On day two of his "Bringing It Home" tour, Edwards discusses ambitious plans to create a Working Society and end poverty in America within 30 years

Barnwell, South Carolina – Today, on the second day of the "Bringing It Home" tour, Senator John Edwards will hold town hall meetings in Barnwell and Aiken to greet supporters and discuss his ambitious plans to create a Working Society and end poverty in America within 30 years. To ensure every American has the opportunity to work hard and succeed, today Edwards introduced his plan for "Ending Poverty in South Carolina Within a Generation," which calls for major new policies for work, housing, education, debt and savings, and family responsibility.

Edwards' first town hall meeting will take place at the Historical Society in Barnwell, South Carolina. Barnwell has recently been hit by job losses and over the summer the unemployment rate increased to more than nine percent.

"Too many Americans are separated from the opportunities of our country," Edwards said. "Every day, 37 million Americans wake up in poverty. In South Carolina alone, there are 228,000 children living in poverty, and that number is growing. Restoring our moral authority means leading by example and making clear that the hard challenges don't frighten us. There is no better opportunity than the challenge of poverty – the great moral issue of our time."

Edwards' second town hall meeting will take place at the University of South Carolina in Aiken, South Carolina. At the event, Edwards will focus on his plan to ensure that every young person who is willing to work hard has the chance to go to college. Edwards was the first in his family to go to college and is running for president so that all young people have the same opportunities that he has had. At the event, which will take place at USC's Etherredge Center, Edwards will outline his plan to make college more affordable for millions of students through a national College for Everyone program that will pay for public college for students willing to take a part-time job.

"In America, every child should be able to go as far as her God-given talents and hard work will take her," said Edwards. "As the first in my family to go to college, I know that our system of public education should be our sturdiest ladder of opportunity. To build the better America we all believe in, we must find ways to make college more affordable. We've got to make sure that every qualified student has the opportunity to go to college and fulfill the American Dream."

Edwards has spent his life building One America, where every person has the same opportunities to work hard and get ahead. To make sure everyone has the same chances that America has given to him, today Edwards called for:

Ending Poverty within a Generation: Edwards called for a national goal of ending poverty within a generation by cutting poverty by one third within a decade and ending poverty within 30 years.

Rewarding Work: To create more opportunities for work and reward those efforts, Edwards will raise the minimum wage to $9.50 an hour by 2012, helping the 33,000 South Carolinian workers who earn the minimum wage or less; cut taxes on low income workers; create 1 million Stepping Stone jobs; and strengthen workers' rights.

Overhauling Housing Policy: Edwards will create 1 million new housing vouchers over five years to help low-income families move to better neighborhoods, invest in struggling neighborhoods, and promote state and local efforts to build affordable housing close to good jobs and schools.

Strengthening Schools and Making College Affordable: Edwards will create a universal system of Great Promise early childhood education centers; invest more in teacher pay and professional development; radically overall No Child Left Behind; create Second Chance schools to help high school dropouts; and pay the public college tuition of everyone willing to take a part time job through a new College for Everyone initiative.

Helping Families Save and Get Ahead: Edwards will subsidize bank accounts for the 28 million Americans without them; create new Work Bonds to help low-income workers build up savings accounts; and protect families against abusive financial products, including payday loans, predatory mortgages, and abusive credit card terms.

Supporting Responsible Families: Edwards will encourage and reward responsibility from fathers by helping them find work and requiring the help support their children and discourage teen pregnancy. He will also call on community leaders to recognize that there is only so much that the government can do, and we all share the responsibility of promoting strong families.

Yesterday, Edwards launched his four-day South Carolina "Bringing It Home" bus tour to rally supporters and bring his fight for the middle class to the Palmetto State. Edwards is the only candidate in the race who was born in South Carolina and he is the only Democratic candidate to ever win in a "red" state. Edwards leads the Democratic field in both campaign stops and money raised in the Palmetto State, and his campaign boasts an impressive statewide grassroots organization strengthened by deep support from Edwards' 2004 campaign.

Please see the "Ending Poverty in South Carolina Within a Generation" policy paper included below for more information on Edwards' plan to create a Working Society and end poverty in America.

Ending Poverty In South Carolina Within A Generation

"Restoring our moral authority means leading by example and making clear that the hard challenges don't frighten us. There is no better opportunity than the challenge of poverty – the great moral issue of our time." -- John Edwards

Every day, 37 million Americans wake up in poverty, without enough income to pay for their basic necessities. Wages are stagnant for most workers and by some measures inequality is at its highest levels since the 1920s, but poverty is still not on the national agenda.

Today, John Edwards outlined his ambitious plans to create a Working Society and end poverty within 30 years. In the Working Society, everyone who is able to work hard will be expected to work and, in turn, be rewarded for it. The initiative includes major new policies in the areas of work, housing, education, debt and savings, and family responsibility.

Ending Poverty within a Generation

Edwards called for a national goal of ending poverty within a generation. A national goal will rally support for the cause and help us measure our progress, as it has in Great Britain. Specifically, Edwards believes we should:

Rewarding Work

Efforts to fight poverty in past decades had some success, but failed to do enough to create the opportunity for families to work their way out of poverty. To create more opportunities for work and reward those efforts, Edwards will:

Overhauling Housing Policy

Decent, safe, and affordable housing near jobs and good schools is critical to economic opportunity. However, the Department of Housing and Urban Development's programs concentrate low-income families far from jobs and schools, and HUD has become a symbol of bureaucracy and mismanagement. Edwards will:

Strengthen Schools and Make College Affordable

A strong system of public education is the foundation of America's ladder of opportunity. Edwards will:

Help Families Save and Get Ahead

Savings are critical to financial security, helping families absorb a lost job, car repairs, medical emergency, or other unexpected needs. They are also the key to helping families build up assets and get ahead. To help families save, Edwards will:

Support Responsible Families

Strong families are a foundation of economic security. To help support strong families, Edwards will:

Launches “One Can Change America” campaign to encourage supporters to take action to build a better America during the holiday season

Also, Edwards’ “Thanksgiving” ad campaign begins airing today in three states

Chapel Hill, North Carolina – Today, as American families begin to gather together to celebrate Thanksgiving, Senator John Edwards laid out a six-point plan for fighting widespread hunger in America and unveiled the campaign’s “One Can Change America” campaign to encourage supporters to take action over the holiday season to build a better America.

“This week, as families across the country come together to give thanks, we are reminded of the sad fact that millions of American families still go hungry,” said Edwards. “Food insecurity is one more sign that the economy is not working for regular families. While the costs of health care and energy keep increasing, the average family is earning less than they did in 2000 and the cost of food is rising faster than it has at any time in nearly 20 years. More than 35 million Americans went hungry last year, including almost 12 million children.

“America is better than this,” Edwards continued. “I believe it is our moral obligation to fight the special interests in Washington and build One America where no man, woman or child goes hungry. But we don’t have to wait till 2009 to create change– we can start taking action right now. That’s why today I’m issuing the ‘One Can Change America’ challenge to encourage everyone this holiday season to get involved in their own communities and take part in building a better America from the ground up.”

Edwards’ six-point plan to address widespread hunger includes a call for Congress and the president to get back to work and pass a farm bill with strong nutrition programs, new proposals to expand food stamps and other food aid for low-income families and seniors, help for families facing the “heat or eat” dilemma due to high home heating costs, and ensuring healthy food access in every community by creating a national food access map and a Healthy Neighborhoods Seed Fund to promote healthy foods in every neighborhood.

The “One Can Change America” campaign will highlight how each one of us in our way, can take action now and help change America for the better over this holiday season. Starting today, the six-week effort will encourage supporters to volunteer at least one hour at a soup kitchen, donate at least one can to a food bank, give one lead-free children’s toy to a toy drive, and call on one friend or family member to do the same.

Beginning today, the Edwards campaign is also airing a special “Thanksgiving” ad which will run through the holiday in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. In the 30-second spot, Edwards tells voters what he is most thankful for – a loving family and the promise of America – and delivers a personal message of thanks to the thousands of people he and Elizabeth have met on the campaign trail this year. The full commercial can be viewed here: http://johnedwards.com/watch/thanksgiving.

Included below is Edwards plan for “Fighting Widespread Hunger Among America’s Families.”

Fighting Widespread Hunger among America’s Families

“The 35 million Americans who go hungry, the 37 million people who live in poverty every day, the 47 million Americans have no health care coverage – they have no lobbyist. They depend on us. When is our party going to show a little backbone and strength and courage and speak up for those people who have been left behind?”
– John Edwards

More than 35.5 million Americans went hungry last year, including almost 12 million children. The nation’s food banks are reporting increased demand, particularly among working families. The cost of food is rising faster than at any time in nearly 20 years. The average family is earning less than they did in 2000 and household costs like health care and energy are going up. Food insecurity is one more sign that the economy is not working for regular families. [USDA, 2007; America’s Second Harvest, 2007; AP, 10/8/07; N.Y. Times, 8/21/07]

John Edwards has made helping working families and ending poverty the centerpiece of his campaign. He has already outlined his plans to:

• End poverty within a generation by raising the minimum wage, cutting taxes for low-income workers, turning around struggling schools, expanding affordable housing near good jobs and schools, and encouraging responsible families.
• Provide true universal health care that will make provide quality, affordable care for every American. Nearly one-third of families served at America’s food banks have had to choose between paying for food and paying for medicine or medical care. [ASH, 2007]
• Make work pay by cutting taxes for low-income and middle-class families, strengthening unions, and raising the minimum wage to $9.50 an hour by 2012.
• Strengthen the safety net for workers who lose their jobs by expanding unemployment insurance to cover 500,000 more workers.

Today, as American families begin to gather together to celebrate Thanksgiving, John Edwards laid out a six-point plan to address widespread hunger. He released new proposals to expand food stamps and other food aid for low-income families, children and seniors. He will also help families struggling with home heating costs and improve access to healthy food in every community.

1. Pass a Farm Bill with Strong Nutrition Programs: The nutrition programs in the Farm Bill are critical to increasing food security in America. Just two programs – food stamps and the Emergency Food Assistance Program for food banks – help about 25 million Americans a year each. Unfortunately, federal funding has not kept pace with growing need and rising costs. Last week, Senate Republicans used a filibuster to block the farm bill, sending Congress home for Thanksgiving without helping overtaxed food banks or hungry families. Edwards believes that Congress should quickly pass a strong and fair farm bill with robust funding for federal nutrition programs and President Bush should sign it. [ASH, 2007]
2. Get Food Aid to More Eligible Families: Food stamps – cash assistance averaging only about $1 per person per meal – help families purchase food and provide nearly a two-to-one benefit for the local economy. But one out of every three eligible families is not enrolled in the program, including millions of families who visit food banks and other community food services. Edwards will expand a pilot program, Express Stamps, which provides online enrollment kiosks at local food pantries. He will expand alternative hours at food stamp eligibility offices so that working families can enroll without missing work. To modernize eligibility and benefits, Edwards believes that Congress should quickly pass reforms to raise the minimum benefit level (which has remained at $10 since 1977), allow families to deduct their actual child care costs and protect families with modest retirement or education savings so they do not have to chose between putting food on the table and their longer-term need of preparing for the future. [CBPP, 2007; USDA, 2006 and 2007]
3. Provide Healthy Meals for Children: The 12 million American children who go hungry are 90 percent more likely to be in fair or poor health, have 30 percent higher hospitalization rates, and have lower test scores, attendance and other academic indicators. As president, Edwards will ensure robust funding to meet the nutritional needs of low-income school children through school breakfasts, free and reduced lunches, after-school snacks, fruit and vegetable programs, and the critical but under-used Summer Food Program. [Cook et al., 2004; Frongillo et al., 2005]
4. Strengthen Food Support for Seniors: One in six low-income elderly families does not have a regular, reliable source of enough to eat. President Bush has repeatedly proposed eliminating funding for the critical Commodity Supplemental Food program, which delivers nutritious food packages to nearly half a million seniors in 32 states and two Indian territories. Edwards will strengthen support for this program and expand other supportive services including Meals-on-Wheels for seniors and people with disabilities. [CBPP, 2007]
5. Address the “Heat or Eat” Crisis: Nearly half of the families served by the nation’s food banks have been forced to choose between paying for food and paying for utilities or heating fuel. Without assistance, even more families will struggle with this winter’s anticipated record home heating prices. Today, Edwards called on President Bush and Congress to fully fund the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program — nearly doubling it to $5.1 billion – and adjust the standard utility allowance in food stamp eligibility rules to reflect soaring prices. He will help states implement new low- and no-interest consumer loan programs through states and non-profits and double the funding for weatherizing homes. He also has a plan to fight rising oil and gas prices by creating energy competition, reducing speculation in the oil and gas markets, and bringing down demand through greater building conservation, fuel efficiency and access to renewable sources. [ASH, 2006; EIA, 2007]
6. Support Food Access in Every Neighborhood: Wealthy neighborhoods have over three times as many supermarkets as non-wealthy neighborhoods. Small corner stores are usually more expensive and offer less nutritious food. Food-insecure families in rural areas often face high transportation costs to reach the nearest food pantries. As president, Edwards will launch a public-private partnership to bring fresh, nutritious food to new neighborhoods. He will create a national food access map that identifies neighborhoods lacking grocery stores, emergency food banks and regular access to fresh produce. His new Healthy Neighborhoods Seed Fund will offer needy communities challenge grants for projects including full-service supermarkets, community gardens and food stamp-friendly farmers’ markets. [PolicyLink, 2005]

"This week, as families across the country gather together to celebrate Thanksgiving, we are reminded once again of the sad fact that millions of American families still go hungry.

"President Bush should be ashamed that in the wealthiest county in the world, millions of hard working families can't afford to put food on the table. In the America we believe in, our president does not look the other way as children and families go hungry.

"Over this president's term, we have seen the costs of fuel, housing and health care skyrocket, so it should be no surprise that 35.5 million people in America went hungry – up from 33.2 million in 2000.

"Now, as more families are forced to turn to food banks for help, government assistance has decreased and food banks have seen a decrease in donations, resulting in unprecedented shortages and forcing food banks to cut portions and turn away families in need.

"America is better than this. We simply cannot stand by while tens of millions of our fellow citizens go without the necessities of life. It is our moral obligation to build One America, to end poverty and take steps to secure and strengthen the middle class. We must stand up to the corrupt insiders and corporate interests that control Washington so we can pass universal health care, raise the minimum wage, strengthen unions and take other steps to make the everyday lives of hard-working Americans better."

"The reality that we have two Americas was confirmed again today by new data from the Census Bureau. These statistics show what most Americans know: tens of millions of our fellow citizens are completely left out of the economic progress enjoyed by the individuals and corporations on the very top.

"With an increase in Americans without health insurance by two million to 47 million, nearly 37 million Americans still living in poverty and continued high levels of inequality, the need for fundamental change in our government is obvious.

"We simply cannot stand by while tens of millions of our fellow citizens go without the necessities of life. We need truly universal health care and a national effort to eliminate poverty. But neither of these basic steps to building One America is possible without bringing fundamental change to Washington."

According to Census Bureau data released today, the number of people without health insurance rose from 45 million in 2005 to 47 million to 2006. The number of Americans in poverty remained statistically unchanged at about 37 million. Median household income increased by 1.1 percent after inflation to $48,200.

Manly, Osage, Charles City, Waterloo and Waverly, Iowa – On the third day of Senator John Edwards' "Fighting for One America" tour, Edwards outlined his plan to create One America where hard work is rewarded and families can build better lives. Edwards emphasized his agenda to protect and strengthen America's families by raising the minimum wage, reviving the Department of Labor, enforcing workplace safety laws, guaranteeing health care for all Americans and fighting against predatory lenders who keep workers trapped in poverty.

"Washington is broken and our system has been rigged against working people," Edwards said. "Families are falling farther behind, losing their health care and struggling to afford the basics, while the wealthy investors and big corporations use their Washington lobbyists to get every break imaginable. As president, I'll fight for an America that values and rewards work, not just wealth. From raising the minimum wage to strengthening labor standards to passing universal health care, I will make it my priority to help regular families get ahead."

As part of his plan to create One America where hard work is rewarded and families can get ahead, Edwards will:

• Raise the Minimum Wage to $9.50 an Hour: Under Gov. Culver, Iowa has been a leader in raising the minimum wage. But even at the 2008 level of $7.25, the earnings of a single parent with two children will still be $2,000 below the federal poverty line. Edwards will set a national goal of a minimum wage that equals half the average wage. He will raise the minimum wage by 75 cents a year until it reaches $9.50 in 2012. He will also restore the minimum wage for tipped workers to half the full minimum wage – the minimum wage for these workers has stood at $2.13 since 1997 – and extend wage and hour protections to home health care workers
• Protect Workers' Rights: As president, Edwards will revive the Department of Labor to protect the rights of all workers by working to reverse Bush Administration decisions that have excluded millions from the right to overtime pay. Edwards will also beef up OSHA enforcement and strengthen protections for workers who report injuries or unsafe conditions.
• Guarantee Universal Health Care: More than 250,000 Iowans don't have health insurance and one in four Americans with health insurance are underinsured. Guaranteeing quality affordable health care for every American is the most important thing we can do to strengthen the middle class and working class in this country. Edwards has a true universal health care plan that offers every American the option of a public plan and will save the average family $2,000 to 2,500 a year. Employers will have to help cover their employees, the government will make insurance affordable with new reforms and subsidies, and all Americans will buy insurance.
• Fight Predatory Lenders and Help Families Save: In the first half of 2007, the number of properties in Iowa being foreclosed on more than doubled compared to 2006. Edwards will crack down on abusive credit card companies, predatory mortgage lenders, and payday loan shops that take advantage of working families. To help families save, he will provide matched savings accounts for low-wage workers.

A detailed fact sheet outlining Edwards' plan for Rewarding Work and Helping Families Get Ahead is attached.

The Edwards campaign has launched a blog on its Iowa webpage featuring updates, photos, and video about the seven-day "Fighting for One America" bus tour. To follow along with the trip, Iowans are invited visit JohnEdwards.com/Iowa.

Rewarding Work And Helping Families Get Ahead

"I believe we cannot go on as Two Americas—one favored, the other forgotten—if we plan to stay productive, competitive and secure. I want to live in an America where we value work as well as wealth. I know that together we can build One America – a place where everyone has a fair shot at the American Dream." – John Edwards

With Washington dominated by powerful special interests, it is no coincidence that the benefits of economic growth are enjoyed by increasingly few individuals. Over the last 20 years, American incomes have grown apart: 40 percent of the income growth in the 1980s and 1990s went the top 1 percent. Between 2001 and 2005, the top 1 percent of households gained $268 billion of total income and the bottom 90 percent lost $272 billion ($2,071 per household). [EPI, 2006; Saez, 2007; EPI, 2007]

Today on his Fighting for One America bus tour through Iowa, John Edwards outlined his agenda to create One America where everyone's hard work is rewarded and families can build a better life.

• Raise the Minimum Wage to $9.50 an Hour: Under Gov. Culver, Iowa has been a leader in raising the minimum wage. But even at its 2008 level of $7.25, the earnings of a single parent with two children will still be $2,000 below the federal poverty line. Edwards will set a national goal of a minimum wage that equals half the average wage. He will raise the minimum wage by 75 cents a year until it reaches $9.50 in 2012. He will also restore the minimum wage for tipped workers to half the full minimum wage – the minimum wage for these workers has stood at $2.13 since 1997 – and extend wage and hour protections to home health care workers. [HHS, 2007]
• Strengthen Workers' Right to Organize: Edwards believes that unions are essential to building the future middle class, but union density in Iowa has declined by 17 percent in just the last six years. The right to choose a union is poorly enforced, full of loopholes, and routinely violated by employers. He will enact the Employee Free Choice Act, vigorously enforce labor laws and ban the use of permanent replacements for striking workers. [Census Bureau, 2007]
• Protect Workers' Rights: As president, Edwards will revive the Department of Labor to protect the rights of all workers:
  • Prevailing Wages: Edwards pledges to protect the Davis Bacon Act, which prevents contractors from slashing wages in order to win federal contracts with low-ball bids.
  • Overtime Pay: Edwards will work to reverse anti-worker NLRB decisions like those that have excluded millions of workers from the right to overtime pay.
  • Workplace Safety: Edwards will make sure every American worker is protected by federally-approved safety and health standards in the workplace, including new mandatory ergonomics standards. He will also beef up OSHA enforcement and strengthen protections for workers who report injuries or unsafe conditions.
  • Wage Abuses: Edwards will create a new Labor taskforce to target the industries with the worst abuses of minimum wage and overtime laws. He will also step up enforcement to prevent the misclassification of employees as independent contractors.
• Enact Smarter Trade Policies: Iowa has lost more than 17,000 jobs in the last six years due to growing trading deficits with China. Trade deals need to make sense for American workers, not just corporations. Edwards will insist on trade deals that make most Americans better off and that include strong labor and environmental standards, vigorously enforce American workers' rights, and help workers and communities hurt by global competition. [EPI, 2007]
• Help Low-Income Families Find Work and Join the Middle Class: 320,000 Iowans live in poverty, and the state's poverty rate is up from 7.8 percent in 2001 to 11.1 percent. Edwards has set a national goal of eliminating poverty within 30 years. He will cut taxes on low-income workers by expanding the earned income tax credit for single workers and reducing its marriage penalty. He will create 1 million Stepping Stone jobs to help people struggling to find jobs gain skills and work experience. He will also expand affordable housing near good jobs, rather than concentrating it in high-poverty neighborhoods far from opportunity. [Iowa Policy Project, 2007]
• Guarantee Universal Health Care: More than 250,000 Iowans don't have health insurance and one in four Americans with health insurance are underinsured. Guaranteeing quality affordable health care for every American is the most important thing we can do to strengthen the middle class and working class in this country. Edwards has a true universal health care plan that offers every American the option of a public plan and will save the average family $2,000 to 2,500 a year. Employers will have to help cover their employees, the government will make insurance affordable with new reforms and subsidies, and all Americans will buy insurance. [Census Bureau, 2007; Consumers Union, 2007]
• Fight Abusive Debt and Help Families Save: The number of properties being foreclosed on more than doubled in Iowa in the first half of 2007, compared to 2006. Edwards will crack down on abusive credit card companies, predatory mortgage lenders, and payday loan shops that take advantage of working families. To help families save, he will provide matched savings accounts for low-wage workers. [RealtyTrac, 2007]
• Make College Affordable for Everyone: A college education has never been more important, but young Iowans who go to college graduate with an average of more than $22,000 in debt – the second highest level in the nation. To help students work their way through college, Edwards will pay one year of public-college tuition, fees, and books for more than 2 million students who take a part-time job. [Project on Student Debt, 2007]

The text of the letter is below:

July 19, 2007

President George W. Bush
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, DC 20400

Dear Mr. President:

Earlier this week, I went on a journey that started in New Orleans, went through the Mississippi Delta, Memphis, Cleveland, Youngstown, Pittsburgh, Virginia and ended in Prestonsburg, Kentucky. At every stop, I met with incredible people who are working hard every day and still living in poverty. I did it to try to help the rest of the country hear the voices of people who are often forgotten -- people living in poverty and on the losing end of economic unfairness. I did it to show that we can solve these problems and there is hope.

Mr. President, that what's true leaders do, they lead with big, bold ideas that actually solve problems. They do not wait to be told about problems that stare them in the face, they never follow, and they should never have to wait for a convenient time to address the incredible challenges that face so many hard-working families in this nation.

As you approach your final days in office, you have a chance to finally stand up and lead on this important issue. However, unless you choose to lead and start helping solve poverty in America, the next 550 days of your presidency will all but ensure that the 37 million Americans who wake up in poverty today will only grow. If you choose to do nothing on poverty, the next 550 days of your presidency will only ensure that the more than 5 million Americans who have fallen into poverty during your presidency will only grow.

But it's not too late to change course. It's never too late to do the right thing and lead.

So today, I am writing to challenge you to come with me and visit the places in America that are too often ignored -- places like Marks, Mississippi, West Helena, Arkansas, Wise, Virginia and Whitesburg, Kentucky -- and expose yourself to the harsh realities of poverty in America, and how much worse American families are under your presidency. Go to the cities and towns where I have gone. See and talk to the good and decent Americans with amazing character who struggle with incredible poverty. Incredible poverty, Mr. President, which has only worsened every day over the last 7 years because of the failure of your leadership and the terrible effects your policies have had on millions of families. And see how the people of New Orleans are still struggling nearly two years after Hurricane Katrina, and see how your administration's indifference to this problem has only made the problem worse.

I can only hope that if you stop and listen to the stories of the men and women who work hard and are paid poverty wages -- and sometimes even cheated out of those -- without health care or decent schools for their children, I believe you will agree with me that America must act and it must act now.

Poverty is not an intractable problem. There are solutions that work. We can reward work and create opportunity with lower taxes for working families, stronger unions, more job and affordable housing opportunities, better schools and stronger families.

Poverty is not a New Orleans problem, a Pittsburgh problem or an Appalachia problem. It is an American problem. And it's America's responsibility. And America needs a president who will lead on this issue, not turn his back on 37 million forgotten Americans.

The 37 million Americans living in poverty and the hundreds of millions of others who know in their hearts that America can do better deserve a president who will lead on this issue.

Mr. President, don't wait for the next hurricane. The time to act is now.

Sincerely,

John Edwards

"Families are where we learn our values and get the strength to succeed in the world. But families need communities to hold them together. Building One America where everyone has a fair shot at a better life requires that we all take responsibility for strengthening our families and our communities."
– John Edwards

The final day of John Edwards' Road to One America tour reaches the Appalachian areas of Wise, Virginia, and Whitesburg and Prestonsburg, Kentucky. The tour is intended to shine a light on places and people struggling with poverty and highlight solutions to restore economic fairness building on the principles of work, opportunity, and families. Today, Edwards announced a plan to strengthen low-income families with proposals for family literacy and nurse home visits. The new initiatives build on his plans to strengthen families by discouraging teen pregnancy, cutting the tax penalty on marriage that still hits too many low-income families and expecting young men to take responsibility for their children while making it easier for them to support them. Today's stops also allow Edwards to describe his agenda for rural areas and people with disabilities.

Today's Stops on the Road to One America

Wise, Virginia, is a rural coal town facing many of the challenges confronting rural communities across America, including poor access to health care. Nationwide, nine million rural Americans are uninsured, and over the past 25 years, 470 rural hospitals have closed. The Remote Area Medical (RAM) Volunteer Corps provides essential health services to people in remote areas who cannot otherwise afford it. RAM stops in Wise each year, serving over 1,200 volunteers helped over 7,000 people from the surrounding counties with all types of medical, dental and optical needs. In Wise and neighboring counties, nearly a third of working-age adults report having a disability. Nationally, working-age Americans with moderate disabilities are almost 30 percent more likely to live in poverty, and those with significant disabilities are more than twice as likely to live in poverty. The Junction Center for Independent Living is part of a nationwide network of non-residential, grassroots organizations designed and operated by individuals with disabilities. The Junction Center aims to maximize the leadership, empowerment, independence, and economic self-sufficiency of individuals with disabilities in rural Virginia. [Winbush and Crichlow, 2005; Carsey Institute, 2006; USDA, 2004; Census Bureau, 2007]

Whitesburg, Kentucky, is home to the Center for Rural Strategies and to Appalshop, a non-profit arts and education center. The town, like many in the rural America, struggles to create economic opportunities to keep its young people from leaving. The region has 3.5 high school drop-outs for every four-year college graduates, one of the highest ratios in the nation. Appalshop's Appalachian Media Institute Program offers arts internships where young people learn to produce broadcast narratives of the challenges facing youth in Appalachia. [Beale, 2004]

Prestonburg, Kentucky, known as "the star city of Eastern Kentucky," is the county seat of Floyd County and among the poorest 2 percent of counties in the United States. In 1968, Sen. Robert F. Kennedy concluded his tour of the impoverished regions of Southeastern Kentucky with a speech at the Floyd County Courthouse. Today, groups like the Prestonsburg Renaissance committee meet regularly to encourage economic development in the area and preserve its unique and rich culture. Local leaders place great hope in the potential economic benefit of producing renewable energies like biofuels. [U.S. Census Bureau, 2007; Kentucky Rural Energy Consortium, undated]

John Edwards' Plan to Support Healthy Families and Communities

Families are where we learn our values and the difference between right and wrong. In communities across America, families aren't getting the support they need. Hundreds of thousands of teenagers have children they aren't ready to raise. Today, from the Road to One America, John Edwards outlined his agenda to end poverty and create One America where healthy families and communities realize their fullest potential.

Building on Edwards' Agenda to Promote Strong, Responsible Families

On the Road to One America, John Edwards outlined his agenda to end poverty and create One America where everyone has the opportunity to live up to their potential, no matter where they come from or the color of their skin. Today's new policy announcement complements Edwards' existing policies to promote strong, responsible families:

Discusses agenda to expand opportunity and build One America

Cleveland, Ohio – As Senator John Edwards begins day two of his "Road to One America" tour to shine a bright spotlight on the issue of poverty, he will announce a new plan to promote economically diverse schools, so more young people have access to a quality education. Edwards believes we need to make sure that no American is separated from the opportunities of our country. Today's initiative is the latest in his agenda to expand opportunity, which will also strengthen schools and recruit excellent teachers, make college affordable, encourage savings, stop abusive lending, and support affordable housing near good jobs and good schools.

"We still have two public school systems in America, and millions of children are separated from opportunity by their race or their class," said Edwards. "We need to do everything we can to improve their education, and that includes economically diverse schools. More low-income students should have the opportunity to go to schools where they are likely to have experienced teachers, parents who are more involved and classmates with high aspirations."

The recent Supreme Court decision limiting school districts' efforts to integrate their schools will exacerbate the effects of racial and economic isolation. While not a substitute either for racial integration, which may still be permissible under some circumstances, or for improvement of high-poverty schools, efforts to achieve income diversity can put poor students in schools where they are more likely to have experienced teachers, classmates with high aspirations and parents who are more involved. These students perform better without hurting the achievement of middle-class students. A national model exists in Wake County, North Carolina, where Edwards' eldest two children attended public school.

In order to promote economic diversity within school districts and across district lines, Edwards will provide new federal resources to:

• Give bonuses to schools in affluent communities enrolling low-income students.
• Create magnet schools dedicated to economic integration by doubling current federal magnet schools funding to $200 million a year, and dedicating the increase to schools that draw students from across district lines and pledge to maintain economically diverse schools.
• Create a million housing vouchers over five years to help low-income families move to better neighborhoods.

For more information on Edwards' agenda to end poverty and create One America where everyone has the opportunity to live up to their potential, please click here for the fact sheet.

"Education should be the sturdiest ladder of opportunity in this country. But more than fifty years after Brown v. Board of Education, we still have two school systems in this country, where the quality of our children's education depends on their parents' zip code. We cannot go on this way if we hope to build One America."
– John Edwards

Today is the second day of John Edwards' three-day Road to One America tour. He will visit Cleveland, Youngstown and Pittsburgh as part of his effort to put a spotlight on places and people struggling with poverty and highlight solutions that will restore economic fairness. America's so-called "Rust Belt" has been hit hard by the loss of manufacturing jobs in recent decades, and many of its urban neighborhoods are now experiencing concentrated poverty.

Today, Edwards announced a new plan to promote economically diverse schools. These schools have been shown to raise the achievement of low-income students without impacting their peers. One national model exists in Wake County, North Carolina, where two of Edwards' children attended school. Today's initiative is the latest in his agenda to expand opportunity, which will also strengthen schools and recruit excellent teachers, make college affordable, encourage savings, stop abusive lending, and support affordable housing near good jobs and good schools.

Today's Stops On The Road To One America

Cleveland, Ohio has suffered a wave of home foreclosures in recent months as a result of a combination of job losses, predatory lenders and falling home prices. Predatory lenders and mortgage brokers have targeted the Mount Pleasant neighborhood, like many other working-class and predominantly African-American neighborhoods across the country. While subprime loans can be valuable to families without other credit opportunities, African-American and Latino borrowers are three times more likely to receive subprime loans than white borrowers with similar credit scores. Mount Pleasant resident Mariah Crenshaw is fighting to keep her family home of 30 years after a coercive and deceptive mortgage process. In Cleveland—a city with more than 13,000 foreclosures a year—ACORN is helping citizens like Crenshaw and organizing residents of economically distressed neighborhoods like Mount Pleasant. [Schiller, 2007; NCRC, 2007; ACORN, 2007]

Youngstown, Ohio was once home to a thriving steel industry, but the decline of Youngstown Sheet and Tube in the late 1970s was the start of economic challenges. In the past few years, startup technology companies have revived the local economy. The Youngstown Business Incubator has helped local companies receive 19 new patents and create over 160 full-time, technology based jobs. The need for affordable housing is a pressing issue in Youngstown. Nationally, landlords remove 2,000 apartments a month from the list of publicly supported affordable apartments. Seventeen million families pay more than half their incomes in rent and over 800,000 are homeless. In Youngstown, Edwards will visit the Beatitude House for homeless women and children. Last year, Beatitude House helped over 400 people last year gain education, employment, and housing. [YBI; Fannie Mae, 2002; JCHS, 2007; HHS, 2007; Beatitude House, 2007]

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania's economy also rose and fell with the steel industry, and it is now rebounding unevenly. The neighborhoods of the Hill District have suffered. By 1990, most residents lived in public housing, and 41 percent are now in poverty. The Hill House Association offers early learning, tutoring, summer camps, and senior services. Edwards visited Hill House to discuss his plan to create economically integrated schools for the benefit of all students. [Houser, 2003; U.S. Census, 2005]

John Edwards' Plan To Promote Economically Diverse Schools

Our nation has two school systems, segregated by race and economic status. The recent Supreme Court decision limiting school districts' efforts to integrate their schools will exacerbate the problem. While not a substitute either for racial integration, which may still be permissible under some circumstances, or for improvement of high-poverty schools, efforts to achieve income diversity can put poor students in schools where they are more likely to have experienced teachers, classmates with high aspirations and parents who are more involved. These students perform better without hurting the achievement of middle-class students. In fact, a school's socioeconomic makeup is the second most important predictor of academic achievement, after only a children's own socioeconomic status. By fourth grade, low-income students attending affluent schools are two years ahead in math of their peers in high-poverty schools, with no adverse impact on other students. [Kahlenberg, 2007]

A national model exists in Wake County, North Carolina, where Edwards' eldest two children attended public school. Wake County attempts to limit low-income students to 40 percent of the student body and students performing below grade level to 25 percent. With its economic diversity program, low-income students in Wake County's public schools are outperforming their peers in comparable North Carolina school districts on statewide exams and the county's schools have the second highest on-time graduation rate among the nation's largest 50 districts nationally. Wake County's policies have also sustained racial diversity in its schools. Experience has shown that success of these kinds depends on an aggressive district-wide effort. [Harris, 2006; Kahlenberg, 2007; Flinspach and Banks, 2005; NY Times, 7/15/05]

Income diversity programs should draw students into both low-income and middle-class communities. Edwards will release his full K-12 education agenda in the coming weeks. As one element of that agenda, in order to promote economic diversity within school districts and across district lines, Edwards will provide new federal resources to:

Building On Edwards' Opportunity Agenda

On the Road to One America, John Edwards outlined his agenda to end poverty and create One America where everyone has the opportunity to live up to their potential, no matter where they come from or the color of their skin. Today's new policy announcement complements Edwards' existing policies to create opportunity for American families:

Supporting our Schools:

"No one who works full-time should live in poverty. By honoring and rewarding work, we will lift up millions of Americans and build a stronger, more productive America."
– John Edwards

Today, John Edwards begins his three-day Road to One America tour with stops in Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Tennessee. The tour is intended to shine a light on the places and real people who struggle with poverty, as well as highlight real solutions that will help give millions of poor low-income Americans a chance for a better life.

During today's stops, Edwards will announce two new initiatives designed to help ensure that workers are paid and treated fairly in the workplace. The initiatives include: (1) a new labor taskforce to target industries with the worst abuses of minimum wage, workplace safety and overtime laws; and (2) protecting workers' health by providing seven paid sick days a year.

These new initiatives are part of his agenda to reward work with a higher minimum wage, stronger unions, new protections for home health care workers and universal health care, Stepping Stone jobs and smart trade policies that work for workers as well as corporations.

Today's Stops on the Road to One America

Canton, Mississippi is one of many Delta towns dominated by the poultry processing, one of the most dangerous and poorly rewarded industrial jobs in America. Mississippi poultry workers are paid poorly and most lack health benefits. The industry is one of many in America that increasingly violate legal protections, such as minimum wage and hour laws, and misclassify employees as independent contractors in order to strip them of basic protections. A Labor Department study of the poultry industry nationally found that out of 51 plants surveyed, 100 percent had not paid employees for all hours worked and one-third took illegal deductions from pay. [MPOWER, 2007; BLS, 2006; USDA, 2005; UFCW, 2007; DoL, 2001]

Marks, Mississippi is in Quitman County, where one out of every three residents is in poverty. In 1968, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. started his Poor People's March at the Road Side Park in Marks, which would eventually bring over 7,000 Americans to Washington, DC. Today, the Quitman County Development Organization is a local community center creating economic opportunity with many of the solutions John Edwards has proposed nationally, including affordable housing and a credit union offering low-fee banking, small business loans, and alternatives to payday loans to help working families save and get ahead. [QCDO, 2007]

West Helena, Arkansas has seen women in the area—like millions of women nationally—increasingly working in underpaid home care jobs. Home health aide is America's fastest-growing profession. Ninety percent of home care workers are women, and one out of every four is a single mother caring for young children. The undervaluing of this career contributes to the reality that of the 37 million Americans living in poverty, 21 million are women. In Arkansas, the typical hourly wage for home health aides is $8.13, and nationally 25 percent lack health benefits. Half of all home care workers are living in a low-income family, and they are disproportionately rural. [BLS, 2004; SEIU, 2003; BLS, 2006; Carsey Institute, 2007]

Memphis, Tennessee is where Dr. King went on a detour from the Poor People's March to stand with Memphis sanitation workers' striking for fair wages. His campaign for justice came to a tragic end during that detour in April 1968. The Metropolitan Inter-Faith Association was founded that same year, and has worked to bring together residents from all walks of life to lift Memphis families out of poverty. The Association is in the racially and economically segregated Peabody-Vance neighborhood of Memphis, which has a 60 percent poverty rate and a 15 percent unemployment rate. MIFA's programs include teen job services, college prep, services to the elderly, legal counseling and debt management. [City of Memphis, 2007; MIFA, 2007]

John Edwards' Plan to Reward Work: New Initiatives

Enforcing Labor Protections: In many industries, violations of our most basic labor laws have become the new way of doing business. The Department of Labor has found that the countless businesses do not adhere to minimum wage and overtime laws. In fact, in the United States today, there is only one wage and hour inspector for every 150,000 employees, half of inspections are conducted by fax and telephone, and up to 30 percent of employers misclassify their employees to avoid paying taxes, benefits and worker's compensation. [DOL, 2007, 1998, 2001, 2001; NELP, 2007]

To help protect workers, Edwards will revive the Department of Labor, creating a new taskforce to target the industries with the worst abuses of minimum wage and overtime laws. To stop the misclassifying of employees as independent contractors, he will require companies to document their payments to subcontractors, increase penalties for employers who routinely pay "off the books," and give workers more rights to question their status. He will also make workplaces safer by boosting funding for OSHA inspectors, updating OSHA practices for the new service economy, restoring ergonomic standards, strengthening whistleblower protections and extending OSHA protections to all workers.

Paid Sick Days for All: Nearly half of all private-sector workers, and nearly 80 percent of low-wage workers, must forgo pay to miss even a single day due to illness or caregiving. John Edwards believes that protecting the health of workers is not only important for families, but also best for the health of the community. Edwards' new initiative will help ensure that all employees have at least seven paid sick days a year, with pro-rated leave for part-time workers. [IWPR 2007]

Building on Edwards' Pro-Work Agenda: