John Edwards Return to Candidate Profile Page »

Do you have a plan to make health care more accessible to Americans? If so, how would you do it?

Yes. We have two health care systems in America. People who can afford it get the best care in the world. But most families, even the ones who have insurance, are one bad break - a lost job or health crisis - away from going right off a cliff. Forty-seven million Americans are uninsured. And even among those who have insurance, 43 percent are not well prepared to cope with a costly medical emergency. I was proud to be the first major presidential candidate to propose a specific plan to guarantee truly universal health care for every man, woman and child in America. My plan takes on big insurance and drug companies, which we need to do to get the change we want, and is paid for by repealing the Bush tax cuts for families making more than $200,000 a year. Under my plan, businesses will either cover their employees or help pay their premiums. The government will make insurance affordable through new tax credits and by leading the way toward more cost-effective care. New Health Care Markets will give families and businesses purchasing power and a choice of quality plans, including one public plan. Finally, once these steps have been taken, all American residents will be required to take responsibility and get insurance. Because the system offers Americans the choice of public insurance, over time it may evolve toward a single-payer approach. Families without insurance will get it at an affordable price. Families that have insurance today will pay less and get more security and choices. Employers will find it cheaper and easier to insure their workers. I have proposed steps that will save an average family $2,000 to $2,500 a year and eliminate at least $130 billion a year in wasteful health care spending. One important way to help bring down costs is to help people get and stay healthy through preventive services and chronic care management. My plan provides preventive and chronic care with no deductible and little or no co-payments. I will also identify and encourage the most cost-effective treatments and take on abuses in the insurance and pharmaceutical industries.

Social Security is one of the most successful government programs in history. It lifts 13 million senior citizens out of poverty every year and allows Americans to retire with dignity. I am committed to protecting retirement benefits for working Americans. I strongly oppose President Bush's efforts to privatize Social Security. Private accounts would cut guaranteed benefits, risk individuals' Social Security funds in the stock market, and hasten the day that Social Security Trust Fund is exhausted.

Ultimately, we cannot solve Social Security without a package of reforms that earns the support of both Democrats and Republicans. Like the Greenspan commission appointed in 1981 - when the trust fund had only two years left - any solution should be non-ideological, strongly bipartisan, and committed to the goals of ensuring every American can retire with dignity and extending the life of the Trust Fund. I also support reforms to the Social Security programs that help people with disabilities and help empower beneficiaries to find work. Supplemental Security Income and Social Security Disability Income (SSDI) should not be all-or-nothing propositions. SSDI should permit beneficiaries to accumulate more assets without losing all benefits. I also believe we can provide incentives for SSDI recipients to earn reasonable income without losing Medicare and all supplemental income benefits. By doing so, we can promote economic opportunities for people with disabilities as well as strengthen the Social Security system.

Do you support setting a deadline for either a withdrawal or a partial pullback of troops from Iraq? If so, what would be the date of that deadline?

We should immediately draw down 40,000-50,000 troops and completely withdraw all combat troops in Iraq within about a year. After withdrawal, we should retain sufficient forces in the region to contain the conflict and ensure that instability in Iraq does not spill over into other countries, creating a regional war, a terrorist haven or genocide. There is no military solution to the chaos in Iraq. Instead, the Iraqi people must solve the problem politically by taking responsibility for their country. By leaving Iraq, America will induce the Iraqi people, regional powers, and the entire international community to find the political solution that will end the sectarian violence and create a stable Iraq.

What distinguishes your plan for Iraq from those of the other candidates?

I am the only candidate who supports an immediate withdrawal of 40,000-50,000 troops. I believe this step is necessary to trigger Iraqis and regional powers to find a political solution, which is the only way to resolve the situation. We must show the Iraqis we are serious about leaving by actually starting to leave. I also believe Congress should stand strong against President Bush and send him a bill funding the troops that includes a timetable for withdrawal. If he vetoes it, it should send it to him over and over again, until he agrees to change the course of this disastrous war.

What would be your top three national security priorities if you were elected?

The first thing we need to do is end the war in Iraq. We don't need debate; we don't need non-binding resolutions; we need to end this war. We must also keep America safe. We must confront terrorists with the full force of our military might. As commander-in-chief, I will never hesitate to do everything in my power to protect Americans and our allies, to root out terrorist cells, and to strike swiftly and strongly against those who would do us harm. And we must stay on the offensive against both terrorism and its root causes-the poverty that provides a safe harbor for instability, extremism, and terrorism. As president, I will promote global primary education, clean drinking water, the protection of democratic rights, and economic opportunity. Third, we must stop nuclear proliferation. In working toward the goal of a nuclear-free world, the U.S. must lead the effort to strengthen international tools to fight proliferation, not cast them aside. The rules and institutions we rely on to stymie and isolate bad actors, while providing strong leverage and instruments for measuring progress, are increasingly riddled with loopholes and gaps. We should create a new Global Nuclear Compact to replace the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT), which would support peaceful nuclear programs, improve security for existing stocks of nuclear materials, and ensure more frequent verification that materials are not being diverted and facilities are not being misused. We must also halt the trade of the most dangerous technologies by the most dangerous states and increase the amount of money we spend on cooperative threat reduction programs for former Soviet Union states. Finally, we should strengthen our nation's capacity to identify and respond to WMD threats by reforming the ways the U.S. government collects and analyzes intelligence and by giving the intelligence community the resources it needs.

What types of regulations and guidelines do you plan on implementing or promoting in order to deal with climate change and to make our country less oil dependent?

Our generation must be the one that says, 'We must halt global warming.' If we don't act now, it will be too late. Our generation must be the one that says 'yes' to alternative, renewable fuels and ends forever our dependence on foreign oil. Our generation must be the one that accepts responsibility for conserving natural resources and demands the tools to do it. It won't be easy, but it is time we had a president who asks the American people to be patriotic about something other than war. To achieve energy independence and halt global warming, I will cap the emission of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases starting in 2010 to reduce emissions by 20 percent by 2020 and by 80 percent by 2050. Because all nations must join the effort, I will share clean energy technology with cooperating nations and, if necessary, require minimum climate-change commitments in our trade deals. Renewable energy like wind, solar power, biomass and ethanol are cleaner and often cheaper than traditional sources of energy. I will require their use to generate 25 percent of the nation's electricity by 2025, expand the use of biofuels in cars, and invest more resources in researching and encouraging these clean forms of energy. I will require all new coal plants to be able to capture and store their carbon emissions and invest $1 billion a year in perfecting this technology. To cut oil imports by 7.5 million barrels a day by 2025, I will promote improvements in fuel economy, ethanol use, and hybrid cars. I will raise fuel economy standards to 40 miles per gallon by 2016 and will invest $1 billion a year in helping U.S. automakers advance and apply the latest technology. Finally, saving energy is often cheaper and cleaner than producing more of it. I will propose a national goal of freezing our electricity use for a decade and reform the power companies, utilities, and building codes to get there.

Should the government have a role in encouraging development of energy efficient technologies and sustainable energy resources? If yes, how would you do it?

Yes. With leadership, we can emerge from the crisis of global warming with a new energy economy that embraces innovation and creates more than 1 million jobs. Energy technology can create an economic boom across the nation, including clean tech investments from Silicon Valley, jobs in renewable energy in rural America, and a revitalized manufacturing base and 'green-collar' jobs. I will create a $13 billion a year New Energy Economy Fund to invest in renewable energy and energy-efficient technology. The Fund will be financed by charging greenhouse gas polluters for emission permits and repealing subsidies for big oil companies. I will also open the electricity grid to competition. Thousands of smaller producers of electricity could spark innovation and generate cleaner, cheaper, and more reliable power. I will support local renewable power and require utilities to buy it from homes and entrepreneurs.

How do you think the United States should handle illegal immigrants? Do you support President Bush's immigration plan?

Immigration is central to the story of America, but today our immigration system needs a fundamental overhaul. Our security is threatened by borders we cannot control. Our economy is harmed by an underground economy featuring a large and unprotected labor force. And our values are violated when over 12 million people live in the shadows of our society, vulnerable to abuse and fearful of deportation. The first step in overhauling the immigration system is to secure our borders and stop illegal trafficking. We need to increase the number of border patrol agents and invest in surveillance technology to police the borders. We also need to crack down on employers that employ undocumented immigrants and, in some cases, abuse their workers. It is unrealistic to think that we can deport more than 12 million people. People who are already here should have the opportunity to earn American citizenship if they do not have a criminal record, pay a fine in recognition that they came here illegally, and learn English-the surest path to success in this country. America is a land of equals, not a land of first-class citizens and second-class laborers. I oppose new temporary guest worker programs that do not provide adequate workplace protections and a reasonable path to citizenship. If we invite you to work in America, we should invite you to become an American with all the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.

What are your top three priorities with regard to immigration?

We need to get control of our borders, create a fair path to earned citizenship that requires paying a fine and learning English, and crack down on employers that knowingly violate the law and often abuse their workers.

Do you support affirmative action? If you do, why do you think it is a benefit to our country? If not, what do you think would be gained by changing or eliminating it?

I strongly support it. In 2004, I signed an amicus brief in the University of Michigan affirmative action case. I hope a time will come when it isn't necessary any longer. But we're not there yet. We still need affirmative action to address the lasting effects of discrimination and to make sure we have diversity -- a source of strength and pride -- across America. At the same time, we need to take other steps to create opportunity and move closer to the day when affirmative action is no longer necessary.

Do you agree or disagree with the argument that only the wealthiest Americans are benefiting from the current economic growth? Why or why not?

Unfortunately, it is largely true that current economic policies have led Americans to grow apart. Over the past 20 years, 40 percent of the economic growth has gone to the top 1 percent. In 2006, incomes rose only because families are working longer hours. Despite living in the land of opportunity, most families' incomes have stagnated for the past generation. Globalization and technological change have fundamentally altered our economy. Men in their thirties today earn less in real terms than men of their fathers' generation did 30 years ago, requiring families to work harder to make any progress. In so many ways, we have Two Americas. One America that lives week to week; another that never has to look at the calendar before writing a check. One America that's afraid it won't be able to leave its children a better life; another whose children are already set for life. One America - middle-class America - long forgotten by Washington; and another America - narrow-interest America - whose every wish is Washington's command. Corporate interests have never been stronger than they are in Washington today. Drug and insurance companies write our health care laws, oil companies and power utilities write our energy laws and big banks write our lending laws. It's no coincidence that regular families are finding it harder to get ahead.

What are the three most important things you would do to promote economic growth and prosperity?

To make sure Americans enjoy shared prosperity, we need to reform our health care system to guarantee universal coverage and reduce costs. We need to reform the tax code to value work, not just wealth. And we must spur innovation and education that will drive our economy. No single step is more important to ensure the security, shared prosperity, and dignity of every American family than true universal health care. In a country as rich as America, no one should have to live a life that is shorter and less healthy because they cannot buy insurance. Health care reform will also bring down health costs, helping American businesses and workers compete. The cost of caring for the uninsured adds $922 to an average family policy. My plan for reform will also promote cost-effective treatments such as primary, preventive, and chronic care. Our tax code is full of special shelters, loopholes, and benefits for wealthy Americans but not regular families. For example, the wealthiest investors in America pay only 15 percent on their investment income, far less than what regular families pay on their wages. I will restore fairness to the tax code by repealing George Bush's tax cuts for families making more than $200,000 a year, restoring the top capital gains rate to 28 percent, and closing abusive tax loopholes. At the same time, I will make permanent the middle-class tax relief and provide new tax breaks for middle-class work, savings, and families. To spur innovation, I will invest in a new energy economy based on efficiency and renewable fuels. I will increase spending on basic research at the National Science Foundation and National Institutes of Health and lift stifling research restrictions on stem cells. To restore America's leadership in math and science education, I will invest more in teacher pay and training to attract good teachers in the schools and subjects where we need them most. I will make the Research and Experimentation tax credit permanent.

If elected, would you balance the budget? If you answered yes, how soon would you do it?

Our country is facing great challenges, and there are large investments we need to make to meet those challenges. We need to provide true universal health care, stop global warming and build the new energy economy, and invest in education. Making these investments in our future is more important than balancing the budget. We can pay for these new investments and still reduce the deficit if we are honest about the choices we face. As president, I will repeal the Bush tax cuts for families making more than $200,000 a year, collect unpaid taxes, close abusive tax loopholes and cut wasteful spending. We do need to address our long-term budget problems. Because they are principally caused by skyrocketing health care costs, I will reform our health care system to achieve better care at lower cost. For example, I will emphasize preventive and chronic care that can promote health and reduce costs, and I will take on abuses in the insurance and pharmaceutical industries.

Would you roll back tax cuts that were supported by the Bush administration?

I will repeal the unfair Bush tax cuts for families making more than $200,000 a year, while making them permanent and passing additional tax cuts for working families. Making investments in energy, health care, and a lower deficit will do far more for economic growth than Bush's regressive tax giveaways. To ensure that the wealthiest Americans are paying their fair share of taxes and to reduce the economic distortions from tax shelters resulting from large capital gains preferences, I will raise the top tax rate on long-term capital gains to 28 percent for the most fortunate taxpayers-- the same rate signed into law by President Reagan. The 28 percent rate will ensure that high-income investors will pay taxes on their investment income at a rate similar to what regular families pay on their earned income. They will also allow new tax cuts on middle-class families' wages, retirement savings, and child care. I will also eliminate estate taxes for the middle class, small business owners and family farmers, while keeping these taxes on the few families with large estates above $4 million in value.

Do you support the No Child Left Behind program? Why or why not?

The high standards and accountability for results of No Child Left Behind can help us strengthen our schools. It should be a national priority to close the achievement gap that holds back children of color or living in poverty. However, much of the law needs to be overhauled. First, it is a fantasy to say that we can reach the law's goals without more resources. All students can reach grade level, but it won't be easy. Funding for the law now falls $15 billion short. When we ask more from our schools, we also need to invest more in them to recruit and pay excellent teachers, reduce class sizes, and expand preschool programs. Second, the accountability provisions are often illogical and arbitrary, and they can have damaging effects in the classroom. For example, they only ask how many children score above a certain point on reading and math tests. A school that makes great strides helping struggling children is considered failing, while a school with a high dropout rate could be considered successful if the remaining students score well. Third, the law punishes schools it considers 'failing,' rather than developing smarter strategies to lift up struggling schools. It should also invest much more in recruiting and rewarding teachers, who are the most important of any school and the most important factor in students' achievement. Finally, the law has required many schools to pay for tutoring for their students. These 'supplemental educational services' have proven to be a bonanza for for-profit firms. These tutoring services should be held accountable for their performance, like other parts of the education system, and should be offered with qualified teachers.

What changes, if any, would you attempt to implement in national education policy?

Nearly 50 years after Brown v. Board of Education, we still have two school systems, in fact if not in law, and they are separate and unequal. Our best public schools are among the best in the world, but the state of many of our schools is a shame of our nation. The circumstances of your birth can still hold you back from going as far as your God-given talents and hard work will take you. There is no shortage of work to be done to change this. We need to expand preschool for three- and four-year-olds. We need a serious, sustained effort to turn around failing schools. We should invest in our teachers, the most important part of any school. We need to do more to recruit them, train them, and pay them, particularly in math and science and other places where there are teacher shortages. We also need to address the dropout crisis. Many dropouts realize dropping out was a mistake. America is about second chances, so I don't see why we shouldn't have 'second-chance schools' to lift up former dropouts, offering them one-on-one attention and a chance to earn a diploma at night or at a local community college. Finally, we need to make college more affordable. I have a plan to pay for one year of public-college tuition, fees, and books for every young person in America willing to work hard. Students will be required to work part-time in college, take a college-prep curriculum in high school, and stay out of trouble.

What is your position on the proposed constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman?

I oppose divisive Constitutional amendments to ban same-sex marriages. I believe that the right president could lead the country toward consensus around equal rights and benefits for all couples in committed, long-term relationships.

What is your position on civil unions between same sex partners?

I believe that all couples in committed, long-term relationships should have the same rights, benefits, and responsibilities, whether they are straight couples or same-sex couples. I support civil unions to guarantee gay and lesbian couples the same rights as straight couples, including inheritance rights, hospital visitation rights, equal pension and health care benefits, and all of the 1,100 other legal protections government affords married couples. I also support the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act provision that prevents the federal government from recognizing same-sex relationships.

Do you support the Roe v. Wade decision or would you like to see this decision overturned? Why or why not?

I strongly support a woman's constitutional right to choose, recognized by Roe v. Wade. The decision about whether to become a mother is one of the most important life decisions that a woman can face. She should make it with her family, her doctor, and in the context of her religious and ethical values; government and politicians should not make the decision for her. As president, I will protect and defend the right to choose and reverse the damage that has been done by President Bush's anti-choice agenda.

Should the federal government have a role in seeking an end to poverty? What would you do, specifically, to deal with poverty?

The federal government not only can seek an end to poverty-it must end it. I have a plan to cut poverty by a third in a decade and end it within 30 years. 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, not just wealth. Together we can build One America - a place where everyone has a fair shot at the American Dream. To create One America where everyone's hard work is rewarded and families can build a better life, we need to raise the minimum wage, strengthen workers' right to organize, help low-income families find work, and fight abusive debt practices. I will set a national goal of a minimum wage that equals half the average wage. I will raise the minimum wage by 75 cents a year until it reaches $9.50 in 2012. I 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. Unions are essential to building the future middle class but the right to choose a union is poorly enforced, full of loopholes, and routinely violated by employers. I will enact the Employee Free Choice Act, vigorously enforce labor laws and ban the use of permanent replacements for striking workers. To help low-income families join the middle class, I will cut taxes on low-income workers by expanding the earned income tax credit for single workers and reducing its marriage penalty. I will also create 1 million Stepping Stone jobs to help people struggling to gain skills and work experience. Rather than concentrating housing in high-poverty neighborhoods far from opportunity, I will expand the availability of affordable housing near good jobs. Finally, I will crack down on abusive credit card companies, predatory mortgage lenders, and payday loan shops that take advantage of working families. I will create a new Family Savings and Credit Commission to protect consumers. The Commission will review all financial services products marketed to families, from six-figure exotic mortgages to $30 bank overdraft charges. It will ensure that terms are reasonable and fairly disclosed and oversee all types of financial institutions, whether chartered under federal or state law.

Do you think gun control has an impact on crime rates in the United States?

In areas throughout the United States, owning a gun is part of a way of life. I respect that way of life, and I believe the Second Amendment protects it. But we have all seen the terrible consequences when guns fall into the wrong hands, and we must do more to keep guns out of the hands of criminals and other people who may pose a danger to themselves or others.

Do you think tighter restrictions should be in place for those buying a firearm?

I grew up in a small town where many families owned guns, and I hunted when I was young. I respect that way of life and I respect the Second Amendment, but at the same time, I support renewing the assault weapons ban, strengthening the system of background checks on gun sales, and tracing guns used in crimes so we can make our streets and communities safer. We can and must do two things at once: protect gun rights and stop gun crimes.

If elected, would you keep the current ban on funding for embryonic stem cell research in place? Why or why not?

Stem cell research holds great promise for medical breakthroughs that could provide millions of Americans with treatments and cures for a wide range of diseases. I will lift the stifling restrictions that President Bush imposed and provide additional federal funding for responsible embryonic stem cell research, while maintaining strict ethical limits against human cloning. Stem cell research is not just another political issue. It is a moral issue, and where you stand is a test of moral leadership. As president, I will direct the full force of American scientific ingenuity towards developing cures for diseases that afflict millions of our fellow citizens.

What would be your top three overall priorities if elected?

When I began this campaign, I named four priorities for America: true universal health care, ending the war in Iraq, eliminating poverty, and halting global warming. We must re-establish America's leadership role in the world, and the place to start is Iraq. We have to show that we have the moral authority to lead because you can't lead through raw power. Iraq demands a political solution, not a military solution. I will immediately withdraw 40,000 to 50,000 American combat troops, with the rest to follow within about a year, to demonstrate to the Iraqis that they must take responsibility for their own country. Our health care system is a disgrace. 47 million don't have health insurance and 40 percent of Americans who do have insurance say their coverage is inadequate. We desperately need true universal health care that covers every single American while bringing down costs and improving care. How we respond to the fact that 37 million among us live in poverty says everything about the character of America. We must end poverty within a generation, and we can do it with an ambitious agenda to reward work, create opportunity, and strengthen families. I believe that we must halt climate change. Global warming is a crisis that could fundamentally change our plan, creating hundreds of millions of deaths and starvation. However, capping and reducing greenhouse gas pollution and investing in renewable energies like wind, solar, and biofuels can stop global warming while revitalizing our economy.