Whatever Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., is running for in 2004, he appears to be polishing up his agenda.
Speaking to the N.C. Press Association on Saturday in Pinehurst, Edwards outlined what he called a “reform agenda” that included four fairly familiar planks:the patient bill of rights that he, Sen. John McCain and Sen. Ted Kennedy co-sponsored; campaign finance reform to rein in soft-money influence; education reform closely modeled after what North Carolina is already doing; and privacy protection for consumers. That last item centered on preventing private companies from selling or otherwise distributing customers’ personal information, a concern spurred primarily by the rush of Internet commerce.
Edwards also talked about protecting the nation’s economic prosperity by balancing the budget, paying down the national debt and staying involved and engaged around the world.
The state’s freshman senator, Edwards has gone from the candid, fresh-faced “John Who?” of 1998 to a well-versed policy wonk, slightly tired by his pressing political schedule but still willing to field questions — and to admit it when he doesn’t have the answer. He has quickly moved from political outsider to well-placed insider, being mentioned as a possible vice presidential running mate for Al Gore last year and regularly fielding questions about his political aspirations for 2004 — a re-election run for the Senate, or a sprint into the presidential race?
Edwards was as noncommittal Saturday as Elizabeth Dole was before she took the presidential plunge in 1999. His version of “never say never” included expounding on how happy and busy he is in his job as senator. “I have an enormous job now,” he said.
A gossipy item in a Washington publication reported recently that Edwards met with a couple of Iowans in a D.C.-area restaurant and was overheard enthusiastically (and loudly, apparently) explaining that his Senate re-election campaign war chest could be transferred over to a presidential campaign fund.
Confronted with that item at the press gathering Saturday, Edwards did not blush or blanch. He just appeared a little tired of it all. He had eaten with two old friends at the restaurant, he said, but otherwise some of the information was incorrect. As to whether such a transfer of funds would be kosher, he said he hadn’t investigated the matter, but others had told him it was possible.
That also applied to the question of whether he could still put his name on the ballot as a Senate candidate in 2004 if he sought the presidential nomination. He hadn’t explored the issue himself, he said, but reporters had told him that election laws would allow it.
So how does Edwards convince North Carolinians that he’s still looking out for their interests, while the media keep writing about his presidential aspirations?
Edwards said all he could do was continue to work hard. What’s really going on with him —from flood relief to textile concerns —gets distorted under the national media microscope, he said. “That’s the nature of things,” he said, more with a tone of resignation than complaint.
He has visited 75 of the state’s 100 counties, a travel schedule that few other senators have attempted, he said. “Nobody writes about that,” he said.
Maybe now a few more people will, given the audience Edwards had Saturday.
But don’t count on it.
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