JOHN EDWARDS Denounces Schiavo Involvement, Condi, and Gonzales

Good interview with Alan Colmes (yes, I know, but try to avoid the snarkiness - the focus is Edwards' answers, which are great)

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,151879,00.html



ALAN COLMES, CO-HOST: How would the country be different today if the results in November had been different? Can you give us two or three things that would be different right now?

JOHN EDWARDS, FORMER SENATOR, VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Sure. I think one thing that would be different here at home is we wouldn't be undermining the security of most middle class families and people who are struggling to stay out of poverty, which is what the president's doing with his Social Security privatization plan. What we'd do instead, on a positive front, is we'd address the problems that most middle class families who are getting squeezed are faced with. You know, rising health care costs, we'd have a serious health care plan. We'd help families with child care costs. We'd help them send their kids to college. I mean, those are the kind of things — and, I might add, we'd be fighting every day to raise the minimum wage so that we can help lift families out of poverty.

COLMES: What would be happening in Iraq?

EDWARDS: I think our approach to the world would be different, period. And I think people knew that. For example, one of the things that we would be doing is engaging in a comprehensive effort to stop the spread of nuclear weapons. And that we don't see that happening with this administration.

<snip>

COLMES: You've been talking about that for some time, but I've — what I want to get at just a second, would George Bush be president today had you been at the top of the ticket?

EDWARDS: Oh, I don't think there's any way to know that. I think John Kerry was a great candidate. He's a very good man, and he would've made a great president.

<snip>

COLMES: And you have Congress rushing back on Palm Sunday to vote on whether or not they should federalize the case. What would you have done if you were still — well, this was in the House. What would you have done though if this were an issue?

EDWARDS: I think — I think first of all what's happening in the Schiavo case is a terrible tragedy. I mean, it's just painful to watch. I mean, I respond very personally to it. It's an awful, awful thing. But here's what I would say: This is something that as a moral issue should be left to the family. And when we have what we're seeing now with this family, that's what the courts are there for, to determine what the right thing is to do and what the wishes of the patient were.

I think it is wrong to have a bunch of politicians in Washington getting involved in this.

COLMES: Would you have voted to confirm Condoleezza Rice if you were still in the Senate?

EDWARDS: No, I don't believe I would have.

COLMES: Why not?

EDWARDS: Because — for a lot of reasons, but the main reason is because of the role she played in the lead-up to the Iraq War and some of the things that she said publicly that turned out not to be true.

Now, I do have to — I have to add one thing to this. I do think that she's done some good things since she has been confirmed to be secretary of state. I have to add that on to what I've just said. But, given the circumstances at the time of her nomination, I don't think I would have voted for her.

COLMES: Would you have voted to confirm Alberto Gonzales?

EDWARDS: No.

COLMES: No.

EDWARDS: No. Because of the role he played in the torture memo. I actually have dealt with Mr. Gonzales, now the Attorney General Gonzales in judicial nominations, and I always found him to be a smart, very fair-minded, very honest guy when I dealt with him. I actually — I found him to be trustworthy. Having said all that, the role that he played in this torture policy and torture memo sends exactly the wrong signal to the rest of the world.

Thank you for sharing. :) I loved Kerry and Edwards together. They were so great. I hope they both run again. I'd love for them to be together in 2008 and then go to the House.

wasn't that silly psychic. :))

I hope his wife is doing well- I wish Edwards the best...

I'd like to see more of him with this kind of talk.

a stand on the Schiavo situation?

Good interview... I also like some of the other stuff he's been saying. Here is part of an article about his iowa visit today:

"In a passionate speech to activists Thursday night, Edwards said it’s still right to talk about the “two Americas” he described during his presidential campaign, a country for the privileged and one for everyone else.

He mocked President Bush’s promotion of an ownership society, where he said CEOs were “sitting by their swimming pool paying a lower tax rate than their secretaries are paying.”

“George Bush’s ownership society is a private, exclusive club that keeps out people who work hard for a living,” Edwards said.

He called the $5.15 per hour federal minimum wage a “national embarrassment,” and said more needs to be done to expand health care coverage."

Full article is at: http://www.qctimes.com/internal.php?story_id=1048403&l=1&t=Nation+%2F+World&c=26,1048403

:kick:

Hope your computer didn't pick up any nasty viruses.

I wish the campaign would have used him right. Hope Mrs. E is doing well. :kick:

He's so great, and of course is right about the Schiavo thing.

i personally think he was sick of the damned thing. some days it looked like herpes.

I think it was removed to check for any cancerous activity. I have family members who have had moles removed from their body, because moles can harbor cancerous development and physicians usually remove them to examine the area.

At least he didn't pull an Enrique Eglasias, and try to pretend that he never had a mole in the first place.

Glad he's not being reclusive, even with Elizabeth's cancer treatment.

Reading this interview just makes me think of what might have been...he would have been a terrific, caring VP (a refreshing change from the snarling bastard who currently occupies the office). Damn, damn, damn.

Long-time lurker, first post. :-)

Edwards, as Kerry, has heart, brains and courage. If either of them want to follow the yellow brick road to Oz again, I'll still have their back.

Welcome to DU :hi:

NightOwwl! Happy to be here!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

Hi KJ...
(I still have their backs too!)

<i>Here's parts of another interview he gave in iowa, where he clearly denounces the federal government's role making right to die decisions for the pubic or stepping into their privacy over this matter. He's probably the only one who has stepped up to defend our judiciary and quite straightforwardly so:</i>

Former Democratic vice presidential nominee John Edwards, visiting Iowa on Thursday, said the courts performed their duty in Terri Schiavo's case, and Congress had no business getting involved as it did last month.

Edwards, a former North Carolina senator considered a potential presidential candidate in 2008, was visiting Iowa for the first time since the fall campaign. He said the courts must be free to perform their role without undue influence by Congress.

"The independence of the judiciary is very important in our system of government," Edwards, a successful trial lawyer before entering politics, said in an interview with The Des Moines Register. "We rely on the courts and the rule of law."

Edwards was visiting the Des Moines area Thursday and today to meet with supporters, attend a fund-raiser and conduct interviews with news media.

Edwards said he and most Americans believe Congress' intervention in the case was a bad idea.

Polls show Americans solidly opposing congressional action in the matter.

"That's what the existing law and the court is there for," Edwards said. "I don't think that the right solution is to have Washington politicians involved."

I really, really do.
:cry:

They are still my wallpaper on my computer....
And two of my favorite fellas!

honesty and kindness, and intelligence..and i cry...why is he not my vice president??

and i look at the bastard that is and all i see is evil!

god bless my country and may we survive the evil and one day see this man in our highest government..i pray for that honesty once again!!

gos bless edwards!!

fly

when they should have spoken up--beforehand.

They permitted Reid to work a deal on this and have only the Republicans show up, thus letting our Democratic Senators off the hook--not having to make statements beforehand and not having to record their position through a roll-call vote. Remember, this was before anyone knew what the public reaction was going to be. Thus it was passed by the Senate as a "unanimous" vote.

In my opinion, they should not have not acceded to this deal and they should have stood up and fought against the circumvention of the constitution, the rule of law, and for the separation of powers, as did a group of House members who demanded debate, got it, had a chance to speak out and had a chance to record a roll-call vote for or against it.

This legislation established a precedent in the public mind that it is okay to do an "end-run" around the constitution. Normally I would not expect our scarce-resources Democratic Senators and Representatives to fall on their swords for an issue, but this is one where I expected better of them because I think our lack of fight will lead to further weakening of our democratic institutions.

I know Edwards is no longer in the Senate, but I wish he, our current Senators, Howard Dean, and yes, even my personal favorite Wes Clark (and our other Democratic leaders) had clearly spoken out against doing something like this beforehand.

They did the right thing, if you ask me.

to our advantage (although it might not have), but this goes beyond politics. The bare minimum I expect from our elected Democrats of all ideological stripes is that they defend our very system of democratic governance. It is under attack by the right-wing Republicans and we are putting democracy at further risk if we play along with it.

it would have polarized the public. A lot of moderates would have seen it as a Democrat vs Republican political issue and would have been less likely to follow their instincts that the Republicans were wrong about this.

This is definitely not an issue where I demand the Democratic Party to carry the flag. This is an issue that people should have been moved by their hearts and I'm glad Democrats didn't make a polarized political issue of it.

Like I said: Republicans hanged themselves on this issue, and that's the best thing that could have happened.

He is gracious and complimentary. But where the rubber meets the road, when it comes to judging the past actions of these people and the consequences of those actions, he does not equivocate and he does not forgive. This is how it should be. By their actions and by their words is how a person must be judged, and that is what Edwards is doing.

In his interview to the Iowa Press he convincingly and strongly talked about George Bush's failure on health care, poverty, social security, and intelligence reform. It was a good policy-oriented interview with some questions about him running in '08. Here are links to watch or read it:

Video: http://www.iptv.org/iowapress/video/050401_3230.ram

Transcript: http://www.iptv.org/iowapress/transcript_detail.cfm?ipShowNum=3230

Frankly speaking, since the election he's one of the few who have held bush accountable for his actions without mincing words.

I miss the hope he and John Kerry gave all of us. I miss being able to look forward to what I knew would be a brighter day. I can only pray one day this country is the beneficiary of this man's great decency, honesty, passion and commitment. We so need him...

Thank you John Edwards. No on CondoSleeza and No on "El torturador" Gonzales too. Wish he was still in the Senate.

At first glance I thought thread was about that fake medium guy "Crossing Over with John Edwards", who FOX actually did call in to give them some analysis on what Teri Schavio was feeling.

Sonia