troops it was gut wrenching, calculated, I think not. IMO this man is genuine, who knows what kind of intel, he had sitting on the Intelligence Committee. Probably a lot more than we will ever know.

about Americans needing to be patriotic about something other than the war.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x11291

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x11245

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