I'm for Edwards too, but also have a concern:

John Edwards voted for the Patriot Act.

And this was the first legislation to grant warrantless wiretapping, without evidence of connection to criminal or terrorist activity, to the Feds. www.aclu.org

 In a Buzzflash interview with Edwards, Buzzflash asked him:

"Do you regret having voted for the Patriot Act?"

Edwards answered:

"Oh no. The Patriot Act increased FBI/CIA/police communications, and is a necessary tool for fighting terrorism".

Well, the interesting thing is that Sen. Barbara Boxer, who also voted for it, used the *exact same* words!

Who fed them that?

What would Edwards's own words be at this point?

The Patriot Act does so much more than increase wiretapping powers, and basically makes us vulnerable to the knock on the door at 4 am by the FBI who can haul us away for reasons of their own choosing, by unilateral volition. No judge's oversight, no warrant, not even probable cause required.

Bush threatened Congress into passing it by telling them all he would dub them publicly as "soft on terror" if they did not pass it. And he gave them not enough time to study the 132-page bill. Anthrax was going around Congress at just this time.

But it's still endangering us Americans to such a degree that it is inexcusable.

So while I love Edwards for his outspokenness----I loved his mentioning "Democratic lock-outs" during the Kerry/Edwards campaign----and that makes me think he is truth-oriented and ethical, I also remain watchfully concerned.

I don't trust anybody who votes for the Patriot Act and gives a canned excuse for it.

I still am going to vote for Edwards because of his outspokenness and his position about corporate take-over of politics. I think that speaks well for him.

by Kathryn Smith (90 articles, 2 quicklinks, 37 diaries, 347 comments) on Sunday, January 27, 2008 at 12:26:52 AM
 

Things Might Be Changing With Edwards

When Edwards openly came out against immunity for the Telecoms, I believe that may have signaled the "new" John Edwards. I think he may have been awakened and now that he's fighting against the establishment itself, the rules are bound to change.

I'm writing an open letter to Edwards. This is a time when he could define himself as a candidate and bring forth issues in the debates neither of the other two candidates even wish to acknowledge exist, never mind debate in an open forum where they can be quoted later on down the line. But, we have to remember that politicians have a constitutional right to lie if they choose, so campaign promises mean exactly nothing except as they may affect a person or party's liability. 

 We need to be discussing issues in the Presidential debates that actually effect the potential for our country's survival as a free and democratic society, and none of the candidates are addressing these issues that are vital to our existence as a free society. I'm for placing an enormous amount of pressure on the debate format itself and press for issues to be discussed that Americans want to her about rather than what the MSM wants to discuss. I'm tired of the news media censoring America.

William Cormier 

by William Cormier (117 articles, 5 quicklinks, 17 diaries, 292 comments) on Sunday, January 27, 2008 at 12:53:52 AM
 

what, edwards?

John Edwards didn't just vote for the patriot act, he wrote it. Yes, he was one of the authers of the patriot act. So now there is no other candidate to support. Kucinich is the only one and he's not done yet. Support him in his run for congress, we need him in congress. he's fighting in cleveland ohio and facing alot of opposition. Also he's started a movement bringing light to our electoral process and you can join at integritynow.org keep following dennis and keep talking about the issues. I believe he will come back to run in 2012. In the mean time vote for whatever lesser of two evils you want because it really doesn't matter now.

by Laurie Lyon (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 5 comments) on Sunday, January 27, 2008 at 10:45:09 AM
 

The lesser of two evils is still evil. Don't permit evil.

Laurie, I am going to check out the background facts and whether or not Edwards actually drafted the Patriot Act.

Any tips about where to find this out?

If he really did draft it, then my mind is sealed: NO WAY will I vote for Edwards!

I also would like to know how he plans to keep corporations out of the purchasing of AMerican policy. No doubt this is a serious problem affecting our freedoms and our Constitution itself. The need is dire. YEt I have to remember what a Hungarian friend of mine said: The moment free speech became possible behind the Iron Curtain was the moment the government relaxed its power over the economy. So exactly by what method one can control corporate spending----the keyword is control----is a concern to me. To stress again: The need is dire. The only question is how it is done.

FYI, I believe that voting for the lesser of two evils is a mistake. This permits evil not only into our own lives, but into the lives of All Americans.

It's possible I may not vote at all this time around.

My vote would be with Ron Paul except that in my state it is too late to re-register and switch parties.

Another topic:

This business about registering as Democrat, Republican, etc has to be done away with. It's a violation of our voting freedom and our privacy. Further, given the history of stealing votes from Democrats (see Greg Palast about this) it just may be a way to single out which votes to toss out??

by Kathryn Smith (90 articles, 2 quicklinks, 37 diaries, 347 comments) on Sunday, January 27, 2008 at 12:31:48 PM