My letter to Senator Kennedy, in response to his letter to me regarding his endorsement.
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Dear Senator Kennedy,
If you see all those good qualities in Barack Obama, good, but I can tell you I do not think he has lived up to those ideals on the campaign trail in Iowa against John Edwards. There was one man who showed the gift of character and leadership in Iowa, and throughout; and that was John Edwards. He showed the greatest degree of ethics, whereas Obama was very unfair in characterizing John Edwards' record as newly populist, and showed questionable ethics in bussing all those students in from Illinois and Indiana. Don't think he was so ethical toward Ms. Palmer in Chicago some time ago either. No, there has been one person who has not compromised his principles and ethics and that has been John Edwards.
It is not unethical to fight for what you believe in; no, that is an obligation. When the debacle of the election in 2004 occurred, with all its irregularities, anomalies and disenfranchisements, on the night of that fateful "election", one man opposed capitulating so soon, and was ready to fight the irregularities, that was John Edwards. That is not the politics of destruction; it is backbone. And you should know the difference. Obama, on the other hand, went in to the Senate and made very little more than a whimper about all the election fraud that your nephew, RFK, Jr. has since so clearly identified in his report and that so clearly disenfranchised so much of the African-American vote in that election. (I do wonder if Obama, as he entered the Senate, had not already set his sights on 2008, and the election of 2004 was far behind as far as he was concerned.)
Senator Kennedy, Obama may remind you of John Kennedy. But John Edwards, because of his commitment to economic justice, reminds me of Bobby Kennedy, who I supported (and whom I helped draft to become a candidate.) By the way, I supported your own candidacy when you ran for President.
This year I support John Edwards because of his conviction and determination to give our country back to the people. He has diagnosed the problem correctly and has the right idea for what kind of remedy is required to bring about economic justice in this country. For me, economic justice and greater opportunity for all are the most compelling reasons to support a candidate, and this year the candidate with the greatest promise for achieving such ends is John Edwards.
Karita Hummer