"Everyday, one in eight Americans wakes up in poverty. That's not okay. Today, we have Two Americas in our country - one America that has everything it needs and another that is struggling to get by. Our next president needs not only to understand the struggles facing the 37 million Americans living in poverty, but also have a plan to lift them up out of poverty. That is what this tour and my campaign are about - giving them a voice so that we can build One America, where every person has the opportunity to work hard and get ahead."-John Edwards
Good evening everyone! Tonight's EENR will be focused on JRE's up and coming Road to One America Tour. To get us started, here is the eulogy given at the funeral of Robert F Kennedy by Teddy Kennedy. I'm in no way trying to say John is RFK...although they do share a lot of the same ideas and RFK's focus always seemed to be on helping those less fortunate just as JRE. John Edwards is a strong man in his own right and has brought fresh new ideas to the table for this election but one cannot help but see the similarites of their message and their dreams to make the world a better place for us all.
If you listen to the last few seconds of this video, we are reminded what we can do to help those around us if we just try...open our hearts and our minds to what is possible.
As RFK said "Some men see things as they are and say why? I dream things that never were and say "Why not?"
John will start the tour in New Orleans on Sunday with a pre-tour walk through the ninth ward. I will be in NO on Sunday and hoping that I will get to be a part of this...keep your fingers crossed for me.
The "Road to One America" tour will begin in New Orleans, Louisiana and travel more than 1,800 miles before ending on Wednesday, July 18th, in Prestonsburg, Kentucky, where Senator Robert F. Kennedy concluded his 1968 200-mile tour of impoverished regions in Southeastern Kentucky. The tour also includes a stop in Marks, Mississippi, where the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. launched his 1968 Poor People's March to Washington, D.C.
Along the way, John will meet with residents devastated and displaced by Hurricane Katrina and with people who have experienced persistent poverty in the Deep South, the Mississippi Delta and rural Appalachia. He will also visit communities in the Rust Belt region that have suffered from the loss of American manufacturing jobs and cities that are struggling to cope with both urban poverty and the rising problem of poverty. With this tour, we will focus attention not just on problems, but also on solutions and all of the good work that is being done across the nation to help lift people out of poverty.
The new faces of poverty in America come from a wide variety of racial, ethnic and regional backgrounds - from urban, suburban and rural areas. They range in age from the very young to the very old. Some are suffering from disabilities, which prevent them from finding work, and many are hardworking men and women with full-time jobs who are still struggling to make ends meet. All too often they don't have access to the affordable health care, housing and education they need. And their numbers are growing. We'll meet with these Americans, tell their stories to the rest of the nation, and show the diversity of the problem of poverty in America.
We all have a stake in doing something about our fellow Americans living in poverty and believes that working together we can help end poverty.
re-Tour Event - Sunday, July 15th
* Walking tour of Lower 9th Ward with John Edwards
Day 1: Monday, July 16th: Rewarding Work & Ending Poverty in America
* New Orleans, LA
* Canton, MS
* Marks, MS
* Marianna, AR
* Memphis, TN
Day 2: Tuesday, July 17th: Strengthening Neighborhoods & Cities Rising
* Cleveland, OH
* Youngstown, OH
* Pittsburgh, PA
Day 3: Wednesday, July 18th: Restoring Hope to Rural America
As usual Edwards is out in front of the pack...again. This time on protecting our food supply..
Steps Would Protect American Consumers While Helping Farmers and Ranchers
Des Moines, Iowa – Senator John Edwards today announced a new initiative he would pursue as President to ensure the safety of food for American consumers and to help farmers and ranchers in Iowa and across the nation. Edwards will discuss the initiative on a conference call with Iowa reporters today and will be joined by Congresswoman Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-S.D.), who is supporting his campaign for President.
"It's time to stop the delays and stop giving in to big agribusiness and food importers," Edwards said. "We need to give Americans the information they need to choose the best, and safest, food for their families."
"Senator Edwards grew up in rural America and understands the challenges we face, and that's reflected in his proposals to strengthen agriculture," Herseth Sandlin said. "We need the kind of presidential leadership he's offering, whether it's protecting our food supply, helping our agricultural producers, or revitalizing rural America."
The Edwards plan would:
* Require Country-of-Origin labeling so that consumers have the option of choosing safe, American-raised meat and poultry and American-grown produce.
* Strengthen the FDA and consolidate responsibility for food inspections among the 15 agencies responsible for regulating our food supply.
* Allow the FDA and USDA to order mandatory recalls of unsafe foods much as the Consumer Products Safety Commission can do with other products.
* Strengthen inspections of imported food -- less than 1 percent of which is inspected today, down from 8 percent in 1992.
* Requiring safety systems abroad. Edwards will require countries exporting food to the U.S. have safety systems certified by the FDA as equivalent to our own, a level of protection that is now given only to meat, poultry and egg products.
Congresswoman Herseth Sandlin is South Dakota's at-large Member of Congress and a member of the House Agriculture Committee. She co-chairs the House Rural Working Group, which is dedicated to raising the profile of issues important to rural America. She is a national leader and advocate for the increased production of homegrown, renewable biofuels like ethanol and biodiesel.
Click here for a fact sheet on Senator Edwards' initiative.
Chapel Hill, North Carolina – As the Senate resumes debate on the war in Iraq and President Bush prepares to speak about the war, Senator John Edwards released the following statement.
"It is more important than ever for people all across the country to let Congress know that we expect them to act decisively to end the war in Iraq. Congress should no longer facilitate the President's stubborn allegiance to his failed strategy. It's not enough to talk a good game any more. It is time to act. The one way to support our troops and bring them home is for Congress to exercise its constitutionally mandated funding power, force an immediate drawdown of 40,000 to 50,000 troops and require withdrawal of all troops within about a year."
How You Can Take Action
JRE's statement on unfilled posts in the Department of Homeland Security
Chapel Hill, North Carolina – Senator John Edwards released the following statement about today's Congressional report that the Bush Administration has not filled about 25 percent of the top positions in the Department of Homeland Security.
"Today's Congressional report that the Bush Administration has failed to fill about 25 percent of the top posts at the Department of Homeland Security is very troubling. This report is a stark reminder that we must hold the president accountable for homeland security at every turn. No task is more critical than recruiting and hiring the best people to help keep Americans safe from attack. The president should immediately expedite the staffing of these posts with skilled professionals -- rather than the political cronies he has usually relied on at the expense of competent governance. If he fails to act, Congress should take strong measures to hold the Administration accountable."
We want to make sure to send our thoughts and prayers to the Elizabeth Edwards' mother...
Mrs. Edwards' Mother Suffers a Fall
Tuesday July 10, 2007 6:31 PM
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - Elizabeth Edwards, the wife of Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards, missed a campaign stop in South Carolina on Tuesday to be with her mother, who was injured in a fall at her North Carolina home.
The wife of the former North Carolina senator was to open the campaign's headquarters here in this early voting state, but campaign manager David Bonior showed up in her place.
``Her mother fell yesterday in the bathroom and hit her head and she went to the hospital. So she's doing fine, but she wanted to be with her this morning,'' Bonior told a crowd of about 90 people gathered outside the headquarters.
Elizabeth Edwards' mother, Mary Anania, 83, lives in Chapel Hill, N.C. with her husband, Vincent.
Elizabeth Edwards will resume campaign activities Tuesday afternoon in New Hampshire, spokeswoman Teresa Wells said.
Ok, that's it for the EENR tonight. We have lots of upcoming events for the campaign that will be focusing one of JRE's most important issues...poverty. Let's hope the media gives him a fair shake in reporting the events. I know, I know...that's to much to hope for :-).
