Elizabeth Edwards

So it has come to pass that Elizabeth Edwards has died.

Despite having more things thrown at her than anyone I’ve ever had the chance to support in my entire political life, she managed to represent, in her very presence, a sense of grace and kindness and concern for those who were looking to have a better life than the one they had now, and I don’t know that I could ever live up to the quiet courage she showed as her life came to an end.

And, bless her heart, it appears that she took the time to make sure that her kids knew her, and that she helped them put away enough “past” to, hopefully, ease some of the pain of the future.

But now the time has come to look beyond death, and, John...that’s why I want to talk to you today.

When hatred comes to town:

Westboro Baptist Church, a group with a history of staging protests at funerals and issuing anti-gay statements, is planning to picket the Saturday funeral of Elizabeth Edwards.

The group came into the national spotlight when members picketed the funeral of Matthew Shepard, a young man from Wyoming who was beaten to death by two men because of his homosexuality. Westboro has protested at the funerals of soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan

I was going to say, "Why don't they just go ahead and drink the Kool Aid?", but that would be in poor taste, so I'm not gonna go there.

Elizabeth penned a column for Newsweek that was published on its website this afternoon. Her thoughts are candid, especially when Elizabeth shared her vulnerability with readers this way:

And when he died, I cried. I know I cried not just for him, but-filled with fear-for myself as well. The diagnoses of our cancer recurrences ("recurrences" being one of those misnomers we simply endure) tumbled out upon one another by days, and I felt-and feel- connected to a man who loved what I loved, although we came to nearly every argument from opposite corners of the ring.

A little more after the jump

The Medicare vote in the Senate this week, highlighted by Ted Kennedy's triumphant return, was encouraging for proponents of universal health coverage. At least, that's how Paul Krugman sees it (and I agree):

No, John Edwards is not raising money to stop poverty by performing marriage ceremonies, but he did influence me, and his advice directly led to me meeting my wife.

At his homecoming rally in December of 2006 John Edwards told us -

"don't wait for the next president to be elected to do something, get involved now"

So I got involved. I organized for Edwards in Colorado and started making connections with people and later, when he asked us, I went to protest Bush's vetoed war funding bill on May 2nd 2006 at our state capitol in Colorado. As luck (or fate) would have it, I ran into someone (the Coach) who I had spoken to once, a year earlier, who offered me my own radio show slot in the Denver market. (with zero experience)
And as luck (or fate) would have it, I had heard John and Elizabeth Edwards talk about the importance of Unions as the backbone of the middle class, so I started reaching out to local unions and union supporters...
(keep reading, I swear there is a wedding in here)

North Carolina's own Elizabeth Edwards has teamed up with with MoveOn.Org and Emily’s List to promote electing more women to Congress.

In an email sent today, Elizabeth writes:

Health care is an issue that is really close to my heart. And I know it matters to a lot of Americans, particularly mothers. But time and again, Republicans have blocked progress on expanding health care—most recently the expansion of the children's health insurance program—and on so many other important issues.

That's why we need to elect more progressive women in Congress in 2008, to stand with President Obama on healthcare and other key issues.

Barack Obama kicked off his general election campaign in Raleigh, NC on Monday, an indication that North Carolina will be a targeted state in the fall. Obama delivered a major speech on the economy at the NC Fairgrounds, marking the beginning of a two-week tour through the state, focusing on Economic Policy.

During his speech, Obama went into full general election mode, launching a direct hit on McCain’s Economic policy, calling it a “full throated endorsement of Bush’s Policies.”

Obama Slams McCain's Economic Policy

As today marked the 30th anniversary of the “War on Cancer,” Elizabeth Edwards and Lance Armstrong appeared at a US Senate Committee Panel to push for a renewed fight against cancer.

Elizabeth Edwards, one of the nation’s most outspoken and effective advocates for universal healthcare coverage, takes this issue very personally. A survivor of breast cancer, Elizabeth told a panel led by Senator Ted Kennedy, “…we’ve chosen as a nation to turn our backs on some of us who have the disease. I urge you to reform health care responsibly, morally, and aggressively.”

Elizabeth Edwards Calls Racist GOP Wright Ad an “Assault Weapon”

Taking time off from her family vacation in Florida, Elizabeth Edwards commented on the GOP racist ad, “Extreme,” during an MSNBC interview, calling it an “assault weapon.” Elizabeth went on to support Obama’s decision to separate himself from Reverend Wright.

Watch the interview here: