John Edwards is a Democrat who wants to run for president. He wants to let everyone know that he cares about our people and our country. Here are some issues that John Edwards would like to address. The war in Iraq, education goals, people with disabilities, health care, and food safety.

       The war in Iraq is a terrible battle. John Edwards would like to be able to end it. John Edwards thinks that the people in Iraq need to take responsibility for their country, if they ever want the war to end. John Edwards thinks we should actually leave Iraq, so that the people can see that they can live a good life without war, if they take the time to do something about it. John Edwards also thinks that the people in Iraq should leave themselves, as another way of taking responsibility for their lives and families. John Edwards also wants the people to find out if there is a political way to end the war and try to see if it will be done. John Edwards strongly supports these ideas to end the war in Iraq.

       The first candidate with a comprehensive education plan is John Edwards. John Edwards knows that there is nothing more important to our future than our country's schools. We all pay a price when young people who could someday find the cure for AIDS or make a fuel cell work are sitting on a stoop because they didn't get the education they needed. As the product of public schools in a small rural town and the father of four children who attended public schools, John Edwards understands the importance of education.

He believes every child should have the same chance to get a great education—a commitment that is at the core of his plan to build One America where everyone has a chance to succeed. But more than 50 years after Brown v. Board of Education, we still have two school systems that are separate and unequal. No longer legally separated by race, our children are divided by economics, often with a racial or ethnic dimension. Edwards' vision for excellent American schools is based on three principles. The principles are preparing every child to succeed, an excellent teacher in every classroom, and make every school an outstanding school. John Edwards really is pursuing his plan for a better school system.

 Education is America's sturdiest ladder of opportunity, but for many of the more than 5 million school-age children with disabilities, that ladder is missing several rungs. Edwards supports a steady path toward fully funding the federal share of special education costs and will enforce the right to receive a free and appropriate education in schools that are fully accessible – starting with quality early childhood education that is inclusive of all children, regardless of disability or their learning style, and continuing with individualized education programs when requested and classroom materials and technology that are accessible to all students.

 Only 69 percent of people with disabilities say they have an adequate way to get to a job. Edwards will invest in accessible mass transit and improve mobility for people with disabilities in rural areas by encouraging automakers to make an affordable vehicle that meets the needs of people who use mobility devices like wheelchairs, increasing funding for and oversight of paratransit services and working with states to waive fees for electronic toll collection passes (e.g., EZ-PASS) for low-income Americans with disabilities.

  Edwards has a bold plan to transform America's health care system and provide universal health care for every man, woman and child in America. The Edwards plan will require businesses and other employers to either cover their employees or help finance their health insurance, make insurance affordable by creating new tax credits, expanding Medicaid and SCHIP, reforming insurance laws, and taking innovative steps to contain health care costs, create regional Health Care Markets purchasing pools to give every American the bargaining power to purchase an affordable, high-quality health plan, increase choices among insurance plans, and cut costs for businesses offering insurance, and once these steps have been taken, require all American residents to get insurance. Under the Edwards plan, families without insurance will get coverage at an affordable price, families with insurance will pay less and get more security and choices, and businesses and other employers will find it cheaper and easier to insure their workers. Edwards is sure that this will work for our people.

  In recent weeks, a series of tainted products from China have exposed gaps in America's food safety protections. Today, John Edwards outlined his plan to make food safer by taking on the big food companies and food importers on behalf of American consumers and producers. First he would finally implement country-of-origin labeling so families can learn the source of their food and have the option of choosing domestically-raised and grown food. He would also strengthen the Food and Drug Administration's oversight over the safety of American and imported food. Breakdowns in food safety cause 76 million illnesses, 325,000 hospitalizations, and 5,000 deaths each year in the U.S. The General Accountability Office recently added our nation's food safety system to its list of "high-risk" operations. To strengthen America's food safety, Edwards will make sure that, with country-of-origin labels, consumers can discover the origin of their food. He will overhaul the jumble of agencies overseeing America's food safety by consolidating responsibility in the FDA and giving it the power to get unsafe food off the shelves. Finally, he will promote the safety of food imported into the U.S. by increasing inspections at ports and by working with other nations to strengthen their own inspection systems.

He has carried out efforts to create fairness for family farmers and help them create a healthy, abundant and safe food supply: strictly enforcing laws against anticompetitive mergers and unfair pricing, passing a national ban on packer ownership to stop the spread of large corporate hog interests, passing a national moratorium on the construction and expansion of hog farm lagoons, limiting farm subsidies to $250,000 per person and closing loopholes in payment limits, and expanding conservation programs that help farmers preserve the land. Edwards thinks this is the way things should be.

 These are the reasons that John Edwards wants to be president. He wants to fix all of these issues that affect Americans today and hopefully not in the future. If John Edwards is president.

John Edwards
Prepared by Selma

Iraq

John Edwards believes that there is no military solution to the problems in Iraq. He feels that the Iraqi people should resolve their troubles politically and take responsibility for their country. By leaving Iraq, America will give the Iraqi people, power, and the whole international community to find the political solution that will stop the violence and generate a steady Iraq. Edwards feels that we should show the Iraqis that we are serious about leaving Iraq. We should show them this by establishing an immediate withdrawal of our troops by the thousands. We should only leave a few thousand troops to protect the United States Embassy and other important institutions.

Education Goals

John Edwards feels that “There is nothing more important to our future than our country's schools. We all pay a price when young people who could someday find the cure for AIDS or make a fuel cell work are sitting on a stoop because they didn't get the education they needed." -- John Edwards. He believes that we should prepare every child for success, make sure there is an excellent teacher in every classroom, and make every educational institution an outstanding school. He believes that every child in America should have the chance to attend an outstanding public school that has high expectations for every child. He also feels that it is important for there to be an exceptional relationship between a teacher and a child. Edwards feels that everything begins with quality preschool education and that preschool should be as equally common as kindergarten.

Immigration

"Immigration is central to the story of America, but our immigration system needs a fundamental overhaul. Our security is threatened by borders we cannot control. Our economy is harmed by a large underground economy with an unprotected labor force. And our values are violated when 12 million people live in the shadows of our society, vulnerable to abuse." – John Edwards. Here are some ways Edwards plans to reform immigration. Edwards would like to strengthen our borders to stop illegal trafficking. He wants to double the number of border patrol agents and wants to invest in surveillance technology. He would also like to provide an earned path to citizenship that requires English and that people who are already in the United States should earn the opportunity to earn an American citizenship. Edwards also believes in preserving family reunification and that we should bring families together and not keep them separated. He also feels that there should be an end to the backlog.

Health Care

“John Edwards has a bold plan to transform America's health care system and provide universal health care for every man, woman and child in America”. Under the Edwards plan people with out insurance will get covered at a reasonably priced price. In addition families that are able to afford and already have health insurance will be able to add extra features and choices to their health plan. Furthermore, business and employers will find it easier and less expensive for them to insure their employees. The Edwards plan is planning on achieving universal coverage by making insurance affordable by creating new tax credits, expanding Medicaid and SCHIP, reforming insurance laws, and taking innovative steps to contain health care costs, require businesses and other employers to either cover their workers or help finance their health insurance, etc.