{"id":74336,"date":"2008-11-04T14:38:35","date_gmt":"2008-11-04T19:38:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/beta.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/2008\/11\/04\/religion-and-politics-08-john-edwards\/"},"modified":"2024-04-14T04:13:50","modified_gmt":"2024-04-14T09:13:50","slug":"religion-and-politics-08-john-edwards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/beta.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2008\/11\/04\/religion-and-politics-08-john-edwards\/","title":{"rendered":"Religion and Politics \u201908: John Edwards"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"edwards(1)\"<\/figure>\n\n
<\/div>\n\n

Background<\/h2>\n\n
\n

Hometown<\/strong>\nRobbins, N.C.<\/p>\n

Age<\/strong>\n56<\/p>\n

Religion<\/strong>\nUnited Methodist<\/p>\n

Education<\/strong>\nUniversity of North Carolina – Chapel Hill, J.D., 1977\nNorth Carolina State University, B.A., 1974<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

Candidate Website<\/strong>\nwww.johnedwards.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Candidacy Status<\/strong>\nFormally declared candidacy Dec. 28, 2006.\nFormally withdrew candidacy Jan. 30, 2008.\nEndorsed candidacy of Barack Obama May 14, 2008.<\/p>\n

Political Experience<\/strong>\nU.S. Senator from North Carolina, 1998-2005<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

\n

Professional Experience<\/strong>\nDirector, Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity, University of North Carolina School of Law, 2004-2006\nPartner, Edwards & Kirby, 1993-1998\nPartner, Tharrington Smith & Hargrove, 1984-1992\nAssociate, Tharrington Smith & Hargrove, 1981-1983\nAssociate, Dearborn & Ewing, 1978-1981\nLaw Clerk, Office of Judge Franklin T. Dupree Jr., United States District Court for the Eastern District, 1977-1978<\/p>\n

Family Information<\/strong>\nSpouse: Elizabeth Edwards\nChildren: Lucius Wade Edwards (d. 1996), Cate Edwards, Emma Claire Edwards, Jack Edwards<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

<\/div>\n\n

Religious Biography<\/h2>\n\n
\n

In His Own Words<\/strong><\/p>\n

“I think that Jesus would be disappointed in our ignoring the plight of those around us who are suffering and our focus on our own selfish short-term needs. I think he would be appalled, actually.”\n(Beliefnet, 2007<\/a>)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

As a child growing up in Robbins, N.C., Edwards attended and was baptized in a\u00a0Southern Baptist<\/a>church where his father has served as a deacon. Edwards\u00a0says<\/a>\u00a0“he drifted away” from faith during his college years. After his marriage to Elizabeth in 1977, the pair attended church but religion played only a minor a role in their lives. It was “not the sort of dominant day-to-day living faith that it is for me today,” said Edwards.<\/p>\n\n

When his 16-year-old son Wade was killed in a car crash in 1996, Edwards’ “faith came roaring back,” hesaid<\/a>. Religion “played an enormous role in my ability to get through that period, and it stayed with me and has been enormously important.” Edwards says his faith has helped him cope with personal hardships, including his wife’s battles with breast cancer, and the challenges he has faced in his political life.<\/p>\n\n

Edwards became a\u00a0United Methodist<\/a>, joining the country’s largest mainline Protestant denomination. He attends\u00a0Edenton Street United Methodist Church<\/a>\u00a0in Raleigh, N.C. He also served on the board of\u00a0Urban Ministries of Wake County<\/a>, a faith-based group that provides social services to the needy.<\/p>\n\n

As a senator, he\u00a0co-chaired<\/a>\u00a0the National Prayer Breakfast, an annual event in which U.S. government employees, officials from other countries and others pray and listen to an address from the president.<\/p>\n\n

On The Issues<\/h2>\n\n

Abortion\u00a0<\/strong>A\u00a0supporter<\/a>\u00a0of abortion rights, Edwards also favors funding for “family planning.” Edwards’ presidential candidacy has\u00a0won the support<\/a>\u00a0of a prominent abortion rights advocate, Kate Michelman, who is helping the campaign reach out to women. In the April 2007 Democratic debate, Edwards\u00a0said<\/a>, “I believe in a woman’s right to choose, but I think this is an extraordinarily difficult issue for America.”\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

[his]<\/p>\n\n\n

Death Penalty\u00a0<\/strong>Edwards supports the death penalty,\u00a0saying<\/a>\u00a0some crimes “deserve the ultimate penalty.” He was a supporter of capital punishment reform while in the Senate and told the Associated Press in 2004 he believes that “we need reforms in the death penalty to ensure that defendants receive fair trials, with zealous and competent lawyers, and with full access to DNA testing.”\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Education\u00a0<\/strong>Edwards\u00a0says<\/a>\u00a0children should be allowed time to pray on their own in schools, but that school-led prayer is inappropriate. He opposes school vouchers because he\u00a0says<\/a>\u00a0they would “divert resources and energy from reform and divert students into the only schools that don’t have to meet high standards.”\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Environment\u00a0<\/strong>“Leading the fight against global warming” is one of Edwards’ top\u00a0five priorities<\/a>. He has\u00a0called for<\/a>caps on greenhouse gas emissions, a global warming treaty with developing nations and increased funding for research into new energy sources. Edwards has also suggested\u00a0banning new coal-fired power plants<\/a>\u00a0in the U.S. unless they recapture the greenhouse gases they create.\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Faith-Based Initiatives\u00a0<\/strong>Edwards\u00a0says<\/a>\u00a0the poor would not survive in many parts of the country without “the existence of good, effective faith-based organizations.” When Edwards announced his presidential bid in New Orleans in December 2006, he extolled the work of faith-based groups in the city. “You walk around in these neighborhoods and what you’ll hear is that most of the good that has been done in New Orleans has been done by faith-based groups, charitable groups and volunteers,” he said.\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Gay Marriage\u00a0<\/strong>During his 2004 bid for the presidency, Edwards said that he\u00a0personally opposed<\/a>\u00a0gay marriage, but supported civil unions for homosexual couples and said each state should determine its own policy. In 2006, Edwards\u00a0called<\/a>\u00a0gay marriage “the single hardest social issue for me personally,” saying that while he supports civil unions and partnership benefits, “it’s a jump for me to get to gay marriage.”\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Health Care\u00a0<\/strong>Edwards’\u00a0universal health care proposal<\/a>\u00a0would provide tax credits for low-income families, expand Medicare and federal health care for children and create a federal health insurance agency that would eventually replace private health insurance. The plan would be funded through a roll-back of the Bush administration’s tax cuts for families making more than $200,000 a year and through currently-uncollected capital gains taxes.\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Immigration <\/strong>Edwards\u00a0supports<\/a>\u00a0increased border security and a path to citizenship for undocumented workers. He says that immigration reform is central to alleviating poverty in the United States and that domestic policy goals like\u00a0raising the minimum wage<\/a>\u00a0are connected to immigration reform because illegal immigrants make up a “sizeable chunk” of impoverished Americans.\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Iraq War\u00a0<\/strong>While serving in the Senate, Edwards voted in 2002 to authorize funding for the war in Iraq, a vote he has since called\u00a0a mistake<\/a>. He is now in favor of a\u00a0complete withdrawal<\/a>\u00a0of troops within 12 to 18 months. He wrote in a\u00a0Washington Post<\/a>\u00a0opinion piece that “the world desperately needs moral leadership from America” and that “part of restoring America’s moral leadership is acknowledging when we’ve made mistakes.”\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

Poverty <\/strong>Edwards has made reducing poverty the signature issue of his presidential campaign, calling it “the great moral issue of our time<\/a>.” He has set a goal of ending poverty in 30 years by lifting one-third of the 37 million currently impoverished Americans above the poverty line each decade through a higher minimum wage, tax cuts for low-income workers, universal health care and housing vouchers for low-income families. Edwards has also\u00a0proposed a plan for ending global poverty<\/a>\u00a0that would feature schooling for every child and preventative health care.\u00a0Compare McCain and Obama<\/a><\/p>\n\n

[actor]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Background Hometown Robbins, N.C. Age 56 Religion United Methodist Education University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill, J.D., 1977 North Carolina State University, B.A., 1974 Candidate Website www.johnedwards.com Candidacy Status Formally declared candidacy Dec. 28, 2006. Formally withdrew candidacy Jan. 30, 2008. Endorsed candidacy of Barack Obama May 14, 2008. 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