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I could get behind Edwards, I think. He's got a solid plan for a universal health-care system that I mostly agree with (the main exception being the repeals for only households making more than $200K).
He also supports an organized and gradual withdrawal from Iraq--not a pick up sticks and get out of Dodge approach.
I'll be keeping a close eye on him...he's certainly my favorite to come out of the Dem camp so far.
Quote:
New York Times: Edwards Gets It Right Paul Krugman, Op-Ed Columnist New York Times Column
Feb 9, 2007
What a difference two years makes! At this point in 2005, the only question seemed to be how much of America’s social insurance system — the triumvirate of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid — the Bush administration would manage to dismantle. Now almost all prominent Democrats and quite a few Republicans pay at least lip service to calls for a major expansion of social insurance, in the form of universal health care.
But fine words, by themselves, mean nothing. Remember “compassionate conservatism?” I won’t trust presidential candidates on health care unless they provide enough specifics to show both that they understand the issues, and that they’re willing to face up to hard choices when necessary.
And former Senator John Edwards has just set a fine example.
At first glance, the Edwards health care plan looks similar to several other proposals out there, including one recently unveiled by Arnold Schwarzenegger in California. But a closer look reveals extra features in the Edwards plan that take it a lot closer to what the country really needs.
Like Mr. Schwarzenegger, Mr. Edwards sets out to cover the uninsured with a combination of regulation and financial aid. Right now, many people are uninsured because, as the Edwards press release puts it, insurance companies “game the system to cover only healthy people.” So the Edwards plan, like Schwarzenegger’s, imposes “community rating” on insurers, basically requiring them to sell insurance to everyone at the same price.
Many other people are uninsured because they simply can’t afford the cost. So the Edwards plan, again like other proposals, offers financial aid to help lower-income families buy insurance. To pay for this aid, he proposes rolling back tax cuts for households with incomes over $200,000 a year.
Finally, some people try to save money by going without coverage, so if they get sick they end up in emergency rooms at public expense. Like other plans, the Edwards plan would “require all American residents to get insurance,” and would require that all employers either provide insurance to their workers or pay a percentage of their payrolls into a government fund used to buy insurance.
But Mr. Edwards goes two steps further.
People who don’t get insurance from their employers wouldn’t have to deal individually with insurance companies: they’d purchase insurance through “Health Markets”: government-run bodies negotiating with insurance companies on the public’s behalf. People would, in effect, be buying insurance from the government, with only the business of paying medical bills — not the function of granting insurance in the first place — outsourced to private insurers.
Why is this such a good idea? As the Edwards press release points out, marketing and underwriting — the process of screening out high-risk clients — are responsible for two-thirds of insurance companies’ overhead. With insurers selling to government-run Health Markets, not directly to individuals, most of these expenses should go away, making insurance considerably cheaper.
Better still, “Health Markets,” the press release says, “will offer a choice between private insurers and a public insurance plan modeled after Medicare.” This would offer a crucial degree of competition. The public insurance plan would almost certainly be cheaper than anything the private sector offers right now — after all, Medicare has very low overhead. Private insurers would either have to match the public plan’s low premiums, or lose the competition.
And Mr. Edwards is O.K. with that. “Over time,” the press release says, “the system may evolve toward a single-payer approach if individuals and businesses prefer the public plan.”
So this is a smart, serious proposal. It addresses both the problem of the uninsured and the waste and inefficiency of our fragmented insurance system. And every candidate should be pressed to come up with something comparable.
Yes, that includes Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. So far, all we have from Mr. Obama is inspiring rhetoric about universal care — that’s great, but how do we get there? And how do we know whether Mrs. Clinton, who says that she’s “not ready to be specific,” and that she wants to “build the consensus first,” will really be willing to take on this issue again?
To be fair, these are still early days. But America’s crumbling health care system is our most important domestic issue, and I think we have a right to know what those who would be president propose to do about it.
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__________________ America cannot have an empire abroad and a Republic at home.
People who don’t get insurance from their employers wouldn’t have to deal individually with insurance companies: they’d purchase insurance through “Health Markets”: government-run bodies negotiating with insurance companies on the public’s behalf. People would, in effect, be buying insurance from the government, with only the business of paying medical bills — not the function of granting insurance in the first place — outsourced to private insurers.
Why is this such a good idea? As the Edwards press release points out, marketing and underwriting — the process of screening out high-risk clients — are responsible for two-thirds of insurance companies’ overhead. With insurers selling to government-run Health Markets, not directly to individuals, most of these expenses should go away, making insurance considerably cheaper.
Better still, “Health Markets,” the press release says, “will offer a choice between private insurers and a public insurance plan modeled after Medicare.” This would offer a crucial degree of competition. The public insurance plan would almost certainly be cheaper than anything the private sector offers right now — after all, Medicare has very low overhead. Private insurers would either have to match the public plan’s low premiums, or lose the competition.
Right now he's my favorite candidate out of all the possibilities out there.
This means he has no chance and for that Mr. Edwards I apologize. I'm currently trying to fool myself into liking Hillary... It's a very tough uphill psychological battle that I'm waging with myself for the good of the country.
__________________
At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide.
Edwards - Plan for America's Greenhouse Gas Emmissons
I like this guy more and more--not always for the ideas he has for solving the problems, but for the fast that he has ideas for solving problems, and isn't afraid to put them out there.
Quote:
Edwards unveils 'aggressive' energy planBy Tony Leys, The Des Moines Register
NEVADA, Iowa — America should drastically cut carbon-dioxide emissions, conserve electricity and increase the fuel economy of its cars, former U.S. Sen. John Edwards said here Tuesday.
The North Carolina Democrat, who is running for president, said few scientists doubt that the Earth is warming because of human activity. The trend will lead to disaster unless dramatic steps are taken, he said.
"Unfortunately, Washington has sort of turned a blind eye to this; dealt with it as a problem of the future, not as an emergency, not as something we need to deal with now."
Edwards said his proposals are "clearly at the aggressive end of the scale," but he said they are necessary and feasible.
"I believe the American people are ready for this. They are ready. They are ready to take the steps that are necessary," he said. "They're actually ready for the president of the United States to ask them to do something other than go shopping."
Edwards said the United States has just 4% of the world's population, but produces 25% of greenhouse gases. Once the country takes significant steps toward reducing its own pollution, it could credibly lean on China, India and other developing countries to do their part, he said.
The former senator, who was the Democrats' candidate for vice president in 2004, said he would have the government auction off rights to produce greenhouse gases. That sale would raise about $10 billion a year, which could be used to finance development of alternative energy sources, he said.
Edwards spoke before about 200 people gathered at the Biomass Energy Conversion Center, a research facility that focuses on turning plant matter into alternative fuels.
Edwards predicted the drive to increase such fuels and conserve energy would help the economy, including in rural areas. "This is a great opportunity for us, not only to strengthen the family farm, but to replace some of the manufacturing jobs that we've lost in America."
A national expert said Edwards' plan is more ambitious than most politicians' proposals. Steve Cohen, executive director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University in New York, said in a telephone interview that the proposal still needs fleshing out, but it shows a commitment to dealing with the crisis.
Cohen predicted other presidential candidates will present global-warming proposals. "I think it's going to be the single most important environmental issue in the campaign," he said. "If it isn't, we're missing something."
Edwards, who in recent weeks also has made proposals on health care and education, said he was offering specifics early in the campaign. "You can agree with me, or not agree with me, because I've certainly learned in Iowa that you have that choice," he joked during his speech.
Renda Laughead of Nevada, who listened from the audience, said she appreciated the details of Edwards' proposals. She said she was disappointed at a recent event held by Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, a Democratic presidential candidate, who offered few specifics in what felt like a pep rally.
Laughead, a hair stylist and self-described liberal, said she is leaning toward Edwards but is considering other candidates. She was impressed Tuesday with Edwards' focus on the issue of energy use and global warming.
"We have to do something about energy, we've just been such gluttons," she said.
Ken Siebert, a retired corrections-system employee from Ames, said he remained undecided after hearing Edwards' speech. He said the candidate outlined ambitious goals. "He wants to do the right thing," Siebert said.
"Whether or not it can be accomplished or not, I don't know. I think it can, but it's going to take a long time."
__________________ America cannot have an empire abroad and a Republic at home.
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