The bus was late, but the show was sweet - bittersweet. John Edwards closed out his NH campaign in Dover last night to a rapt audience.
Tim Robbins, Susan Sarandon and James Denton were there. The whole Edwards family was there. The entire campaign family was there. The family of labor showed up in full solidarity for John Edwards. The enthusiastic family of environmental activists represented by Friends of the Earth was there.
But another family came to the Elk's Lodge in Dover tonight to support John Edwards at his final campaign event in NH.
The family of Nataline Sarkysian, a beloved daughter and sister, a friend and a young teenager so full of hope and potential, an American no longer on this earth for the sake of a few dollars more on the bottom line, that family was there tonight in Dover. The Sarkysian Family was there to raise their voices in protest during their time of intense grief to remind us that pernicious influence of corporations is not just the ultimate boogeyman out there in the political landscape today. No, the story of Nataline is a story about the human costs of the system we live under today in this country.
Nataline's murder is a direct result of the unabated corporate greed tolerated by our public servants at every step of the way. Her story is the next logical step in the process of what is really going on in this country. The government is now owned and operated by amoral for-profit entities that are only responsible to the bottom line and are unequipped by definition to act in the public good. The media are complicit and lack any desire whatsoever to shed light on stories like Nataline's . And there's no end in sight unless we address this problem head on. If we do not nominate and elect John Edwards at this point in our country's history then clearly, we can only hope for the best.
Even after her death, CIGNA stands by their decision.
Nataline is why the Edwards message is so important to us as a nation. Her story or something like it is repeated thousands of times a day in thousands of different ways all across the country. John Edwards stands alone as a strong, clear and unapologetic voice fighting for the middle-class and against the deadly ramifications of the system of government that has just gotten out of hand down there in DC. No other candidate has centered their message of change by emphasizing the fundamental truth behind the tragedy the Sarkysian Family has endured.
If we choose to ignore that truth then we can only hope for the best and we can not hope to begin to work for change in this country unless we start at the starting point.
Here are the intro's.
Video: James Denton: Desperate Housewives in NH (5:15)
James Denton spoke first about his experiences in NH campaigning for John Edwards.
He's a very thoughtful and well-spoken guy, a self-professed "redneck from Tennessee" that is just "sort of feed-up really" with the sorry state of affairs in this country. And he has a real fine sense of humor. Edwards Democrats always do.
Tough audience here, I love it. It's been a lot of fun and it's been good. I'm totally serious, it's been great. I've had better conversations on front doorsteps in NH than I've had anywhere else in the country. And that's a fact.
I don't know if I changed any minds.
someone shouts, "desperate housewives," from the audience
I met some desperate housewives because I realized that I was knocking on doors during the football game the other day and I wasn't very popular. I didn't win over any male votes, I know that.
He talks about the unity that is possible behind the Edwards message and some of the keystones to it that really convinced him to pony up some time for Edwards out on the campaign trail.
Things like the environment. Not just the Iraq War which is a horrible situation and has to be at the forefront of our minds, but there were a number of issues that nobody else was talking about - like nuclear power which is a big deal to me. So I started looking at where these candidates stand and Senator Clinton claims to be agnostic which I don't even know what that means. I thought that was a religious term, but admitting to not knowing enough technically which was okay because there's an honesty there. Then Barack Obama, I heard early one was supporting coal based fuels and then stopped talking about nuclear power which I thought was a little odd. So I did some digging and found out that his third biggest bundler of funds runs nuclear power plants.
He continues to talk about the main thing that got his attention about John Edwards and OneCorps of which he is a member. He got some face time with Edwards on a plane after the Las Vegas debate to talk about the writer's strike and was able to actually walk a picket line with Edwards in solidarity for the writers that on average earn about 62,000/year. He talked about the hardship that losing all those paychecks is causing throughout the industry for people not as fortunate as himself including the carpenters, grips and crews that haven't gotten a paycheck since October. He reminds us that all the restaurants, bars and other businesses servicing the shut down industry are also suffering as their businesses are empty. And he talks about the hope, passion and commitment to join in the struggle that he sees in Edwards today. "No other candidate has been there. John has been there twice."
Then came Tim Robbins.
Video: Tim Robbins: Maybe It's Elizabeth (3:13)
Mr. Robbins has been on the trail with Edwards for about a month now, off and on for a variety of reasons. He not only wants some answers about what the hell is going on in this country also for a variety of reasons, he wants the media to start telling us some truth. He tells us that we are owed the truth and that celebrity culture is part of the problem. That's charitable. He asks us where the voices of regular people are in this country anymore.
Now also, we've told for the last eight months that it's a two-person race. Even today, even today after John Edwards comes in second in Iowa we're still being told that it's a two person race.
someone shouts, "John and who else?" from the audience
That's right. We're the voters. We decide who the front-runner is. The more people that hear John Edwards, the more he becomes the front-runner... He has been connecting to many without the benefit of the spotlight or a 100 million dollar campaign chest paid for by Washington lobbyists. Maybe people are starting to realize that what's being force fed to them is not in their best interests. Maybe John Edwards is strong with people that see him and respect his passion and his integrity. Maybe it's his honesty. Maybe it's his wife. Maybe it's because Americans recognize a winner when they see one. Some one who will restore the constitution for what it is and should be respected to be.
Then came John Edwards, the man of the hour, to make his case before the voters.
Video: Edwards: When will it end? (7:01)
When will it stop?
We are very proud to be here today with all of you because will be a big day and an important day in the state of New Hampshire. Because starting tomorrow morning in New Hampshire we're going to start to take the first major step in taking this democracy back for the people of the United States of America.
He talks about the sacrifices and the hard work that he saw his parents and grandparents do as ordinary Americans so that he could have a better life.
Why did they work and struggle and sacrifice? They did it so that you could have a better life. They did it so that they left America better than they found it. This is the great moral test for every generation of Americans ... We are faced with enormous challenges because as sure as I'm standing here, the monied and powerful interests in Washington have an iron-clad grasp on your democracy, every part of your democracy.
Why don't we have universal health care in this country? We don't have it because of drug companies, insurance companies and their lobbyists. Why do we have that mess of a prescription drug law? Because the drug company lobbyists wrote it that's why. Why do we have trade laws that encourage American companies to leave and take their jobs overseas costing millions of American jobs?
I'll tell you why. For the profits .. of the biggest corporations in America all at the cost of the middle-class and working families in this country.
When will it stop? When will it stop?
It'll stop when
someone shouts, "when you're president" from the audience
When I'm president, that's right.
Video: John Edwards: Nataline is why (8:45)
And it'll stop when we stand up and say enough is enough. And it'll stop when we stand on the shoulders of our parents and grandparents and all the generations who came before us who made absolutely certain that the promise of America was available to us. We are not going to let these people steal our children's future.
And anybody who believes that we don't have a fight on our hands is living in never never land... I'm proud of the fact that I have never taken a dime from a Washington lobbyist or a special interest PAC because we cannot trade a crowd of corporate Republicans for corporate Democrats. Nothing will change.
The argument that you can take these people's money ... and then that you're going to be able to stand-up to them is a fantasy. It'll never happen. I'll tell you when they will give their power away, they give their power away when we take it from them.
When you think about great transformational events in American history. You think about when this country really changed. It only changed when we had leaders of conviction, leaders of strength, leaders who had some fight in them.
Teddy Roosevelt, a great American president, stood up to the monopolies and the trusts. He didn't negotiate with those people. He busted them, that's what he did. Franklin Roosevelt, one of the great presidents, transformational figure. Franklin Roosevelt was vilified by the big corporations in America. And he welcomed their hatred. Then one of my favorite presidents, Harry Truman ... People used to say, "Harry you're giving them hell." And he said, "no I'm just telling the truth and it feels like hell."
So we're going to tell the truth. We're going to tell the truth about these monied entrenched interests and what they're doing to the middle-class and to jobs. About what they're doing to people having access to health care because nothing will ever change until we break their iron fisted grip on this democracy.
Then he tells us the story of Nataline. She was denied a liver transplant by her insurance carrier and in so doing CIGNA denied Nataline her chance to live; that's the truth. But I am so thankful that the Sarkysian found the strength to attend the event and publicly protest the murder of their daughter by the insurance company that they paid year in year out when they were healthy. Yet when it came time for CIGNA to pony up the dough, as promised, they get the shaft. And it will never end until we take the problem head on. That is also the truth.
Mrs. Edwards takes a moment to interrupt and remind us all why the Sarkysians were there tonight. She explains that they need to ensure that their daughter's death was not in vain. Simple as that. Truth sure is simple once you start telling some of it.
What happened to Nataline should never happen in the United States of America. And that is why things have to change.
Video: John Edwards: A movement for change (0:0)
He starts to talk about his vision for America.
This promise of America that many of us have lived belongs to our children. It belongs to our grandchildren. And we'll fight for it. We are willing to stand-up and fight for it. We will not forget those who came before us who suffered and struggled and sacrificed to give us a chance and to give us this opportunity.
You know, the truth is and we ought to be telling the truth just a few hours before this primary, I am not the celebrity candidate. I am not the 100 million dollar campaign, we've got two of those and I'm not one of them. But what we learned just a few days ago in Iowa is that you can not buy elections .. I am the underdog tomorrow, I'll be the first to say it. My under dog status is nothing compared to the extraordinary under dog that is the middle-class in America, veterans who are suffering, millions without health insurance - that's what this fight is about. This is not about me.
We need you. We need you involved. We need you engaged. We need you volunteering. This is a movement and it is a movement for change. It is a movement that is fighting for the future of our children and our grandchildren. When this is over, we want to spark a wave of change that begins here in NH that spreads across America with a power that can not be stopped. And when that wave is finished every one of us is going to be able to look our children in the eye and say, "we did for you what our parents and grandparents did for us. We made certain that we left America better than we found it and that we gave you a better life than we had. "
This is Nataline's father. He took a moment to pose for this picture after the event. What happened to his lovely daughter is nothing short of murder, but it's perfectly legal. Why? Why does Nataline's story not merit a national discussion about the state of affairs in this country today? Why do we allow greed and the love of money to not only steal the promise of America from our children but their actual lives when a "tough call" needs to be made for the sake of profit and profit alone.
Today we rise up out of bed to a glorious day and a January thaw. Today we go to the polls in NH. And Today the Sarkysian family has to figure out how to live with out their lovely daughter in this world.
Send us a President, NH.
Send us a specific, detailed agenda for real change that can win in November and begin the process of restoring accountability and fairness to the system.
Send us a man who never backs down from a fight with a message that sings the truth about the human costs of the system we live under today.
Send us John Edwards.