Prior to today, I had never seen John Edwards in person. I had always heard he was a great speaker, and I had seen him on TV, but seeing someone in person is different. Now I totally get it; John Edwards is simply a great public speaker, no doubt about it. Maybe he and Barack Obama could have a Toastmasters faceoff for the world championship? Ha. Anyway...here's a shorthand summary - yes, I'm exhausted from this day of driving and attending events from Fredericksburg to Vienna - of what Edwards had to say. All of these are rough quotations or approximations of what Edwards said. Please remember, I'm exhausted and ready to fall sound asleep! :)
*"This election is about transforming America."
*We need a man of character, strength and honesty who "couldn't tell a lie if his life depended on it" - Jim Webb.
*What's missing today among American leaders is an understanding about our responsibilities, both to the United States and to humanity.
*"When we fail to meet that responsibility, there is an enormous price to pay."
*"We have to be strong but we can't just lead through strength...We have to have the moral authority to lead."
*"Today, the world doesn't know who we are, and they need to know who we are."
*"I love the Democratic Party; I love America more."
*"In these elections, the future of the world is at stake."
*"I grew up in an America where we were the light. We're not the country of Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay. We are better than this!"
*"It is time for us to lead again."
*We need to raise the minimum wage, provide "universal health care coverage," work towards an economy where not just the top 1% do well, lead the way away from dependence on fossil fuels..."
*"The country desperately needs us to be honest."
*"It is time to ask the American people to be patriotic about something more than war!"
*"There is a hunger [among Americans] to be inspired again."
*We need to call on Americans to be willing to sacrifice.
*"A sense of national community matters."
*"I have seen young people change this country before. You can change America again."
*"We cannot wait for somebody else to do it."
*"There is nothing we can't do together."
*"This is not about politics," but about a "just and righteous and honest America."
Hopefully, we'll have video of this event. The notes definitely don't do it justice!
Lowell Feld is Netroots Coordinator for the Jim Webb for US Senate Campaign. The ideas expressed here belong to Lowell Feld alone, and do not represent those of Jim Webb, his advisors, staff, or supporters.
Oct Beth el is having all the candidates!!!