You know what REALLY pisses me off about John Edwards haircut?

[tjwash]

Absolutely nothing at all.


• America should lead by extending a hand, not a fist. (Aug 2004)
For more than a century, America has spared no effort to defend, encourage, and promote that idea around the world. Over and over, we have done it by exercising American leadership to forge powerful alliances-with longtime allies and reluctant friends, with nations already living in the light of democracy and with peoples struggling to join them. The might of those alliances has been a driving force in the survival & success of freedom-in two World Wars, in the Cold War, in the Gulf War, and in Kosovo. America led instead of going it alone. We extended a hand, not a fist.

John Edwards-Our Plan For America , p. 8 Aug 10, 2004


• Bring UN, allies and friends to Iraq
Question to John Edwards: How would you get allies to work with the US?
A: I would put the Iraqi Civilian Authority under the control of the United Nations today. That should have been done a long time ago. Use that to create the kind of energy we need to bring allies and friends to this effort, to help relieve the burden on American troops, relieve the burden on American taxpayers. And also put a stop to these sweetheart deals for Halliburton, the president's friends.

CNN "Rock The Vote" Democratic Debate Nov 5, 2003


• Right to choose is constitutionally protected
I support a woman's right to choose and believe this that right is constitutionally protected. I also support funding for family planning.

John Edwards-Vote Smart Presidential National Political Awareness Test Jan 8, 2004


• Edwards scores 100% by NARAL on pro-choice voting record

For over thirty years, NARAL Pro-Choice America has been the political arm of the pro-choice movement and a strong advocate of reproductive freedom and choice. NARAL Pro-Choice America's mission is to protect and preserve the right to choose while promoting policies and programs that improve women's health and make abortion less necessary. NARAL Pro-Choice America works to educate Americans and officeholders about reproductive rights and health issues and elect pro-choice candidates at all levels of government. The NARAL ratings are based on the votes the organization considered most important; the numbers reflect the percentage of time the representative voted the organization's preferred position.

NARAL website Dec 31, 2003


• Raising the minimum wage is a working women's issue
Women make up only 48 percent of the overall American workforce, but 61 percent of the people who will get a raise when we increase the minimum wage. People who live on the minimum wage do not get cost of living adjustments - every year that their costs climb but the minimum wage stays the same is another year people living on the minimum wage can afford less. Economists believe the primary reason the wage gap expanded between middle- and low-wage women in the 1980s was the erosion in the minimum wage.

John Edwards-Our Plan for America , p. 22 Aug 10, 2004


• John Edwards Votes YES on adding sexual orientation to definition of hate crimes.
Motion to Invoke Cloture on S. 625; Local Law Enforcement Enhancement Act of 2001. The bill would expand the definition of hate crimes to incorporate acts committed because of a victim's sex, sexual orientation or disability and permit the federal government to help states prosecute hate crimes even if no federally protected action was implicated. If the cloture motion is agreed to, debate will be limited and a vote will occur. If the cloture motion is rejected debate could continue indefinitely and instead the bill is usually set aside. Hence a Yes vote supports the expansion of the definition of hate crimes, and a No vote keeps the existing definition. Three-fifths of the Senate, or 60 members, is required to invoke cloture.

Bill S.625 ; vote number 2002-147 on Jun 11, 2002


• Rated 100% by the AFL-CIO, indicating a pro-union voting record.

Edwards scores 100% by the AFL-CIO on union issues

As the federation of America’s unions, the AFL-CIO includes more than 13 million of America’s workers in 60 member unions working in virtually every part of the economy. The mission of the AFL-CIO is to improve the lives of working families to bring economic justice to the workplace and social justice to our nation. To accomplish this mission we will build and change the American labor movement.

The following ratings are based on the votes the organization considered most important; the numbers reflect the percentage of time the representative voted the organization's preferred position.

AFL-CIO website Dec 31, 2003


• Fair trade deals & closing corporate loopholes creates jobs
Good Jobs at Home. America has lost more than 2 million manufacturing jobs under George Bush. Edwards will create good jobs-negotiating only fair trade deals, closing loopholes for companies moving headquarters overseas, and creating tax breaks for companies that manufacture in America.

John Edwards-Real Solutions For America, Aug 6, 2003


• Son of a mill worker can beat son of a president
This election is about what kind of America we are. It's about what kind of America we want to be. It's about taking the power in our democracy out of the hands of that handful of insiders giving it back to the American people. I believe in an America where the family you're born into and the color of your skin should never control your destiny. I believe in an America where the son of a mill worker could actually beat the son of a president for the White House. That's the America I will fight for.

John Edwards-Congressional Black Caucus Institute debate Sep 9, 2003


• Career spent fighting for the working people
Q: People say you don't have the policy experience it takes to become president.

EDWARDS: First, what people are looking for in a president is someone who has the qualities of leadership: strength, character, conviction, good judgment. I'm happy to have people judge me on that basis.

Second, they want somebody who understands their lives. I come from a family where my dad worked in a mill. My mother worked in the post office. I was the first in my family to go to college, and I spent almost 20 years after I worked my way through college and then law school fighting for the same people that I had grown up with.

This is what I have done my entire life, fight for working people, the people I've known all my life. I did it first for 20 years as a lawyer and an advocate, and I've been doing it in the US Senate, and I will be a champion for those very same people in the White House. And the American people want somebody who will stand up for them and stand up to big corporate America.

John Edwards-Democratic Debate in Columbia SC May 3, 2003


So why am I supposed to be outraged at Edwards again?

[jgraz]

1. If only his hair had a gun, this would never have happened.

[Nutmegger]

2. Just another SMEAR tactic towards the candidate they perceive to be the strongest.

It's his house all over again. Who give a flying rat's ass? I sure as hell don't.

[JuniperLea]

3. That's all they have...

Petty junk.

[Mojorabbit]

4. Sorry

multimillionare uses donations to his campaign for personal grooming is not cool. If it was a repug I would say the same thing. There are plenty of people scraping and giving small donations for him to be elected. No.Not cool.

[Fresh_Start]

6. agree with you

its poor judgment

Its 'sense of entitlement'
Its appearance over substance
Its playing into his "hair stereotype"
Its hypocritical given his 'there are two Americas' speech

[Fresh_Start]

7. oh, and none of his competitors have done the same thing

so its not 'par for the course'

[Mojorabbit]

14. I dont' care

who else does it. I say the same for them. I scrimp to have my hair done four times a year. It costs a lot of money. But it is my money, not money raised for a campaign. Money I expect to be used for ads, etc.
And yes I have donated to his campaign.

[RiverStone]

16. Yes - very hypocritical

What's the saying - don't do as I say, do as I do.

His two America's speech resonates, yet; his actions simply suggest John can talk the talk, but does not walk the walk.

He is a personable guy - and I'd vote for John over any rethug - but compared to Clark or Obama or Kucinich, I see John as quite disingenuous. And on a personal level, he seems to flaunt his "rich" side without getting the impact.

I'm surprised a political adviser has not suggested John chill out!

[LisaL]

17. I would have to agree. If he were to spend his own money

on 400$ haircut it would be one thing. But campaign money? Is this how candidates normally spend money? On personal grooming?
It's not like the guy can't pay his own money for his own haircut, is it?

[Bjornsdotter]

5. We still don't know....

....boxers or briefs.

That pisses me off :evilgrin:

Cheers

[Cobalt Violet]

8. Don't know why.

I share your lack of outrage.

[ecstatic]

9. Are you rich too?

Maybe you can't relate to the shock a poor/working class family might feel after sacrificing to donate to Edward's campaign (based on Elizabeth Edward's pleas, etc.) only to find out that the money they sent couldn't even cover Edward's haircut. I doubt anyone who isn't a multimillionaire would donate again after hearing about this.

[John Q. Citizen]

10. I'm concerned with his IWR vote and his statements on Iran. I also don't

agree with his two tiered health care plan and the fact that it doesn't contain costs. Though I do give him credit for presenting a detailed plan.

The haircut thing is as unimportant as Kucinich debating on Fox, or Obama appearing on fox for an interview, or Kerry saying he didn't think Imus deserved to be fired. Very peripheral and not at all important for judging a candidate.

[goddess40]

11. wealthy people tend to lose touch with real everyday prices

that the rest of us have to pay - and I wonder if when they hear we pay $20-$30 for a haircut that's such a low price it must be affordable. I know Edwards knows better but he should be a little more careful because he knows the press is watching him.

[Telly Savalas]

12. .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vx2IRqBmW2Q

[Canuckistanian]

13. Haircuts and utility bills. That's all they've got.

Pitiful, really.

If this is all the "new conservative revolution" has, after 7 long years, then milk it for all it's worth.

Have a field day, if it makes you happy.

[jen4clark]

15. I guess it makes sense

Many of his supporters are fine with the fact that he voted for the Patriot Act, and co-sponsored the IWR, so why should we be surprised they're fine with a $400. haircut and a 28,000-square-foot house that cost $5.3 mil? I can't imagine there's anything he could/would do that would bother his fan club.

[AikidoSoul]

18. Love most of his policies... but hate his hair

I know, I know... hair stuff is soooo superficial. But knowing that doesn't help what kind of message his hair sends to those whose guts rule. He looks like he cares A LOT about his hair. If hairstyle is just a superficial consideration -- why does he look like his hair means so much to him? It's so FUSSY and CRAFTED!

People who put together trials in court know that certain clothes and hairstyles make jurors view a defendant in a certain way upon first impression. If the defense is well paid they usually work with an image consultant and work hard to get the client to present in a certain way.

There are books on this topic.

I wish Edwards would look more like he doesn't care that much about how he looks. In other words -- that he would appear to not be so freaking vain.

He looks prissy and fussy.

Flame awaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy................x( x( x( x( x( x( x( x(

[Gregorian]

19. Well, you've got company. Maybe it's us.

I don't like "slick".

But I like his policies. AND his big concepts, grace, and standards are growing on me.

I absolutely love his stance on the Fox debates.

But I'm pushed away by slickness.

I'm from California where we don't do slick. We put on blue jeans and do our thing. I wear the same clothes until they have rips and holes in them. The last time I had someone else cut my hair was over thirty years ago. The last time I wore a suit or a tie was at least twenty years ago. So to me, slick means attention focused on something that isn't important. But then, I'm "weird" by most standards. But I'm happy with the simplicity.

[Matsubara]

20. All those things you mention are all the more reason to be pissed.

First of all Edwards is a very good-looking man. He could get his shit done at Supercuts and look great.

Because he positions himself as a champion of working people, that's what he should have been doing.

This man has undoubtedly studied Bill Clinton, and should remember the mess caused by a pricey Christophe haircut.

But most of all, it's the amount of potential that might be wasted by such a silly, but symbolic error that pisses me off the most. He IS a great candidate.

I wish it had been Hillary getting the overpriced cuts.

[Fresh_Start]

22. It was stupid

its not going to be a cakewalk in 2008.
You can't surrender an inch.
He's just enabled labelling him as a spendthrift, hypocrite, vain person who has nothing in common with the people he pretends to speak for.

[Clarkie1]

21. He's good with words. So what? nt

[Prophet 451]

23. Know what annoys me about his haircut?

The fact he looks like a game-show host.

That said, I'm supporting Kucinich so obviously I'm not that bothered by how a candidate looks.

[Prophet 451]

24. self-delete, dupe