Letter: Edwards lives his ‘mountain values’

I see the Sept. 18 Mountain Xpress featured Randy Molton, who has been drawing for you for what seems forever [“The Man Behind the Pen: Randy Molton Reflects on Three Decades of Xpress Cartooning”]. I always check them out. Some are hysterical; some are dead on point; some are judgmental; and some are downright nasty. Whatever, they’re pretty consistent, and it’s pretty easy to see which side of the political aisle he falls on.

My first glance at the cover left me with the mistaken impression he was (once again, for the umpteenth time) drawing our congressman, Mr. Chuck Edwards. Closer inspection shows it’s actually JD Vance. However, I’ve lost count of the number of times he’s roasted and taken to task Mr. Edwards. I know Mr. Edwards usually rolls his eyes, expecting nothing less from Mr. Molton. But Mr. Molton’s portrayals are universally one-sidedly negative, and I thought this was as good a time as any to offer a fuller, more accurate portrayal of our congressional representative, or at least another side of this definitely not one-sided coin.

Full disclosure, I’ve known Mr. Edwards for many years, first as business associates and later as friends when I retired 10 years ago and relocated here to Asheville. In all those years, I’ve known Mr. Edwards as a devoted and decent family man, husband and father, always involved positively in his community and also as a highly ethical businessman. My personal experience has shown me he doesn’t just preach his “mountain values,” he lives them.

I’ve also seen him close up since he was encouraged to enter politics, first as our state senator for six years, and now as our congressional representative in D.C. While I know him as an ardent and committed conservative, there are numerous positions he’s taken that I’ve fervently supported, and numerous others that I’ve fervently disagreed with him on. Through all of that, I have seen in him exactly what all of our constituents need in a quality representative, no matter which side of the political aisle you’re on. Chuck has committed as much, if not more, than virtually any other member of Congress of his allowable congressional budget into building knowledgeable and experienced staff who are there to listen to, react to and address constituents’ concerns and issues. He had those same commitments here at the state level for six years.

I have numerous friends on both sides of the political spectrum, and I personally know three clearly on the liberal side who definitely didn’t vote for him, yet who each currently hold him in respect and regard. Why? Because of what he and his staff did to address their concerns, including tax, zoning and permit issues. He was not concerned with whether they had voted for him, only that they were his constituents, and he was their representative.

He has been well-known for his reputation as a workhorse, serving on and chairing more committees in his six years in the state legislature than virtually anyone else there. Even as a still-freshman congressman, he is continuing that same commitment and reputation in D.C. Compare that to his predecessor, who committed the largest bulk of his budget allotment to communications and self-aggrandizement, and who held one of the worst records in all of D.C. for even showing up to vote.

Sure enough, now in the midst of this terrible tragedy of Helene, Mr. Edwards is and has been exactly where I would expect he would be — daily both on the front lines directly helping with recovery efforts and behind the scenes coordinating the arrival of ever more relief and support resources. He’s also been communicating daily to his constituents up-to-date information on status, next steps, where to get help, etc. Finally, and just as important, he has taken a leading role nationally as a key debunker of the crazy and frankly dangerous conspiracy theories and lies being circulated by a number of his political colleagues.

I have many policy differences with Chuck and always feel free to engage him on these. He is an ardent conservative, and I guess I am a centrist at heart. I was a registered Republican for most of my adult life, 40 years worth at least (I relinquished that eight-plus years ago based on exactly one individual), but have never voted straight-party ticket. I have always placed more emphasis on my perception of a candidate’s character and integrity than I have on pure policy.

When I was born, Truman was still president, and in the almost 80 years since FDR passed, there has only been one instance where one party held the White House for more than eight consecutive years: That was the eight years of Reagan followed by four years of Bush 1. Whatever policy I may disagree with, wait a few years and the other side will balance that out.

As a centrist at heart, I’ve always felt that either “fringe,” left or right, given complete control, would be dangerous and damaging. It’s been said that no bird and no plane has ever flown successfully without both a right wing and a left wing. Take either away completely, and they’re going to crash and burn. I truly feel the real strength of our democracy, our republic, has been the unending tug of war between left and right, liberal and conservative. Each has kept the other from “going off the rails,” and the result has more often than not been the compromise in the middle that has worked for the greatest number of citizens.

We need to return to a world and a country where the other side of the aisle is not considered “evil” or “the enemy of the people” — where the words “compromise” and “treason” are no longer synonyms! Perhaps Mr. Molton, as amusing as he certainly can be at others’ expense, will someday in his next 30 years gain the wisdom to see that.

— Joe Stritch
Asheville