|
|
Tags for This Article:
Democratic (1772) Politics (1381) Policy (1020) Economic (1015) Corporations (898) Health (743) Legislation (705) Poverty (592) Capitalism (495) Trade (464) Taxes (311) Edwards John (281) Outsourcing (120) Monopoly (52) Populism (33)
|
(more...)
(less...)
Group(s): Democrats (unofficial)Add to My Group
The Democratic Presidential candidate John Edwards is potentially the person most likely to realign the two major political parties for the next generation or two. Edwards is a Democratic political leader who is not only closely mirroring FDR as a historical figure but is doing so by following in the same political and economic traditions as FDR. The main differences are personal backgrounds and accents. During the 1930’s, President Roosevelt essentially ended the dominance of the “Bourbon Democrats” in national Democratic politics and moved the Democratic Party solidly behind a political program of economic populism. As a result, the nation saw a couple generations of solid economic growth and mass prosperity. A vibrant middle class emerged from the policies promoted by FDR. The Democratic Party clearly replaced the Republicans as the stronger of the two major parties as a result. Beginning with the election of Ronald Reagan, many Democrats in power drifted away from the core values of the Democratic Party and started running as “Republican-lite” candidates. They started trying to compete for corporate campaign money by permitting awful trade agreements that undermined the health of the American economy and weakened the American middle class while helping the economic elite become even more powerful. Some Democrats playing footsie with Republicans and large corporations failed working Americans and the poor by letting the obscenely wealthy start paying much lower percentages of their incomes in federal taxes than the middle class majority. Many Democrats started turning their backs on some common sense elements of the Roosevelt tradition of having those able to pay higher taxes pay them. We call this progressive taxation. The rich pay should be paying higher tax rates since they have more influence on government policies and benefit more from them. They completely abandoned our federal government commitment to preventing monopoly control by large corporations of many important aspects of everyday life. Price-gouging has become routine. Insider trading and excessive executive pay has become routine in the corporate world. Wealthy foreign corporations are often having more impact on government policies than the needs of average Americans. Media consolidation has blocked out almost all non-corporate voices in the discussion of public policy issues. Edwards wants less corporate control over everyday life and has specific programs in mind to move in that direction. The wages of Americans have been suppressed. The ability to unionize in order to achieve higher standards of living has been attacked by federal legislation, right wing court rulings and harassment by oppressive federal government regulation by the Bush Administration. Edwards is the most labor-friendly Presidential candidate of the top-tier candidates. With Edwards, we have a candidate who both walks the walk and talks the talk. Edwards is strongly opposed to outsourcing American jobs and is committed to ending unfair international trade deals or tax policies that encourage corporations to move jobs out of the nation. Poverty in America has largely been ignored by our political leadership since the 1980’s. We waste trillions of dollars fighting unnecessary wars but seem unwilling to seriously commit to eliminating institutionalize poverty. Edwards is the only candidate really talking about poverty in America. Poverty is a serious issue in many rural American communities and inner cities. Most candidates ignore the poor because they do not write big campaign donation checks. Edwards can give the poor hope and get them voting. We remain the only nation out of the 75 most economically advanced nations not to have government guaranteed universal health insurance. We cripple our corporations in international competition by forcing them to provide for healthcare. As a nation we spend 17% of our economy on healthcare while our competitors spend 8%. Our competitors cover all citizens while we have 47 million uninsured citizens and even more underinsured. If we had not abandoned our FDR political traditions, this situation would have been corrected long ago. Edwards is committed to universal healthcare. John Edwards is uniquely focused on returning Democrats to their FDR roots of economic populism. The Bush Republicans are committed to short-term “Greed Capitalism” that is as self-destructive as the Republican policies of the 1920’s. FDR saved American capitalism by reforming it with the New Deal. Edwards can do the same. Edwards can restore the FDR coalition by running as an economic populist. He can win in places like North Carolina, Florida, Colorado, Virginia and Oklahoma. Edwards might even win in places like Texas. He can win without abandoning Democratic traditional values. Edwards can carry rural communities and small towns without going Republican-lite. Edwards will carry all the traditional Democratic areas and much more because he truly represents Main Street instead of Wall Street. Although from a working class background instead of coming from great inherited wealth, Edwards is much like our greatest American President, Franklin D. Roosevelt. Edwards has similar views with a Southern accent. www.DemocraticTalkRadio.com Stephen Crockett is co-host of Democratic Talk Radio and author of the Democratic Voices opinion column.
I am a 47 years old,married and have a 17 year old daughter.My hobbies are bicyling, weight training and off road motorcycling.I have lived in a midwestern red state my entire 46 years.Now that I have reached middle age I have become interested in politics and its related fields of study.I dont often think of things being either liberal or conservative,I like to veiw political events in an objective manner and find the agenda or reason that a bill or policy is brought to bear.Simply put seeking ...
America needs Edwards America desperatly needs Edwards as president if the middle class are to survive. Clinton is clearly a greed capitilist who believes in working with corporations to give them what they want, then dressing it up and disguising it as something that is meant to help the middle class, NAFTA is a good example of Clinton compassion. If the democratic party decides to be tough on free trade and outsourcing, like Edwards and also takes a tough stance on illegal immigration such as going after employers who hire illegals and revoke their business licences and no licences for illegal immigrants it will prosper once again. Why pick on illegal some might ask, Well many working class people have seen their wages destroyed by having to compete with workers whom employers can treat any way they like and with little pay. Would FDR condone ignoring our immigration laws and allow business to give them jobs over American citizens? Absolutely not, If he had his reputation would have been destroyed, much like our current president. by
Gary Denson (2 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 219 comments)
on Sunday, December 23, 2007 at 1:47:07 PM
Stephen Crockett is co-host of Democratic Talk Radio and author of the Democratic Voices opinion column.
Right Wing Crazy Nonsense False completely! Typical crazy right wing extremist smear. by
Stephen Crockett (127 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 113 comments)
on Sunday, December 23, 2007 at 3:27:44 PM
Stephen Crockett is co-host of Democratic Talk Radio and author of the Democratic Voices opinion column.
Corrections First of all, I have no "pals" holding such distorted viewpoints. Secondly, I am not a liberal and even if I was being a liberal is not a negative thing except in your Right Winger imagination. Thirdly, FDR did not have any solid warning of an impending, immediate attack on Pearl Harbor. That smear job has been examined and refuted hundreds of times. It is based on outright falsehoods and deliberately is spread by delusional Right Wing extremists. Finally, I have wasted enough time dealing with your crazy Right Wing smears. Trying spreading them all you want and let everyone know what kind of an ugly person with twisted ideas you really are. by
Stephen Crockett (127 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 113 comments)
on Sunday, December 23, 2007 at 3:49:38 PM
My name it means nothing, my age it means less. My deeds of activism are mine to enjoy and share as I feel necesary, not as some clown in a small forum's administration thinks I must..This place gets worse each and every visit.
Stay calm, take a Prozac and for heavens sake get help..... by
ardee D. (6 articles, 4 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 2377 comments)
on Monday, December 24, 2007 at 7:09:10 AM
Stephen Crockett is co-host of Democratic Talk Radio and author of the Democratic Voices opinion column.
FDR and federal government bankruptcy This is really funny. Over 80 percent of the total federal government debt was acquired under the last 3 Right Wing Republican Presidents- Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush. This percentage is growing rapidly. This was done without a world war to fund nor during a major depression. Your comments really take nerve. By the way, did you fall on your head recently? If so, I could take that into account. It would explain a great deal. by
Stephen Crockett (127 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 113 comments)
on Sunday, December 23, 2007 at 3:57:03 PM
Richard Mynick is a US citizen who, despite the best efforts of the corporate media, noticed something disturbing about how the 2000 election was decided, & felt it augured poorly for democracy.
I rarely agree with Crockett, but here, he's 100% right. After skimming through this thread, I'm truly alarmed that there are people like the poster "KG" running around without adequate supervision and medication. Mr KG tosses off phrases like FDR was "a traitor and a communist" -- a statement that by itself is conclusive evidence of monumental & hopeless ignorance. Anyone else reading this thread should do so for entertainment purposes, only. by
Richard Mynick (2 articles, 3 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 1168 comments)
on Monday, December 24, 2007 at 10:40:39 AM
Stephen Crockett is co-host of Democratic Talk Radio and author of the Democratic Voices opinion column.
Gold standard economic stupidity It is obvious that the writer has been taking economic lessons from that fool Ron Paul. This gold standard nonsense is pure BS. Gold has no more innate value than any other metal and it makes no economic sense to peg a currency to it. It is archaic thinking and economic suicide. Dumbest idea ever and alone enough reason to think poorly of Ron Paul and the critic above. by
Stephen Crockett (127 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 113 comments)
on Sunday, December 23, 2007 at 3:41:30 PM
Stephen Crockett is co-host of Democratic Talk Radio and author of the Democratic Voices opinion column.
Right Wingers wipe their backsides on the US Constitution Ignore the Bill of Rights daily and use "Big Lie" tactics and you are assured of playing a leadership role in crazy right wing organizations like Free Republic.com or the Bush White House or the Bush Department of Justice or the leadership of the Republican Party in the US Senate or Fox News or Right Wing talk radio. by
Stephen Crockett (127 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 113 comments)
on Sunday, December 23, 2007 at 3:33:16 PM
Stephen Crockett is co-host of Democratic Talk Radio and author of the Democratic Voices opinion column.
Smearing FDR is as stupid as it gets! Even Ronald Reagan acknowledged FDR as one of the greatest Americans in history. by
Stephen Crockett (127 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 113 comments)
on Sunday, December 23, 2007 at 3:35:47 PM
Stephen Crockett is co-host of Democratic Talk Radio and author of the Democratic Voices opinion column.
Anti-Masonic conspiracy nut to boot! Are there any crazy, extremist conspiracy theories you do not support? by
Stephen Crockett (127 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 113 comments)
on Sunday, December 23, 2007 at 4:00:09 PM
Stephen Crockett is co-host of Democratic Talk Radio and author of the Democratic Voices opinion column.
Sheer nonsense Most of the New Deal survived the Supreme Court. Like the federal minimum wage, Social Security, federal prevailing wage, etc., etc., etc. Until Reagan, the New Deal largely shaped the modern economy and federal government. by
Stephen Crockett (127 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 113 comments)
on Sunday, December 23, 2007 at 9:38:43 PM
JUST A CONCERN CITIZEN AND LOVE MY COUNTRY GREW UP IN A SMALL FISHING TOWN IN NJ,BUT THE DAY I GOT MY DRIVERS LICENSE,SPENT MOST OF MY TIME EXPANSING MY MINE. LEARNED A LOT THE HARD WAY,BUT MOSTLY STREET SMART. AT 65 HAVE PRETTY GOOD IDEA WHO THE SNAKES ARE.
THE TRUTH JOHN EDWARDS IS A GLOBALIST CFR CONTROLED CANDIDATE,AND IF ELECTED WILL FOLLOW THEIR AGENDA. WITCH IS OPEN BORDERS, AND FORMATION OF THE NORTH AMERICAN UNION. AND HE WILL GET QUITE RICH FOR HIS LOYAITY, AS CLINTON, BUSH, BUSH ONE DID. HE IS A CFR PLAYER FIRST AND FORMOST. by
RICHARD SHADE (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 460 comments)
on Monday, December 24, 2007 at 4:06:11 AM
My name it means nothing, my age it means less. My deeds of activism are mine to enjoy and share as I feel necesary, not as some clown in a small forum's administration thinks I must..This place gets worse each and every visit.
I despair for my nation if these are the best we can muster. Conspiracy theories are like rectums, everyone has them these days, those who believe them fail the reasonability test and display fanatacism in refusing the obvious lies and distortions necesary to maintain their beliefs. Taxes, despite the selfish denial of some, despite the way corporations and the wealthiest among us feel exempt from their fair share of the burden, are necesary to the business of government. These nut jobs ride on paved roads, depend upon the fire dept., police forces, and all the essential services provided by those tax revenues. If unemployed they run, not walk, to get their unemployment checks and then call others who use such services leeches, quite transparently neurotic. The key is ridding the government of those like Cheney and Bush who detest government and prove it doesnt work when they themselves are in charge of it. Corruption and greed ruin our nation and these folks who post the absurdities above are complicit with that ruination. You dont have to pay taxes, all you got to do is get the hell out! This nation would be far better off without you anyway and leaving those who understand that it isnt all take but each citizen's obligation to give as well would strengthen our country and ensure that the current horrific and incompetent regime will not be duplicated. by
ardee D. (6 articles, 4 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 2377 comments)
on Monday, December 24, 2007 at 7:20:50 AM
Stephen Crockett is co-host of Democratic Talk Radio and author of the Democratic Voices opinion column.
Good points on taxes and civic responsibility It is unfortunate that so many executives in large corporations are not acting like responsible American citizens first. If they do not do so out of a sense of civic responsibility then we should pass laws that legally require them to do so. Paying taxes is one element and an important one. Preserving American manufacturing is certainly another along with product safety, anti-usury laws, consumer protections, worker safety, collective bargaining and strike rights for workers, environmental protections, anti-monopoly laws and laws against price-gouging. by
Stephen Crockett (127 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 113 comments)
on Monday, December 24, 2007 at 8:23:11 AM
My name it means nothing, my age it means less. My deeds of activism are mine to enjoy and share as I feel necesary, not as some clown in a small forum's administration thinks I must..This place gets worse each and every visit.
I will take the vow Mr. Crockett, it occurs to me that responding to obvious nut jobs is simply encouraging them. I was astonished to realise that the institution in which he resides allows that clown access to the web. He is over the top and over the edge and there isnt a single far right wacko notion he doesnt wholeheartedly support. Responding further is useless and worse, a waste of time. by
ardee D. (6 articles, 4 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 2377 comments)
on Tuesday, December 25, 2007 at 9:43:56 AM
Servant of Sympathetic OpenMindedness
www.johnedwards.com www.blog.johnedwards.com www.johnedwards.com www.blog.johnedwards.com ========================================= I am supporting the John Edwards presidential campaign. If you have any doubts about him, visit his blog world, and you will find that his bloggers represent the ultimate decency, too. Plain good American decency, civility, integrity, and good heart. I have never seen such an assembly of good people: cookieinPA, Karita Hummer, Don Villa, llwilcox, ET, oklahomavoter, GOP4JRE... it is a pleasure to be one of humble ones among these excellent people. by
Sympathetically OpenMinded (1 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 7 comments)
on Monday, December 24, 2007 at 7:50:11 AM
JUST A CONCERN CITIZEN AND LOVE MY COUNTRY GREW UP IN A SMALL FISHING TOWN IN NJ,BUT THE DAY I GOT MY DRIVERS LICENSE,SPENT MOST OF MY TIME EXPANSING MY MINE. LEARNED A LOT THE HARD WAY,BUT MOSTLY STREET SMART. AT 65 HAVE PRETTY GOOD IDEA WHO THE SNAKES ARE.
EDWARDS SUPORTER WILL HOW MANY GOOD PEOPLE VOTED FOR BUSH, AND THERE IS WHAT YOU GET, ITS NOT WHO THE SUPORTERS ARE ITS WHAT A CANDIDATES STAND FOR AND NOT THE BULL OUT OF THEIR MOUTH, AND THEIR VOTING RECORD, AND WHO IS FUNDING THEM, AND WHAT ELITE CLUB DO THEY BELONG TO. JOHN BOY TALKS THE TALK, BUT IF ELECTED HE WILL WALK THE GOLBALIST PATH, AND GET QUIT RICH FOR LOYAITY. by
RICHARD SHADE (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 460 comments)
on Wednesday, December 26, 2007 at 3:36:40 AM
Mike Folkerth is the author of "The Biggest Lie Ever Believed" and is not your run-of-the-mill author of finance and economics.
Kind of... Much of what is said about FDR these days in more myth than fact. History gets distorted to the bent of the reporter. The same goes for Hoover, mythical history does not display his true character. But from a different tact, the programs of FDR were designed to work in an ever expanding economy, which is unsustainable in a finite world. There were many high level officials who pointed this out, but the concept of "any port in a storm prevailed." We must remember that some 13,000,000 people were unemployed by mid 1932. FDR did in fact make it illegal for citizens to own gold and all gold was collected for the government and replaced by fiat currency. He also made payments in gold illegal. But the real trick was that gold was pegged at $20.67 per ounce and after collecting all the gold, FDR ordered that gold be valued at $35.00. This was then the basis for putting the New Deal on the cuff with new found government wealth. Pretty slick huh? The real argument here is based on the very different economics of two different times. The FDR approach would not work today, the necessary expansion is not physically possible. The FDR pyramid scheme simply played out mathematically. Reagan's (who was a stated Roosevelt Democrat) greatest mistake was trying to re-run Roosevelt's plan as a recovery vehicle well after the U.S. had reached zenith on that premise. by
Mike Folkerth (120 articles, 0 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 566 comments)
on Monday, December 24, 2007 at 10:01:04 AM
Stephen Crockett is co-host of Democratic Talk Radio and author of the Democratic Voices opinion column.
Gold was not a key to the New Deal Gold was and still is irrelevant. Gold certainly did not fund the New Deal. Gold was no longer the backing of our currency domestically and after Nixon no longer a factor in transactions between Central banks. The whole idea is BS and basically 19th Century thinking. There is not enough gold in existence to back the modern global economy. Gold is a silly thing to use to measure wealth or base economic transactions on in todays world. Keynesian economics is the basis of all modern economies everywhere. Mercantilism and feudalism are dead. Supply side economics should be dead along with the trickle-down crap and certainly gold standard ideas. by
Stephen Crockett (127 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 113 comments)
on Monday, December 24, 2007 at 6:27:24 PM
A good article taken off track by conspiracy theories and people with other agendas. In an ideal world, Pearl Harbor conspiracy theories and anti-Mason conspiracy theories would have no place in this thread. That is just for starters, by
Steven Leser (212 articles, 45 quicklinks, 33 diaries, 1397 comments)
on Monday, December 24, 2007 at 10:40:44 AM
Stephen Crockett is co-host of Democratic Talk Radio and author of the Democratic Voices opinion column.
Amen Brother! Crazies are everywhere! by
Stephen Crockett (127 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 113 comments)
on Monday, December 24, 2007 at 6:29:47 PM
Mike Folkerth is the author of "The Biggest Lie Ever Believed" and is not your run-of-the-mill author of finance and economics.
KG I try my best to approach these subjects without emotion and arm myself instead with probable facts and mathematically based outcomes. I am the author of "The Biggest Lie Ever Believed" which is simply that an economy based of exponential growth and consumption of finite resources in a finite environment is mathematically impossible. Yet, we continue to purse that end as the cornerstone of America's economy. It is said the unassisted mind is incapable of comprehending macro-economics. Therefore I do not expect the public at large to grasp the total magnitude of our current situation. While I resist the premise that you have laid out for a total collapse of our system, it is certainly a growing possibility. Please read my post on this site today regarding the "Kucinich Plan." While I have no doubt that Mr. Kucinich's heart is in the right place, his economic plan demonstates a total disconect from reality. by
Mike Folkerth (120 articles, 0 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 566 comments)
on Monday, December 24, 2007 at 11:13:51 AM
K G You are sadly misinformed, poorly lacking in historic knowledge and apparently get your news from the Fox network. Such nonsense was once the daily bread of the to-lazy-to-do-research. If anyone in my classes handed in a paper like yours I wouldn't flunk them, I would ask them to drop out and go to work at MacDonald's by
Professor Emeritus Peter Bagnolo (144 articles, 1 quicklinks, 95 diaries, 1311 comments)
on Monday, December 24, 2007 at 11:51:44 AM |
