John Edwards on the stump in Iowa

[llachglin]

I'm in Iowa City for the holidays at the in-laws. Iowa City is a charming enough college town, but it's not exactly an exciting place. I was pondering what kind of entertainment I might be able to find in Iowa in December so that I could do something other than hole up and read a few books.

And then I realized that there's one thing that is

Comments

[valknott]

Wow, how cool! Thanks for the great first-person report. One thing I would want to know is how much campaign money Edwards has taken from corporate interests. I understand that the corporations are spreading money around to all the candidates to hedge their bets, but I would feel better about the sincerity of Edwards' anti-corporate rhetoric if I had seen that he has taken less money from them than others...

As far as populism goes, I feel that Kucinich is more so the populist than Edwards. Of course, Kucinich does not stand a chance. Hilary is bought and sold by lobbyists. Dodd I'm not that impressed with, nor Obama.

The cynical side of me says that Edwards is adept at tapping into what is making the average American angry. But is he simply using that as a tool to get elected, or does he really feel simpatico? I don't know. At any rate, the fact that he recognizes and addresses these issues, like health care, may be a positive.

I'm still waiting for Nader to run. Hah! We shall see...

-john

[valknott]

Kucinich is the guy I agree with the most, but as you say he has no chance. Dodd I like only because of his recent courage in standing up against telecom immunity in the FISA bill, but of course he's otherwise unimpressive. Edwards has a centrist, pro-corporate record as Senator, and it's hard to completely believe him. But if you add up all the factors he's near the top.

Hillary Clinton impresses me on a personal basis--she's smart, competent, and doesn't take shit from anyone. (And I actually find her likeable.) Too bad you can't tell her foreign policy from that of the first President Bush (actually, I think Bush Pere might be better), and she's the most pro-corporate candidate on domestic policy.

[valknott]

Oh, and Edwards hasn't taken any corporate PAC money since he's been in politics. So he has walked the walk in that respect. He did vote for the war, for the PATRIOT act, and for NAFTA, however. Those three votes make it hard to swallow the populist line--but I also think that even someone who says that stuff just to win votes will find it difficult to not deliver something once elected. How you get elected is important, and if he wins he'll have been elected as a populist.

[valknott]

I thought that I read somewhere he hadn't taken corporate $$$... Well, THAT'S good and unusual.

[poodlgrl]

We miss you you-know-where.