Column: Farewell, Edwards
Feb. 1, 2008
Well, this is a difficult column to write. You see, I was going to endorse Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., for president today. That is, until he dropped out. I’m not quite sure why he dropped out; the senator was fond of saying that he was in it until the end. Perhaps he realized how far back he was in the polls, but I don’t think that really ever deterred him from continuing his campaign. Rather, I think he’s been offered a job with Sen. Hillary Clinton’s or Sen. Barack Obama’s campaign and sees this opportunity as the best way to advance his issues.
The biggest question weighing on voters’ minds is, “Who does this help?” I’m not really sure. It could go either way. For example, although Edwards and Obama, D-Ill., were similar in demanding change for America, it was Edwards and Clinton who had the truly universal health care programs. Edwards’ supporters , many of them union members, could break for Hillary, D-N.Y., mostly because of the health care issue. But many of them will remember that it was former President Bill Clinton who negotiated the North American Free Trade Agreement, which hit working class families hard. A lot of Edwards’ supporters will go for the candidate who has an image as the greatest agent of change, and in this race the man with that image is now Obama.
So now to the endorsement: I’m not endorsing either candidate. Clinton is truly committed to providing health care coverage for all Americans, which is a huge issue for me. That said, I’m tired of the moderate, Democratic Leadership Council style of politics. As for Obama? I think he has a great message of change, but I’m not sure how he’s going to change anything. He’s been maddeningly vague this whole time. His entire campaign has been built on “hope” and “change” and compromising. That’s rich. Obama wants to compromise with the same House and Senate Republicans who, while in the majority, forced Democrats to meet in the basement of Congressional office buildings? The same people who gave tax cut after tax cut to the wealthiest 2 percent of the country, and loophole after loophole to corporations that allowed them to pollute our water and export our jobs? No thanks, Barack.
I want a fighter. I’m still voting for John Edwards. Yes, that’s right. I’ve already been told I’m wasting my vote. I don’t think I am. Why would I vote for a candidate that has already dropped out of the race? Because of the reasons for which I first supported him: John Edwards was the first candidate with a truly universal healthcare plan, which remains the strongest in terms of covering all Americans. Edwards was, and is, the only candidate who made helping poor, working class and middle class Americans the central issue of his campaign. It was Edwards who understood the importance of having to fight for change, and not compromising with insurance companies that deny people life-saving operations solely for the bottom-line. Edwards was the only candidate who made helping the 35 million Americans who go hungry every year a central issue of his campaign. In essence, I supported Edwards because he was the candidate who truly wanted to help those without a voice, the candidate who understood that ordinary Americans do not have a lobbyist in Washington. By voting for John Edwards on Feb. 5, I’m voting for the issues he stood for, and demanding that the other candidates pay at least some attention to them.
More Feb. 1, 2008 Outlook Stories
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- Edwards drops out of race — With less than a week to go until Super Tuesday, former Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., dropped out of the race ...
- Farewell, Edwards — Well, this is a difficult column to write. You see, I was going to endorse Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., for ...
- Giuliani drops out, endorses McCain — Some Missouri legislators have yet to choose candidates to endorse.
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