Encountering Elizabeth Edwards

On Wednesday May 30 I was able to attend an event in Virginia with Elizabeth Edwards.  After meeting her, watching her, talking with her, I can say that the greatest compliment that one can give John Edwards is to note that he is married to Elizabeth. 

This is not an endorsement of John.  I went to talk about education.  I knew the host family, and the wife had suggested I come.  That part is off the record.  But I was encouraged to write about what I saw and heard.  And encountering Elizabeth Edwards, even briefly, is an amazing experience.
This was a garden party on a very hot day, although by the official start at 5 PM it had cooled a bit, and the back yard was surrounded by tall trees, and was actually quite pleasant.  The event was at the home of Bob and Mary Ann Hovis - they went to Iowa for John in 2004, and are very close.  They had John at their house for an event for Jim Webb last year. 

The other members of the host committee included several Virginia public officials and candidates. Delegate Chuck Caputo had also gone to Iowa for Edwards, and that actually inspired him to run for the General Assembly.  State Senator Vivian Watts supported Edwards in 2004. And former delegate and state senate candidate Chap Peterson was also there.  Former Congressional candidate Andy Hurst was on the host committee, but could not come.

There were perhaps 50 people present,  not all of whom were yet committed aupporters of Edwards at the start, although the number did increase by the end of the event.

Elizabeth is fairly short, although her presence is large.  She actually looks fairly good despite the health problems, and staff tries to make sure she gets sufficient down time.  She is a very warm person, engages well with people, and quickly learns their names, and what interests them, as she demonstrated multiple times when she was addressing the group.  She also has an easy sense of humor, and is quite comfortable making jokes at her own expense.  In one interchange she and I had during Q&A, she remarked that of course she was talking without specific detailed knowledge, and I assured her that as a blogger I do it all the time, and she laughed.

Let me offer one insight.  Our host Bob Hovis is a notable trial attorney.  In introducing Elizabeth he mentioned that he had had occasion to meet one of her professors from law school who told him she was easily the brightest and best student he had ever taught.  Listening to her in her remarks and in the q&a, talking with her about education, listening to some of her conversations with others, it was easy to see why the professor came to that conclusion.

I should note that one member of the host committee was not present because her son just returned from Iraq with a very serious head wound and she was with him at Brooke Army Hospital.  It was our hostess who was explaining this, and Elizabeth jumped in to explain that she had recently had lunc with journalist Bob Woodruff whose own wounds were very similar.  Edwards then praised the quality of the military medical care and offered the hope that the young man would be able to recover as did Woodruff, even as she offered her own concern for the young man (whom she knows).  In a sense it brought home the seriousness of Iraq in a way that enabled the audience to understand that John and Elizabeth grasp the effects of this war on the lives of those who serve and their families and loved ones.

I did not take notes, but I have a clear memory of much of what Elizabeth said.  She was candid, at times self-deprecating.  She was of course asked about the haircut.  She explained that it was a campaign failure.  The only time John could sit for the haircut was at about 11:30 at night.  That meant the barber had to come to the hotel.  Apparently the normal salon rate was around $100, and as Elizabeth notes, John has a lot of cowlicks.  What made it so expensive was the time and the location.  They thought it was supposed to be paid from their private funds, and it was flagged that way within the campaign, but somehow someone goofed and paid with campaign funds, which of course created the problem.  She explained that when either of them goes shopping normally an aide has their personal credit card.  She also tried to illustrate how cheap they really are:  since she was in Virginia she went to Leesburg to the Outlet Mall.  There was one item she wanted, but it was a liquid more than 3 ounces.  She had no checked baggage since she had flown up for the day, and could not put it in her carryon.  The clerk suggested she simply fed-ex it, and her immediate response is that would more than eat up her savings!

I won't go through all the policy answers.  I found her forthright, and exceedingly knowledgeable.  Her answers were usually extensive, providing a great deal of detail, not merely summaries of positions, but explanations placing things in context.  And throughout she was humorous, charming, and clearly dedicated to her husband.

On the politics side she noted that they had retained 80% of their precinct captains in Iowa from 2004, so they did not have to build an organization from scratch.  She also noted that only one ARG poll had ever shown John in other than the lead position in Iowa.  She also remarked that if an ARG poll showed him ahead she would ignore it, expressing her somewhat low opinion of the ARG as a polling organizations.

Elizabeth believes that John is positioned not only to win Iowa, but also to do very well in Nevada, which is also a caucus state, where his connections with workers particularly those in the hotels and casinos in Vegas gives him a huge advantage that does not show up in the polls.  The hope and belief is that that will lead to increased success in NH where Edwards currently polls second.  And then??? 

Let me conclude with a few observations.  America became a middle class society in large part because of the role of unions.  John Edwards seems to understand this.  It is not clear how great the understanding of the role of unions is among the other 7.  America as a society is in grave danger in having aggravating divisions by economic class.  Again, this is an issue which Edwards seems to grasp, and which is not as high a priority for most of the other candidates.  Given the strength and roots of the Democratic party, at least as far back as FDR, both of these are issues that to me should be on the top of the list of priorities for any Democratic candidate for national office. 

I expect to remain neutral in the presidential race, at least for the forseeable future.  And Elizabeth Edwards is not the only notable spouse.  Clearly both Michelle Obama and Bill Clinton offer a great deal to their candidate spouses.  Elizabeth Edwards is an original, unique, and she would be considered remarkable even absent her own current medical situation (and she says she is doing well, although she is awaiting the results of a further check).

I am glad I had this opportunity, to experience a remarkable person.  That is why I took the time to share like this.

Peace.

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