Senator Edwards,

My wife and I feel compelled to contact you. We are ardent supporters of you. We grew up in the mountains of western North Carolina in Swain County. Our people have been here for MANY generations and it is our hope that our children and grandchildren will be able to remain here as well.

We are both 51 years old and college graduates. I am a CPA and my wife is a social worker. Apparently, we are also an endangered species—we are old-time Southern Democrats cut from the mold of FDR and Harry Truman. Over the past twenty years, though, our party has been hijacked by the extreme liberal wing of the northeast and California. By the way, we are also born-again Christians. It is just appalling to us that splinter groups have been driving our party. It seems they have been driving it straight to hell! We are a product of working class families. My family in particular was very poor and uneducated. They knew one thing, though, and that was the Democrats were always the party of the working people and the Republicans were the party of the rich. I was taught this from the time I was a child. I believe it’s still true. Having said that, we have seen a migration from the southern Democrats to the Republicans because of issues related to the values that we have internalized and hold strongly to.

You are a good man but we feel that far too many southern Dem’s have let the party of the people be overrun by anyone with some sort of deviant lifestyle. While we are not advocating taking any rights from anyone, we feel that the National Party has legitimized anything and everything. My wife has a saying, “If everybody likes you then you are not doing something right”. The party of Harry Truman has become the party of Truman Capote!!! It seems as though the Christian morality has been abandoned by the Democrats. The poor, the old, the very young and racial minorities have been cast aside for those who try to force their “alternative lifestyles” upon us.

When I was growing up the term radical was synonymous with Republican. But now, groups that demand frivolous abortion on demand legalizing homosexual marriage are in the forefront. What people do is their own business. But, to legitimize things that have always been considered deviant and abhorrent is unacceptable. You may not agree, but the voters in America do. The majority of people in this country have forgotten that the Republicans are what they are. All they can see is the erosion of our values and our morality.

I have always been a John Edwards supporter and will remain so. Please, please help take back our party before it is too late!!!! I would like to thank you for stumping for Heath Shuler. He’s a good man and one of our own. We have known his family forever. We grew up with them. He holds these same values. Please reply to this if you can and seriously consider what I have said.

Thank you for everything and I’m looking forward to ‘08.

Sincerely,

R & C W.