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December 28, 2007

John Edwards on "Political Capital w/Al Hunt"

Bloomberg

AL HUNT: Senator Edwards, thank you for being with us.

JOHN EDWARDS: Happy to be with you.

MR. HUNT: Less than a week to go before the Iowa caucuses. The latest Bloomberg-Los Angeles Times poll shows a toss up - Clinton, 29 - 26, 25, Obama Edwards. Are you positioned to win this race? Do you think you're going to win next Thursday?

MR. EDWARDS: I think it's going to be close. And right now I think it is a dead heat, and it depends on whose message resonates. You know, I have been speaking out about corporate greed and restoring the promise of the country. We're getting an enormous response to that message, and it's what I believe. I think that who knows how to close here will matter.

MR. HUNT: And you think you're the closer?

MR. EDWARDS: I know how to close.

MR. HUNT: The poll also shows second-choice preferences among Democrats. You're first there. Almost a quarter of the Iowa Democrats say you're their second choice, more than either Obama or Clinton. Does that really matter?

MR. EDWARDS: It could matter. I mean, if people aren't viable - you have to be at 15 percent in the precinct to be viable - then people will be moving to their second choice. So, yeah, I think it matters whether you're second choice.

MR. HUNT: Let me ask you a couple of questions about where they are strong. On issues, Hillary Clinton does very well. On both health care and the economy by 40 percent I think to 27 percent people say she's best able to handle that, with you second. Does that surprise you that she gets the highest marks on the economy and health care?

MR. EDWARDS: On health care it doesn't surprise me, just because she has the long history - even though it was a failed effort in the '90s, she did lead an effort to try to bring healthcare reform, and I think a lot of people remember that. So I don't - no, that is not - that is not shocking.

MR. HUNT: And doesn't concern you.

MR. EDWARDS: No, no. I think what is going to matter here at the end is who - I think the Iowa caucus goers are looking for a change, and they're going to look for who they think will fight for that change and be successful bringing it, and I believe that is me.

MR. HUNT: One more substantive issue - on trade, by 48 to 24, they prefer her. Has she co-opted - that was your issue. Has she co-opted your issue on trade?

MR. EDWARDS: No, absolutely not. These caucus-goers in Iowa know that I'm the one who takes what is happening with NAFTA and CAFTA and what is happening with closing of factories and loss of jobs and the destruction of the middle class personally, and they know that; they get that. That is one thing I'm totally confident of.

MR. HUNT: She has changed her position a bit on that, though, hasn't she?

MR. EDWARDS: She has, from what I can tell. I mean, she was a big supporter of NAFTA and now she is critical of it, but - and I have been against NAFTA all along.

MR. HUNT: Your campaign, as an outside - the poll of Iowa Democrats shows that when asked which candidate would most substantially change the way Washington works, 36 percent say Barack Obama, you and Hillary Clinton trail well before. I gather from your speeches, however, you really don't think Barack Obama would be an effective agent of change.

MR. EDWARDS: I think he wants change; I think he's well-intentioned. We just have a different view about what it's going to take to bring change. I think for us to take - to bring about the change this country needs, I think we have - need somebody who is willing to fight entrenched moneyed interest. That is something I have been engaged in my whole life and winning my whole life, and I know I can do it.

MR. HUNT: Do you think he is not committed about it? You think he's just naïve about how you do it?

MR. EDWARDS: I think he's got a very different approach that I don't think will work. I mean, his approach is bring these people, insurance companies, drug companies, and all companies to the table, negotiate with them, and somehow they will voluntarily give their power away. I just don't think that is ever going to happen.

MR. HUNT: On the issue of change, do you see a difference between your two major opponents?

MR. EDWARDS: Yeah, I'm the candidate -

MR. HUNT: No, you - but between Obama and Clinton?

MR. EDWARDS: Oh, between the two of them?

MR. HUNT: Yeah.

MR. EDWARDS: Oh, yeah, there is a difference. I mean, she defends the system; he doesn't; neither do I.

MR. HUNT: Let's turn to a couple critical issues. Benazir Bhutto was tragically assassinated this week. You have spoken about it some. Do you think that elements of the Pakistani intelligence or military were complicit?

MR. EDWARDS: Oh, I don't think we know that. I think what we need to do - and I spoke with Musharraf after the assassination. I tried to impress upon him the importance of bringing in outside, independent, international investigators to determine how this happened, what the real facts are, to determine exactly what you just said. I mean, was the intelligence - the Pakistani intelligence agency complicit? Was it involved? Who was involved? How did this happen? And the only way that those findings are going to have credibility is if an outside group comes in and conducts the investigation and there is transparency.

MR. HUNT: Did he seem receptive to the idea of bringing in an outside group?

MR. EDWARDS: I don't mind telling you exactly what he said. He said he hadn't yet thought about it but that he would.

MR. HUNT: You also have talked about the need to really promote democracy. That ought to be the priority and that's what you would do as president. Now, they're going to have parliamentary elections in a couple weeks, but they've suspended the courts, the legal system over there. The opposition parties have limitations as to what they can do. Are those parliamentary elections going to have any legitimacy or credibility?

MR. EDWARDS:We need to keep intense pressure on him to open up this process, to have open and free elections, to have those elections monitored by international observers.

MR. HUNT: Well, turning to domestic issues, we headed into a recession?

MR. EDWARDS: Oh, I don't think that's knowable right now. I think that we have to be ready for the possibility of a recession, which is why I proposed a group of economic stimulus - an economic stimulus package that I think will help the middle class, will help strengthen the middle class, and deal with some of the problems that middle class families are struggling.

MR. HUNT: In addition to what you are doing, would you do some temporary tax cuts and also some infusions of more spending on a temporary basis the way Larry Summers, the former Treasury secretary, has recommended?

MR. EDWARDS: Well, we need to do some basic things. We need to help bring the price of gas down, which I think we have the power to do. We need to help families by dealing with this mortgage crisis. I mean, we have lots of families whose mortgage situation and foreclosure situation is going to contribute to a downturn, if the downturn continues. I mean, I think there are a variety of things we need to do. We ought to be putting about $25 billion into stimulating this economy. And then, we ought to take another look at it at the end of the first quarter. And if we need to do more, we should be willing to do more.

MR. HUNT: As you know, your two leading opponents, Senator Clinton and Senator Obama, are raising lots of money. They have opted out of the federal partial public finance system. You are in that system. Is that going to put you at a huge financial disadvantage down the road? And how do you overcome that?

MR. EDWARDS: No, I think if what I believe is going to happen is next Thursday, January 3rd, when I'm successful in Iowa and we go onto New Hampshire where I also expect to be successful, when I win this nomination, I will have beaten two very high-profile candidates who between them have raised between $200 and 250 million. What that means is you can still win a presidential election in America based on ideas and principle.

MR. HUNT: New Year's Eve in Iowa, Senator. What are you going to be doing?

MR. EDWARDS: I'll be with my wife and kids. They're coming here; all of my children and Elizabeth will be here. We'll have a little New Year's Eve celebration. And I think the following night we start a 24-hour campaign day.

MR. HUNT: Well, let me be the first to wish you a happy 2008. Thank you for joining us today. We'll be back to talk a little bit more about the Iowa caucuses.

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