John Edwards for President-The Fighting for One America New Hampshire Bus Tour Archive

On the Road Again

Hi everyone. My whole family is looking forward to the "Fighting for One America" New Hampshire bus tour. You may have heard that last week, my mom and dad, plus brother and sister, spent a week traveling across Iowa. I, sadly, missed out. However, I couldn't turn down the chance to hop on the New Hampshire bus, and spend a few days campaigning with my family before school starts next week.

New Hampshire was actually the first place I campaigned by myself for my Dad in 2003. I spoke with a group of high school students before doing an event with the "Students for Edwards" group at Dartmouth College. I still remember how nervous I was that day - it was only through the good graces of my New Hampshire hosts, who were with me, that I got through those first events.

This time around, things are a bit different. Those high school students from 2003 are likely almost college graduates now and they'll all be able to vote in this election. We've had 4 more years of a disastrous Republican administration and the country is ready for change. I think that is why there is already so much excitement around our campaign. Things are already in full-swing in New Hampshire and I'm excited to feel that energy and to meet with the thousands of people who have already come out in support of my Dad, and hopefully, convince a few more of you to join us.

We've certainly got a full schedule. We'll make 15 stops over 4 days. The Fighting for One America bus tour will take us all across the state to talk with voters about some of the most important issues facing our country like how we can work together to achieve energy independence and halt global warming, our need for true universal health care, the importance of rewarding work and strengthening the middle class, and of course, ending the war in Iraq and bringing our troops home.

We hope you can join us at one of the many stops along the tour, but if you can't, I'll be blogging from the bus so you can follow us along on our trip virtually on right here at johnedwards.com/nh.

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From the Bus

Cate Edwards
8/23/2007 at 2:59 PM EST

We arrived in Hanover and got off the bus at Dartmouth College for our first event and the first person I saw was Sharon Nordgren, who had hosted me miles down the road at her house in 2003. She immediately mentioned my post on BlueHampshire and said it got her really excited about the trip. She and Deb Nelson, my other savior from that day in 2003, will be taking a road trip and traveling with us all day.

Dad spoke about changing the climate in Washington and making sure it's the American people -- not lobbyists and corporate interests -- that control what happens to our country. "The choice for our party could not be more clear," he said. "It's not enough to replace a group of Republican insiders with a group of Democratic insiders," he continued as people began to applaud. That's when I noticed a few heads pop up from the classrooms of Wilder Hall in the background, interested in what Dad had to say. Not only had he caught people's attention with his call for change, he kept it as he laid out his plans for the country.

Campaigning as a family is an exciting and a tremendous learning experience. But right now, there's such a passion to take back our country that it also feels more important than ever. People here in New Hampshire certainly agree, and that's why they nod and cheer when they hear dad -- this campaign is about real, bold and distinct plans to change America.

More soon...

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Our Keene Townhall

Cate Edwards
8/23/2007 at 4:32 PM EST

We stopped in Keene, New Hampshire for a Townhall meeting. Dad talked for a few minutes before opening the floor up for questions.

A woman in the front raises her hand. She is sitting next to a small brown-haired boy wearing a Red Sox jersey who is hiding behind a John Edwards sign. She asked a question on behalf of "an 8 year old that would like to remain anonymous." He was worried about the lead paint in toys that came from China, worried that products from China were not safe, she explained.

Dad talked about the importance of not just smart trade, but safe trade -- the importance of enforcing country of origin labeling, inspecting products coming across our borders, and encouraging buying local food products. The "anonymous" 8 year old looked pleased.

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A Great First Day

Cate Edwards
8/24/2007 at 12:17 PM EST

Last night we sat on the porch at our hotel in Manchester, which abuts the New Hampshire Fishercats stadium outfield and watched as the Fishercats prevailed over the Portland Sea Dogs 7 to 1.

Throughout the evening, people came up to us to offer their support for the campaign, taking pictures and promising to warn us if a ball flew our way. The final homer was hit onto the deck just before Emma Claire and Jack showed up (they'd been in the stands at the game), and a lovely supporter named Val, who we'd been in conversation with, tracked it down and gave it to them as a souvenir. They could not have been more excited.

At the end of the game, fireworks shot off above the scoreboard and I thought it a fitting end to a successful first day of the bus tour.

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Talking About Health Care

Cate Edwards
8/24/2007 at 2:35 PM EST

So far today we've been talking a lot about health care, and people here in New Hampshire are certainly listening. We started out the morning at Elliot Hospital in Manchester where Mom and Dad sat down at a table with 6 voters who had concerns about the health care system, and the rest of the room was crowded with an interested audience of patients and health care workers.

The people at the table told their stories: about the bottomless pit of bills for long term care of an Alzheimer patient, about having to move to a small one-bedroom apartment because they couldn't afford their health expenses on Social Security alone, about having trouble getting properly medicated and paying for medication in the VA health system, about having to live with diabetes and trying to cut back on medication to make their health care affordable.

Dad told them about his universal health care plan, his plan for stem cell research, his plan to protect Social Security and make retirement more secure, and his plan to take on the big drug companies and insurance companies and be a president who fights for them. Judging by the nods, cheers, and occasional smiles, I think they left that room more heartened than they had entered it. And I know they liked Dad's health care plan.

Our next stop, where we are now, is a New Hampshire Veterans' home in Tilton. Under the shade of a large wooden picnic area in the courtyard (welcoming on a hot day such as this), Dad spoke briefly. I was watching a man right next to me in a wheelchair wearing a Red Sox hat, who was shouting "Oh yeah!" throughout the speech, in response to Dad's universal health care plan and support of veterans.

As Dad took questions, I continued to watch him, beaming and shouting, "I like that!" in response to Dad's plan to pay for universal care by rolling back Bush's tax cuts for the wealthy. With one question left, the man raised his hand. He spoke shakily into the microphone and it was hard to understand what he was saying. He repeated himself, but I still couldn't make out what he was saying.

"There's no cure for MS," Dad said, "that's right."

When Dad said he intended to fully fund stem cell research in hopes of finding a cure and supporting the NIH and their research, the man said "Thank you. Thank you so much."

Then Mom stood up and said, "the same research that's important to you is important to me... we're gonna have our diseases but maybe our children and grandchildren won't if we fund this research... the reason I'm fighting so hard for this man is because I know he'll fight for us, against our diseases."

I know Mom and Dad couldn't hear, but he smiled and said, "Good man. Good man."

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Saturday in New Hampshire

Cate Edwards
8/25/2007 at 6:33 PM EST

Today we've been talking a lot about economic fairness. We started the morning in Berlin, where dad held a town hall in the middle of the square, in front of a charming gazebo. Berlin, in the Northern part of the state, has lost a lot of jobs and they were certainly interested to hear Dad's plans for creating jobs and economic opportunity. As he began his speech, some members of the Building Trades unions walked up holding their sign and Dad, delighted to see them, welcomed them to the conversation.

We then stopped in the Cannon Mountain area and took a tram ride at Franconia Notch to the top of a mountain. There was a beautiful view overlooking mountains, lakes, trails. We saw a man up on the opposite cliff repelling down, and the kids were in awe.

Now, we're in Concord in White Park, and people have been asking Dad about health care, foreign policy, and creating jobs. Perhaps the most remarkable part of this stop, however, is that Emma Claire and Jack voluntarily got out and sat to listen to Dad's speech. (Of course, they lasted only about 5 minutes before going to the field behind him to play baseball, but still.) If Dad can get Emma and Jack to an event, it's a pretty good sign that he's catching fire! Now we're on our way to Merrimack and then on to another FisherCats game tonight.

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Manchester and Salem

Cate Edwards
8/26/2007 at 4:19 PM EST

We met Mom and Dad after their home run appearance on Face the Nation, and made our way to City Hall in Manchester for a town hall. We'd set up a pancake breakfast for the attendees, where Mom had thought we should try jam instead of syrup. Apparently, though the pancakes were gone by the time I got there, they were a "roaring success." When we pulled up, Jack decided that he'd like to announce Mom and Dad's arrival. He got on the mike and said, in his deepest 7 -year-old voice, "Please welcome Elizabeth Edwards, and the next President of the United States, John Edwards!"

As I walked around I could feel the energy and excitement - a group of letter carriers that had come wearing t-shirts with their union's logo, a little boy on a bike decorated with a "John Edwards 2008" bumper sticker, and even a dog wearing a John Edwards sticker on his head! Dad talked a lot about foreign policy today, but like always was asked a variety of questions. He was asked about No Child Left Behind and what he would do with it. He responding by telling them he believed No Child Left Behind is a disaster and needs major fixing. He believes it should be fully funded and that those schools that were found failing actually need more support from the government. As for the constant testing, he borrowed a line from a friend of his from the South, "A hog doesn't get fatter by weighing it." He said we should be doing a variety of tests, including teacher assessments of individual students' progress throughout the year and using better measurements for improvement.

At the next stop, a house party in Salem, Dad was asked (actually, for the second time today) what he would do about the contractors in Iraq.
He talked about the problems there are with privatizing contractors for jobs that should be handled by the government, particularly those related to our security interests, and also noted that we should be vigorous about investigating what those contractors have been doing. People nodded as Dad described how badly we needed to change America's image in the world, and his intention to meet with world leaders immediately and to demonstrate with goodwill programs that America can be a force for good in the world.

Before hopping back on the bus, I met a family from Londonderry with two adorable daughters. They were excited about the campaign and what we were doing, and thanked us for coming out on the road to talk to voters. It was really great to hear that. We're now back on the bus, heading to Hampton for a Democratic picnic.

There was a lot of energy in Manchester and stickers everywhere!