Posted on 07/18/2007 11:20:21 AM PDT by NormsRevenge
WISE, Va. - Presidential candidates John Edwards and Barack Obama on Wednesday focused on the struggles of the nation's poor — from rural Appalachia to Washington's urban Anacostia — in competing speeches that underscored the fierce fight for the Democratic nomination.
Edwards was wrapping up his eight-state poverty tour with stops in Virginia and Kentucky, the latter where Democratic icon Robert F. Kennedy spoke nearly 40 years ago in his plea to help the nation's forgotten.
Unwilling to cede the issue to Edwards, Obama spoke at a recreation center in the nation's capital, and in a jab at his rival, argued that combatting poverty was hardly new for him, a one-time community organizer in Chicago.
"This kind of poverty is not an issue I just discovered for the purposes of a campaign, it is the cause that led me to a life of public service almost twenty-five years ago," the Illinois senator said in prepared remarks.
Obama struck a populist tone.
"The streets here are close to our capital, but far from the people it represents. These Americans cannot hire lobbyists to roam the halls of Congress on their behalf, and they cannot write thousand-dollar campaign checks to make their voices heard," he said. "They suffer most from a politics that has been tipped in favor of those with the most money, and influence, and power."
Obama opened his remarks by describing Kennedy's poverty tour four decades earlier.
In southwest Virginia, Edwards held an outdoor round-table and listened to stories about indigent health care from Appalachian doctors, community leaders and the working poor. Thousands of patients in the region rely on an annual mobile health fair as their sole source of care.
Dr. Joe Smitty, a volunteer with the Remote Area Medical Volunteer Corp., told Edwards "you have arrived in a part of America where health care is fragmented."
Smitty said heart disease, lung cancer and black lung are common problems in the impoverished Appalachian region. However, several in the group said it didn't want Edwards' poverty tour to reinforce negative stereotypes of the region.
"These challenges don't define the people of this area," Edwards responded. "Their strength and defiance and courage define them. We're here to help."
The former North Carolina senator said lack of access to health care isn't limited to the Appalachian region — it's a national problem. He told the volunteer doctors that they shouldn't have to shoulder the burden of indigent health care alone.
"We have to do something about this," he said. "This is not OK."
At a later stop in eastern Kentucky, Edwards held a forum with youth to discuss problems in Appalachia. During the forum at Appalshop Theater in Whitesburg, Edwards listened as youth described problems with coal companies, prescription drug abuse and health care.
Edwards' tour began Sunday night in New Orleans' Lower Ninth Ward. He visited sites in Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
___
Associated Press writer Nedra Pickler in Washington contributed to this report.
Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards speaks during a television interview held before he met with area residents, organizers and volunteers of the Remote Area Medical (RAM) Expedition at the Wise County Fairgrounds, Wednesday, July 18, 2007 in Wise, Va. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)
Democrats never have helped those in Appalachia despite decades of “promises”.
Some enterprising young reporter ought to ask them the question, “Why izzit that all the worst poverty in this country is in lifelong Democrat controlled areas?”.............
Gabby McNally, of Luana, Iowa, stands with her pet llama Eko as they wait for presidential hopeful U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., to arrive at the Iowa First Congressional District Caucus workshop, Saturday, July 14, 2007, in Peosta, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
Edwards to Obama, “Barry, compared to me you’re poor.”
Looks like Cindy Sheehan has put on some weight but good to see her on a leash at least!
Hey Silky Pony: 95% of poverty is a result of negative behavior that is reinforced by liberal government policy. We’ve had a welfare state for 80 goddamn years, and most of today’s poor are poor because they are lazy, stupid, or both. “Gee, the 18 kids I have out of wedlock don’t have health insurance.” Maybe you should have figured that out beforehand and not had kids you can’t afford?
We want to help cure your black lung problems. We vow to close all the coal mines!!!
If the Democrats have conclusively proved anything in the last 50 years, it’s that they can’t eradicate poverty; not with money, not with the White House, and certainly not with absolute control of Congress. This horse has been flogged to death and then some. What they have proved is that eradication of poverty would destroy their power base-it’s not in their interests to do that.
John Edwards goes on a poverty tour, hanging out the window of his air conditioned luxury bus, asking the folks he passes: “Are you poor?” Not really sure what poor people look like, he has employed an aide to point them out to him, so that he can jump out of his bus for a photo op.
I would love to see a good debate in this country about the actions taken in the ‘60s as part of the war on poverty, and the results of that war on poverty.
There’s probably nothing that Edwards can suggest that hasn’t already been tried.
Talk about a war quagmire. We’ve been in this war on poverty for 40 years with questionable results.
I realize the politically correct crowd feels that the Democrats have their hearts in the right place on poverty issues, but geez, louise.............
Too many in Appalachia and our inner cities have been in poverty. How to solve it is the question.
Do Democrats have the answers? The same places that Edwards visited were full of people grappling with poverty on Jan. 20, 1993 when that good Democrat Bill Clinton became president. Those same places were full of poverty on Jan. 20, 2001 when Bill left office. Bill Clinton did nothing for those places.
Those who charge that Bush doesn’t care about minorites or ghettos or problems of poverty ignore the fact that nothing changes in these places when Democrats are in power.
So forgive me for being skeptical about John Edwards making this his signature issue. As if we aren’t compassionate enough or haven’t spent enough money already on these matters.
Edwards is not ever going to be the rat nominee, that fight is between hillary and osama, either of which is easily beatable by any Republican candidate except Rudy.
Hear, Hear!
LoL.. wow, astute observation, urrr..
Looks like Cindy is about ready to ‘douse’ the Hillary sign..
“Gabby McNally, of Luana, Iowa, stands with her pet llama Eko as they wait for presidential hopeful U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill.”
.
They’ll both choke and gag on Obama’s cigarette breath, usually a habit of the very poor, or the very rich.
ba-da-bing!
"Hey Obama! Check it out. They's sum po peeps in hizzle fo shizzle! You want some fried chicken?"
"Doncha love it when I release my inner Ghetto thug Lizzie? Dat's how I roll beotch."
Every inner city of every major city is all the proof one needs to realize The Great Society didn’t work . . . and never will.
I thi8nk he sank his poverty boat when Cris Matthews asked him waht it is like to be poor, and he said his father had to leave a restaurant.
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