Me and John Edwards and possibly the longest post in the history of Coloradolib

I know what everybody out there is wondering.

What did I do today before I had lunch?

I sat in a conference room at the new Hyatt with former vice presidential nominee and 2008 frontrunner Senator John Edwards.

Who was there besides me and the Senator?

Writers from Square State, ColoradoPols, Dave Cullen, Colorado Confidential and Talk Left. And activists from Progressive Majority and Progress Now Action, who arranged the whole thing and I will love 'em forever for it.

The question I didn't ask the Senator.

Is Amanda Congdon super-hot in person?

The question I did ask the Senator.

"When I saw you speak in March, you advocated integrating neighborhoods by economic class. Um, can you, uh, explain that?"

What the Senator answered.

Edwards was sitting directly to my left and it was a real experience to have him turn, look me square in the eye, and describe one of his most controversial ideas. It involves a restructuring of HUD and the nation's housing voucher system to give people more choice and local governments more control. In America today, education and capital are mobile. If we give people the ability to migrate to the neighborhoods they choose, we can give technicians and laborers the same advantages that knowledge workers and the creative class currently enjoy.

Want to read more about that?

Go for it.

What else did we talk about?

Edwards rebuffed questions about political campaigns and talking points. He wanted to talk policy.

The conversation initially focused on social issues. The President has bought a tenuous recovery by running up a gigantic deficit while cutting taxes for the wealthiest Americans. The result has been a system where the GDP and Dow increase while wages drop or remain stagnant. Is there a solution or are we screwed?

Edwards offered three goals our country needs to pursue to right the economy. A war on poverty. A change in the energy dynamic. And a universal healthcare system. In fact, he said he is hard at work on a proposal that will guarantee efficient, economical healthcare for all Americans. Since Edwards had just proposed increasing the use of housing vouchers to help fight poverty in America, I wonder if his healthcare system might use them the same way, like a plan I saw in The Washington Monthly.

Edwards also talked terrorism. He managed to dig himself a bit of a hole as he tried to split the difference between legalizing torture and giving future presidents the tools to protect America. He pointed out that the Military Commission Act, Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib have lessened America's moral authority. But he refused to rule out the use of aggressive interrogation tactics in extreme circumstances. It wasn't the answer the crowd wanted, and we discussed it for a long time after Edwards left without reaching any consensus.

But to me, the exchange was a clear indication that Edwards is planning a White House run in 2008. It seems like he has thought through the shades of gray a President might face.

Who else is writing about the roundtable?

Probably all the bloggers I mentioned up top. Knock yourself out.

Where can you buy Elizabeth Edwards' book?

It's on Amazon.

Where did I eat lunch afterwards?

At the Appaloosa Grill with five other bloggers. We discussed what we'd heard; the idea that if we all linked to each other, none of us would actually need to spend time writing about the event; and whether Bill Winter will destroy Tom Tancredo or merely whup him. Were we being overly optimistic about the CD6 race? Maybe. Hanging out with John Edwards will do that to you. His charisma is legendary. But his optimism is what I find most appealing. Edwards believes in America. He's apparently devoid of cynicism or guile.

So, like, Edwards in '08, then?

Yeah, probably. Let's get through '06 first.

Photo courtesy of Progress Now Action.