Reply #5: Even if you assume Edwards's words have zero weight and zero substance behind them

[jpgray]

He at least says things that need to be said as often as possible. Like this, for example:

The truth is our economy is only growing at the top. Forty percent of the economic growth over the past 20 years has gone to the top one percent of American families. Middle-class incomes have stagnated for the past seven years. Families are working longer hours, but finding it harder to get by. And for the 37 million Americans living in poverty, things are only getting worse.

But not everyone is struggling. In corporate America, where a broader sense of social responsibility once held sway, a culture of greed has taken over. Instead of treating their employees fairly, being accountable to their shareholders and contributing to America’s prosperity, CEOs are acting like their corporations exist primarily to build their own massive fortunes.

In 1960, the average CEO made 41 times what the average worker made. But in 2005, the average CEO made over 400 times the average worker salary. The share of corporate profits going to CEO pay has doubled since the 1990s. Meanwhile, the value of the minimum wage has plummeted 30 percent since 1979.

http://www.johnedwards.com/news/speeches/20071026-social-compact/

I can't claim with any certainty that he honestly represents those values, or that he did so in the Senate. But it's good that he expressed them, at least, and gets the facts of social injustice out there.