Please Senator Edwards - Answer my question!

By: relawson
Published On: 8/10/2007 11:35:11 PM

As an average guy - I have no inside contacts at the Edwards campaign.  I have a question regarding recent reports that he would expand the H-1b program, though the reports don't quote him on a specific position.

So curious minds wanted to know.  I sent an email through the campaign website, but unfortunately their response did not even try to answer my question.  Will someone at the Edwards campaign please try to get my question answered?

##########################
##########################
R. Lawson  writes (to the Edwards campaign):

First, I am a strong supporter of John Edwards in the blogosphere.

However, an article indicates that Senator Edwards wishes to expand the H-1b program:
http://www.signonsan...

That bothers me, as a software engineer, because out of the top 10 users of H-1b visas 7 are Indian offshore outsourcing firms.  The visa is used to send jobs offshore in many cases.

Given the recent (and vague) reports, please clarify his position on the H-1b visa.

######################
######################

Unfortunately, the response did not address my question:
Dear Roy,

Thank you for writing John Edwards about how outsourcing is affecting the American job market.  He appreciates that you took the time to share
your thoughts and concerns with me.  He enjoys hearing from people all over the country about the issues that are important to them.

In the mill towns where John Edwards grew up, he saw firsthand the harm that trade can do to hardworking families-how it can cost them not only
a job, but also their entire way of life.  He saw what happened when the mill in my hometown that my own father worked at was closed.

Because of the way our tax code works, many companies actually got tax breaks for taking these jobs overseas.  That's wrong and Americans want
us to get this right. Our tax code should encourage corporations to export U.S. goods and services, not U.S. jobs.

We live in a global economy and cannot put up walls.  But trade has to be done the right way.  Trade deals need to make sense for American
workers, not just corporations.  For too long, Washington's been passing trade deals without enforcing the ones we have on the books. We need to be able to trade and do business with people in the rest of the world while keeping our focus on our workers at home. Trade deals must include
strong labor and environmental standards - not as an excuse not to trade, but as a way to lift up workers in both countries.

Again, thank you for taking the time to share your ideas and concerns with us.

Sincerely,

The Edwards Team


Comments