Looking to shake
up Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's lead in the
Democratic presidential race, John Edwards is making an
ardent push for voters to turn away from Washington
insiders and what he condemns as a corrupt political
system.
Edwards railed
against the ''bankrupt ways of Washington'' on Monday in
Manchester, NH -- but his aim seemed less to target
Republican president Bush's leadership than to cast
fellow Democrat Clinton as the insider whom voters
should reject.
''This corruption
did not begin yesterday, and it did not even begin with
George Bush,'' Edwards said in speech excerpts provided by
his campaign. ''It has been building for decades,
until it now threatens literally the life of our
democracy.''
''Let us blaze a
new path together,'' said Edwards.
Edwards's
scheduled appearance at Saint Anselm College comes as
Clinton has been building strength toward the
nomination in polling, fundraising and setting the
agenda of the race.
She still has a
vulnerability -- a tight race in the leadoff state of
Iowa, where Edwards and Barack Obama are within striking
distance in current polls -- but Edwards's support had
dropped in a University of Iowa Hawkeye poll out
Monday.
The poll had
Clinton with 29%, Obama with 27%, and Edwards with 20%.
Edwards was down six points from August.
Her lead is
stronger in New Hampshire, the other early-voting state.
Clinton's
campaign said Edwards was turning to attack politics.
''In 2004, John
Edwards said, 'If you are looking for the candidate that
will do the best job of attacking the other Democrats, I am
not your guy,''' said Clinton spokesman Phil Singer.
''But now that his campaign has stalled, he's become
that guy.''
With many voters
unhappy with Bush's presidency, Democratic candidates
have been promoting themselves as agents of change. That
includes Clinton, but Edwards is challenging her and
trying to make the race a referendum on who will bring
real change to Washington.
''The truth is
the system in Washington is corrupt,'' Edwards said.
The former North
Carolina senator, who was John Kerry's running mate in
2004, said Clinton has refused to accept his challenge not
to accept political donations from Washington
lobbyists. Clinton has gained strength in the polls
since Edwards started making that case several months
ago, but he said he thinks it will make the difference in
the election.
''I believe you
cannot be for change and take money from the lobbyists
who prevent change,'' Edwards said. ''And I believe that, if
Americans have a choice, any candidate who takes their
money -- Democrat or Republican -- will lose this
election.''
Singer responded
by questioning Edwards's ties to special interests.
Edwards has taken donations from industries that employ
federal lobbyists, though he doesn't take donations
directly from the lobbyists themselves.
''If Mr. Edwards
is so concerned about the influence of special
interests, he should give back the hundreds of thousands of
dollars he's taken from health care, securities, and
insurance companies,'' Singer said. (Nedra Pickler,
AP)
