John Edwards

excerpts from the Iowa Daily Report

October 1-15, 2003

… Boston Globe online article by the Washington Associated Press, “Democrat Edwards takes lead in South Carolina”. Excerpts: “John Edwards has grabbed the lead in South Carolina, according to a poll released Tuesday that shows the North Carolina senator as the only presidential candidate in the state's Democratic primary race in double digits. More than four in 10 of those questioned, 42 percent, remain undecided in the survey of South Carolina voters conducted by the American Research Group of Manchester, N.H. Edwards was at 16 percent in the poll. Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut and Edwards were essentially tied in an August poll by the same firm, with Lieberman at 14 percent and Edwards at 10 percent. Edwards is counting on a strong performance in South Carolina, which is not only a neighboring state but also his native state. Edwards was born in Seneca, S.C.; his family moved to North Carolina when he was a child. Other recent state polls have shown several candidates together at the top and a large number of undecided voters. Lieberman, who led in South Carolina earlier this year, was at 7 percent with Wesley Clark, who recently entered the race. Howard Dean, the former Vermont governor, was at 6 percent, and Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, Rep. Dick Gephardt of Missouri and Al Sharpton were at 5 percent. Carol Moseley Braun was at 4 percent, Sen. Bob Graham of Florida was at 2 percent and Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio was at 1 percent. The poll of 600 voters who say they're likely to vote in the Democratic primary was conducted Sept. 25-29 and had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points. South Carolina holds its Democratic primary on Feb. 3. (10/01/2003)

… The Myers father-son duo has resurrected their Bill Clinton role, running ‘recon’ for the John Edwards campaign in Iowa. Translation: doing the “front” work. As reported in today’s  Boston Globe article by staff writer Patrick Healy, back in 1993 Sam Meyers, Sr. and Sam Meyers, Jr. found the right homes and home dwellers for then-president Bill Clinton to visit during the 1993 Iowa flood disaster. Today they’re director/deputy director of “advance operations” for the John Edwards campaign in Iowa. Waxing eloquent, Sam, Jr. is quoted in the article as saying, "We both fight like hell to get the job done." Sam’s I and II believe Edwards, like Clinton, has the ability to win over an group of listening people. Quoting Junior again, “I'm there to make sure the candidate interacts with real people, so they can look in his eyes and see this guy is genuine.” (10/05/2003)

… The New York Times recaps Saturday’s wannabes at the DNC meeting in Washington, D.C.: “On Saturday, Mr. Graham, Representative Richard A. Gephardt of Missouri, Senator John Edwards of North Carolina and the Rev. Al Sharpton outlined their political platforms, criticized President Bush for the war in Iraq and took swipes at their rivals. Mr. Edwards asked how President Bush could justify spending $87 billion on Iraq while millions of Americans go without health care and live in poverty. He promised to widen access to health insurance and to provide free college education to students who commit to teaching in poor schools. But Mr. Edwards also was critical of Gen. Wesley K. Clark, who has publicly acknowledged voting for the Republican presidents Ronald Reagan and Richard M. Nixon. "For me, being a Democrat is a commitment of the heart, not a matter of convenience for the moment," Mr. Edwards said. Mr. Gephardt and Mr. Sharpton directed attacks at President Bush and former Gov. Howard Dean of Vermont. Mr. Gephardt called Mr. Bush "the vanishing president," saying he had made jobs, civil liberties and European allies vanish. He also criticized Dr. Dean for supporting Republican plans to cut the growth of Medicare in the 1990's. Mr. Sharpton called on Dr. Dean to reject Michigan's plan to allow Internet voting in its Feb. 7 caucus. He said online voting would favor affluent white voters over poor black voters who lack computers. "We cannot have a situation in February where some can vote in the living room and others have to go through the snow and feel impaired," Mr. Sharpton said. "Governor Dean, it's not enough to talk the talk. You got to walk the walk. Your coffers may be full but your talk is cheap. We must do something about the racial divide, and Michigan is a test point on that."  (10/05/2003)

… It’s “Work Week” for John Edwards. And as his current standings in the 2004 presidential race show, Edward’s got a lot of work to do if he hopes to capture the Democratic nomination. The UnionLeader.com gives it’s report on the latest Edwards campaign effort in and article by Jerry Miller. Excerpts: “HAMPTON FALLS — Democratic Presidential hopeful U.S. Sen. John Edwards, D-S.C., used the town’s common yesterday to launch what his campaign dubbed “work week,” described as a seven-day period during which the freshman senator said he will outline his plan to reverse the loss of more than three million jobs under the Bush administration. … Referring to the first Bush administration, during which then-President Bush said, “Read my lips, no new taxes,” Edwards said the son’s slogan should be, “Read my lips, no new jobs.” … Later in the day, in Londonderry, Edwards touted his job stimulus plan and ratcheted up attacks on the Bush administration’s economic and foreign policy records at a town hall meeting at Londonderry High School. Among the 50 or so voters who grilled Edwards on everything from health-care subsidies to the costs of his plan to provide a free first year of college tuition to anyone qualified to attend, there appeared to be a consensus among several: the message and earnest, youthful presentation were attractive, but it remained too early for several to throw their wholehearted support Edwards’ way. Especially as most polls still place him fifth or lower in the Granite State (10/06/2003)

… EDWARDS I: John Edwards got a public scolding Sunday in Manchester, NH, by the leader of the town band. According to an article in the CharlotteObserver yesterday, Edwards was schmoozing the public while the band played on. That didn’t set well with the band leader, who said publically to Edwards: “If we came and played at your speech, you’d be pretty upset.” The article says Edwards ‘nodded an apology and made a quick exit.’ [EDITOR’S NOTE: this isn’t the first time Edwards has drawn public chastisement. On a campaign visit to Waukee, Iowa last July local farmer Jerry Burger showed up on his John Deere tractor, hopped off and gave Edwards a piece of his mind, “I think you need to go back to North Carolina. All you want is more regulations on livestock.” ] (10/06/2003)

… EDWARDS II: John Edwards returned to New Hampshire, no doubt hoping to avoid any more angry band leaders, visiting the New Hampshire Community Technical College in Stratham. An article in today’s CharlotteObserver recaps Edwards agenda as focused on retooling job retraining programs ‘that often fail to teach laid-off workers the skills that are in demand.’ Edwards is quoted as saying, “we’re training people for jobs that aren’t out there.” (10/07/2003)

… John Edwards’ “Work Week” is certainly well-named. The North Carolina senator has been campaigning hard in the target states of New Hampshire and Iowa. Anamosa, Cedar Rapids and Tipton, Iowa, were the towns of choice yesterday for Edwards. In today’s Des Moines Register, Thomas Beaumont reports in on the Edwards visits, and says the emphasis is federal reforms aimed at protecting and creating jobs. According to the article, Edwards proposes closing the tax breaks loophole for U.S. companies that move overseas, rewarding U.S. companies that stay with a 10 percent tax cut and encouraging the hiring of workers with disabilities. The Beaumont article also made mention of Edward’s newest campaign ad (Edward’s seventh), which began airing in Iowa on Monday night. The television ad, which is critical of President Bush’s request for $87 billion for Iraq, begins airing in New Hampshire today. (10/08/2003)

… Dem candidate John Edwards continued his Work Week yesterday, outlining his “Breaking down Barriers” plan in Davenport, Iowa. Ed Tibbets, Quad City Times, reports on Edwards today. According to Tibbets, the Edwards plan could help as m any as 40,000 disabled young people get jobs. How? Edwards says he’ll put $20M to work, which will be used to get internships and educate employers on the advantage of hiring this segment of America’s available workforce. Another Edwards talk point: speed up a law that stops ‘unfair’ penalties on disabled workers’ Social Security/Medicare benefits. Edwards is slated to speak more in Iowa today, with stops in Oskaloosa, Knoxville and Indianola, before heading to Tucson, Arizona for tonight’s DNC sponsored presidential candidates debate. (10/09/2003)

… Who gets the bounty of staff left over from the Bob Graham withdrawal from the Presidential Race? According to an article in today’s Des Moines Register, by Thomas Beaumont, here is the situation so far…

• Wesley Clark’s campaign:
  Steve Bouchard, Graham’s New Hampshire campaign director – HIRED in same capacity
  Julie Stauch, Graham’s Iowa political director – contacted
  Sarah Benzing, Graham’s Iowa field director – contacted
• John Kerry’s campaign:
  Julie Stauch, -- contacted
• Howard Dean’s campaign:
  Sarah Benzing – contacted
• John Edwards’ campaign:
  Sarah Benzing -- contacted

… Following directly on the heals of last night’s DNC-sponsored presidential debate in Arizona comes the NAACP debate today in South Carolina. As reported Wednesday in the IPW Daily Report, South Carolina NAACP president James Gallman objected to the lack of presidential candidates responding to the cattle call to all, prompting a hasty inclusion of more of the pack of nine. It appears that there are still three holdout, however: John Kerry, Wesley Clark and Howard Dean (whose loyal web log ‘bloggers’ say should get legitimate pass on this one – he promised his daughter he would  Clark  (10/10/2003)

… Kid glove treatment was clearly over regarding newcomer candidate Wesley Clark.  Knocked off the newcomer pedestal when Joe Lieberman said he was “very disappointed” by Clark’s changing positions on Iraq (the flip-flops of which began the very day Clark entered the race), Clark responded by saying, “I think it’s really embarrassing that a group of candidates up here are working on changing the leadership in this country and can’t get their own story straight.” Wasn’t that what Lieberman’s point? -- that Clark was not getting his story straight? Political veteran Lieberman flashed Clark a ‘Lieberman grin’ and replied, “Wesley Clark… welcome to the Democratic presidential race. None of us are above questioning. That’s what this is all about.” Clark’s inability to discern the negative from the valid was evident, as he put in yet another amateur performance. Clark has no prior experience running for any political office. News articles abound today, covering the debate from various angles. Here is a hefty helping of them. Click away!

·        Des Moines Register (written by AP writer Nedra Pickler)

·        NationalReview (written by Byron York)

·        BostonGlobe (written by Patrick Healy and Glen Johnson)

·        WashingtonPost (a long article, written by Dan Balz),

·        WashingtonTimes (by Stephen Dinan)

·        New York Times (this is a rather dry, excerpts only article – missing a lot of comments)

·        New York Times, again (written by Katharine Seelye and Jodi Wilgoren)

·        New Hampshire’s The UnionLeader (using the AP story by Ron Fournier)

·        CNN (who broadcasted the debate)

·        FoxNews (an early in the evening AP story)

·        and for those who really want to know… the complete transcript of the debate

(10/10/2003)

… Perhaps Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards could have picked a better day to begin airing his television ad than the day after the California recall election. But, the Edwards campaign pressed on, and the TV ads took to the airwaves. Now, a week after they began running, the BostonGlobe.com offers opine, titled, “Edwards milks Southern charm.” Excerpts: “… it stands to reason that his television ads would try to capitalize on his charms. Set in a small-town cafe somewhere in America (hint: Old Glory hanging in the window), it's a verite-style glimpse of Edwards in his shirt sleeves, addressing a crowd of regular folks. Edwards challenges President Bush's tax-cut plan … while touting his intention to provide health insurance for every child in the United States. No details on the health plan are given. Just a reference to Edwards's website, some dramatic, soaring music suited for movies on Lifetime, and approval from the regular folks, who nod as Edwards speaks and applaud when he finishes. …. Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania, agrees that the ad helps solidify Edwards's image. For once, he doesn't mention that he's the son of a millworker. But she wonders if the ad is timed well enough to accomplish what Edwards badly needs: a media buzz. "Any ad that is an attack on George Bush is more newsworthy than any ad that doesn't attack George Bush." But launching your ad the day after California voters ousted their governor and elected Arnold Schwarzenegger? Perhaps unwise. The press, she said, was a little distracted last week.” (10/13/2003)

… John Edwards appeared last night on MSNBC’s “Hardball” with host Chris Matthews, saying he was worried the Bush administration’s $87 billion request to rebuild Iraq will ‘end up in the pockets of Bush’s friends.’ Excerpts from the article, online at MSNBC.com: “It is not the right thing to do for our troops . . . to just continue to give this president a blank check," he said. "We have questions we need answers to." Pressed by Matthews for an example of such cronyism, Edwards cited oil services giant Halliburton, a company once headed by Vice President Dick Cheney. A Halliburton subsidiary has received no-bid work worth $1.2 billion to restore Iraq's oil industry. "He's spending more energy looking out for his friends than he is looking out for the American people and taxpayers," he said. A national CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll released yesterday indicated that Edwards was tied with the Rev. Al Sharpton, with 6 percent of the vote. Retired General Wesley K. Clark was first with 18 percent, followed by Dean, Senator Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut, and Kerry.” (10/14/2003)

… Senators Kerry and Edwards have both given signals of ‘no’ votes, regarding the requested $87 billion to rebuild Iraq. According to a Thomas Beaumont article in today’s Des Moines Register, Edwards says he’s dissatisfied with the Bush administration’s current plan. The article quotes Edwards as saying, “I believe this is a vote where, if I vote yes, it would be the equivalent of giving a stamp of approval to what this president is doing now. And I do not agree with what he’s doing now.” Meanwhile, Kerry’s attempt to link a repeal of income tax cuts (for the top brackets) failed, prompting this response from Kerry, “As I said on Sunday, unless this proposal is changed to better protect taxpayer dollars and shares the burden and risk of transforming Iraq with the United Nations and the rest of the international community, then I will oppose it.” The article goes on to say that Senator Joe Lieberman planned to vote for the measure. It is expected that the Senate will take a vote on the proposed $87 billion for Iraq this Friday, with the measure then heading into the House of Representatives, where Gephardt is expected to vote for it and Kucinich against. (10/15/2003)

Edwards is picking up an endorsement before Sunday’s Motor City debate. Edwards has been spending a lot of time in New Hampshire and Iowa in hopes that he can get a kick into the Feb. 3 round of the road to the nomination. However, this endorsement in Michigan will mean nothing if he doesn’t win South Carolina on Feb. 3. The Michigan Primary is Feb. 7. The following comes from the Edwards website: “The Edwards for President campaign announced today that Derek Albert, State Chairman of the Michigan Democratic Party Black Caucus, will serve as State Director for North Carolina Senator John Edwards' Michigan campaign. "I'm excited to join the Edwards team and lead the senator's Michigan effort," Albert said. "Senator Edwards has the best policies in this campaign, and he represents our Party's best chance at defeating President Bush." Edwards will return to Michigan this weekend and campaign in Lansing and Detroit. On Sunday, October 26, he will take part in the Congressional Black Caucus debate in Detroit. "I think over time it's sinking in. I think I was prescient. I think I showed leadership," said Sen. John Kerry about poll results in Iowa and New Hampshire saying they prefer someone who voted for war and then opposed it.  (10/25/2003)

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