I live in Portland Oregon and it's a rarity to have a candidate running for President come to my city. It makes sense, Oregon's not an early primary state so we don't have a say in who becomes the Democratic nominee. Luckily John Edwards is running a national campaign, and he came to talk about many issues facing Oregonians.
The town hall was held at the ILWU Union Hall in Northwest Portland, and the hall quickly filled up. It was great to see the room bustling with people of all ages and all ethnicities. There were hundreds of people, and many had to stand for the event because all the seating had filled up. I loved seeing entire families attending the event, the babies, toddlers and teenagers were out in force! I love seeing young people because I remember my mother taking me out of school to go see Bill Clinton in 92'. It was a great moment for me to see as a kid how much politicians could affect people.
The first person that spoke was a woman named Mary Ann Olson. Mary Ann Olson is on disability and lives off social security. She came to talk about an issue that is a huge problem in Oregon, the pay day lenders. She found herself to be in a tight economic situation and decided to get some cash through a pay day lender. They ended up giving her an interest rate at 525%. Like many Americans, Mary Ann did not know what she was getting pulled into. She became a victim of predatory lenders and had debts that she was unable to pay off. She has now become a leading advocate for legislation regulating this industry. I'm glad Mary Ann is speaking out on this issue, we need more people like her pressuring Congress to take action against these predatory lenders.
When Edwards entered the room, they were playing U2's song called, "It's a Beautiful Day" and then Edwards entered the room to a rowdy burst of applause. The campaign had handed out Edwards 2008 signs and everybody was waving them about. I can't believe that no one has ever had serious eye injuries from signs waving around! The first issue Edwards talked about was Iraq. Edwards said that Congress needs to stand firmly on Iraq. He said they need to keep the pressure on Iraq, and send them another bill and then another bill. Edwards also said, It's the President who is ignoring the will of the American people, and it's Congress who is serving the will of the American people" Edwards then played the ad that his campaign has put out urging Congress to stand firm on Iraq and keep the pressure on Bush until he agrees to withdraw troops from Iraq. I like the ad, it's simple, clear and straight to the point. Edwards asked the audience to go to his website: http://www.johnedwards.com and give them feedback about the ad. His campaign is very interactive and wants as much feedback on Iraq and other issues as well as this latest ad.
Edwards then went on to talk about the organized labor movement. Edwards stressed comprehensive labor reform in America starting with making it easier to form unions. Edwards also said he is for banning permanent replacement workers for strikers. This quote really energized the crowd, they all stood up and cheered. Edwards then touched on the issue I brought up earlier, and that's predatory lending. He said, "We need a national predatory lending law that regulates lenders" He also said that there are more payday lenders in Oregon then there are 7-11's ans Starbucks combined. I was shocked! I knew that there was a problem with predatory lenders but I had no idea we had that many in the state.
Next, Edwards touched on his Universal Health Care proposal. He said he would create a public entity to compete with the private industry. Americans would have a choice, and if enough Americans look at the plans and decide that the public choice is the better one, it would eventually lead us to a single payer system. Employers would either cover their employees or pay into a health pool. His system would outlaw the use of pre-existing conditions as a cost measure, it would cover mental health, preventative care, longterm care, vision and dental. It would also allow people to change jobs and keep their health care plan. His plan would also cut administrative costs my mandating the use of technology and electronic record keeping.
Edwards went on to say that, "America must be an example for good again. The starting place would be for America to get out of Iraq. Edwards then talked about leading on climate change. He called it a crisis right now, and went on to talk about what he'd do to combat global warming. He'd cap national emissions, auction of the right to emit gases, he'd create a national comprehensive investment in carbon sequestration technology, bio-fuels, wind power and solar power. He also said we need to decentralize the way we process electricity. His goal on reducing emissions would be to reduce greenhouse gases by 80% by the year 2050. That's what I call BOLD! He got a standing ovation when he said, We need new energy efficient vehicles built in America by union workers!
There's been a lot of talk about the debate and about the moment when Brian Williams asked the candidates if they believe in the "Global War on Terror" to raise their hands. Edwards did not raise his hand. This is what Edwards had to say on the subject, "I do not agree with teh language global war on terror, this is a political frame they use to justify the war in Iraq, Guantanomo Bay and spying on American citizens. He went on to say that we cannot cow tow to these people. He also said, "Raw power alone will never make you a leader. He said that in order to lead in the world we have to be a force for good again. Edwards went on to bring up Darfur. He asked us to see the situation in Darfur through the world's eyes. He said, "The most powerful nation in the world declares that there's a genocide going on in Darfur and then watches it continue, what would you think of us?" I was so impressed with how Edwards was able to get through to people on this issue. He's right, if you look at us through the eyes of people in other countries, we only intervene when it's economically or politically beneficial to do so. Edwards also stressed showing global leadership by helping fight AIDS, helping provide public education for countries in the middle east and Africa. He also said we need to lead an effort to help the sanitation systems and help provide clean water in third world countries.
Edwards said that during his first day in office at POTUS he would close Guantanomo Bay. He got another standing ovation for that one! Edwards also talked about Elizabeth, he thanked the audience for their support, but also said they get way too much credit. He talked about millions of women who live with breast cancer everyday and they have to wake up and go to work, or take care of their kids. They're not getting the credit they deserve.
Edwards then took questions from the audience. A woman asked Edwards if he supported a gas tax. He said he didn't but he did support getting Americans to conserve in other ways. He also said he would be willing to impose a windfall profits tax on oil companies. Another person asked him if there was any way to cut out the private insurance companies in his UHC plan. He said his plan did not call for it, and there are many reasons why. He said if they jumped to single payer they would have a hard time passing it, but if enough Americans choose the public plan it would lead America to single payer. Another person asked him about the detainees held at Guantanomo, and what he would do with them? Edwards said they all deserved a fair trial, and that he would follow the Geneva Convention. He said that America should never use torture. Edwards was also asked if he would support a federal law supporting a women's right to choose. Edwards said he is fully in support of a federal law in place that would protect a woman's right to choose no matter what SCOTUS decides. The last question to Edwards was how would he make sure every vote was counted? Edwards said that he would get rid of electronic voting machines and go back to paper.
It was a great event, and I have to admit he was much better this time around. I saw him back in 2004 and he was good, but there's something different about him now. He's got more passion, he speaks off the cuff, and he explains his policy proposals amazingly well. My personal favorite moment of the day was when a little boy shouted out during the Q&A session, "I think we need to get our country out of Iraq". Edwards asked the little boy who was no more then 6 years old what his name was. The boy told him his name was Martin. Edwards said, "Martin, your parents have raised you well".
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