Elizabeth Edwards took the stage at the Personal Democracy Forum today virtually - via Skype. As her flight was cancelled at the last minute, she was unable to make her in-person slot for us or "Good Morning America" so she did them both from home. As I watched the program - questions from PDF cofounder Andrew Rasiej directed to Elizabeth, who was projected on a huge screen in the theatre at Lincoln Center's Rose Hall - I wanted to go up and give her a big virtual hug from all of us at the MOMocrats and the Silicon Valley Moms Blog & sister sites, but since it was no easier to do from that venue than this one, I decided it was better done from here. (It was the request everyone made when I said I was "going to see Elizabeth Edwards at PDF". They said "give her a hug for me!")
So here, Elizabeth, is a big virtual [**HUG**] from all of us, along with an official invitation to blog here any time you like. One of the apropos questions Rasiej asked of Elizabeth during the program (sorry, I just can't use her last name in this forum - seems too formal) was about what she was going to do next with "her constituency" and she, of course, replied that she would like to liveblog more and cross post more about policy issues important to her. So since I couldn't just stand up and yell to her that she could blog for us any time since she would have caught every third word, we're asking here. Please, pretty please!
To be truthful, yes, I could have gotten up to ask a question, but after 2 of the last 3 nights with 2 hours of sleep from jet lag and toddler panicking, I was fried. I didn't know what to ask that other people hadn't already asked and I felt like I had already had the opportunity to meet in person with her three times, so I'd let someone else ask the questions this time. But I did feel like she would want to know we were represented there. The moms do care about the state of technology and its uses in politics and government! And when I told the rest of the MOMocrats about this conference, more of them wanted to come. It was too late to plan it. So next year, we'll bring a group and we'll all hug Elizabeth in person and hopefully celebrate Obama's victory together.
I was bummed that I missed John Edwards's cameo appearance on the Skype presentation since I had to go out into the mezzanine to send an important email message due to poor net connectivity (yeah, for a bunch of tech politics people - not good), but supposedly he stopped in to say hello to the crowd. But the poignant moment that I did catch was when Rasiej described Elizabeth as "the one figure who really understands it" in terms of all of the candidates and their families. The audience applauded in kind appreciation. It really was a great moment to witness - people who have really made online politics what it is today cheering for her achievements in this area. I wish she could have been there to see it in person.
Other key points from the discussion:
Elizabeth was asked about old vs. new media (I'm paraphrasing) re: her Times article and she said "It's a mixed bag, but by and large, the Internet is ahead," meaning it's more fair, I believe. In terms of access to speaking up. She noted how some policy issues are stickier than others and the mainstream media gives them equal air time whereas sometimes you just need more words to talk about the issues, which new media allows.
She was skeptical of the latest Pew numbers in terms of believing that there is still a great digital divide. She doesn't think nearly 50% of American adults really are online. She said "for a lot of people, the digital divide looks like the Grand Canyon to them - they don't know how to get across." Good example, I thought.
In terms of how long it will take technology to really make an impact on how we govern, she said she felt it would take time for the next generation to become more involved and in addition to time, she shared her understanding of the money it would take to bring more people online as well. She said the Internet was a "great place for John to find people" to help with his campaign.
When asked about what happened to Amanda Marcotte when she didn't work out as a blogger for the Edwards camp, Elizabeth said "I really regret that these women paid a personal price." (I apologize if I missed a word here or there - I was typing on my cell phone because my laptop was useless at that point.) And in terms of Obama's choice on campaign financing, she said she thinks voters care less about that than they do about flip-flopping like McCain has in terms of key issues like offshore drilling.
Asked about lists and what they will do with John's list, she said "we hope to continue doing OneCorps." And regarding whether Obama's list of supporters will be able to hold him accountable if he becomes president, she said "I hope so." She said she hopes he can use the email lists properly to address issues individually to representative constituencies and not just as a "self enclosed echo chamber." Referring to Bush and others, she said "our leaders of the past have chosen to use those lists for political capital only." She criticized Bush for using his capital from the tragedy of 911 for himself vs. to achieve something for the people.
"Politicians are not as easy to train as we'd like them to be in terms of correcting past errors," she said, referring to Bill Clinton and Elliot Spitzer and how politicians need to get used to being under a microscope all the time. And as to working with Obama as an adviser on healthcare, she said she's really excited. She said if she could give him a piece of advice, it would be to share his personal stories with people about how he became engaged in politics and to open up about that. And she said she believes "his immense energy is going to be useful to him in the coming months," but she cautioned against becoming overconfident he will win. "Even I am getting inflammatory anti-Obama emails," she said, emphasizing that he is by no means assured of winning.
Cross posted from the Silicon Valley Moms Blog by Sarah Granger.
Go Elizabeth! She really is such a terrific role model. Maybe she should be the VP candidate...?
Posted by: Scheherazade Khan | June 23, 2008 at 06:21 PM
I live in North Carolina, just a couple miles away from where the Edwards family used to live. It strikes me as such a shame that our state has not embraced Elizabeth for the amazing woman she is. What a role model, citizen, mother, overall power house! Instead everyone hails Elizabeth Dole. They totally have their Elizabeths wrong around here!
Posted by: ilinap | June 24, 2008 at 06:07 AM
ilinap - The Edwards family needs to move up here to Virginia. We'd appreciate her!
Sarah - I'm so incredibly jealous of your chance to attend this conference. Next year, for sure!
Posted by: Lawyer Mama | June 24, 2008 at 11:09 AM