Pledging to ask Americans to "take action and responsibility" without waiting for Election Day, former North Carolina senator and 2004 Vice Presidential candidate John Edwards announced his intention to once again seek the Democratic nomination for the presidency in 2008.
From New Orleans' Hurricane Katrina-ravaged Ninth Ward, the former senator made the rounds on morning talk shows today. The appearances came after his campaign website accidentally went live yesterday, preempting his planned announcement.
Emphasizing service to his country and Americans taking action on their own, Edwards told CBS News's Early Show his campaign would be different from 2004. "I've learned since the last campaign that it's great to identify a problem ... but the way you change things is by taking action."
The Iraq war loomed heavily over Edwards' announcement. He repeatedly stated that the idea of a "surge" of troops in Iraq was a "huge mistake" and that the US needed to make it clear to Iraqis they would not be staying in their country much longer.
But more than just criticizing the administration, Edwards appeared to be taking early aim at a Republican candidate he expected to be pursuing the presidency. "We need to reject this McCain doctrine of surging troops and escalating the war in Iraq," Edwards said in a video released on his website on Thursday night.
On ABC News Edwards was questioned about his change of heart on the Iraq war. He said that unlike the president, he was willing to admit he was in error and be open with the American people. And, he questioned the notion that his lack of foreign policy credentials remained a problem.
"I've spent about half of my time overseas," he told NBC's Matt Lauer, which he said added depth and maturity to his view of the world. But he also said that the foreign policy experience evident in George W. Bush's White House, especially in the persons of ex-Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Vice President Dick Cheney, did not offer the "real vision" and "capacity to adapt to a changing world" that was needed in America's foreign policy.
Beyond Iraq, Edwards' campaign promoted other principles behind his run for office: strengthening the middle class and ending poverty; guaranteeing universal health care for every American; leading the fight against global warming; and, reducing the dependence on oil by America and other countries.
CBS detailed some of Edwards' strategy and next moves. He has been building ties to labor and key Democratic activists and recruiting a strong campaign staff. After Louisiana, he will also travel to Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, South Carolina and his home state of North Carolina to make announcements of his candidacy.
During his appearance on NBC News, Edwards said that any talk of accepting Senator Hillary Clinton as a vice presidential candidate, a sly attempt by Lauer to get around the usual question of whether Edwards would accept another run in the number two post, was "way too far down the road."
Pledging to ask Americans to "take action and responsibility" without waiting for Election Day, former North Carolina senator and 2004 Vice Presidential candidate John Edwards announced his intention to once again seek the Democratic nomination for the presidency in 2008.