Edwards' proposals to fight poverty:
John Edwards calls for a national effort to cut poverty by a third, lifting 12 million Americans out of poverty by 2016, and to end poverty by 2036, rescuing 37 million people. Here are some of his proposals:
1. Create a million public "stepping-stone jobs" for workers who can't find work after looking for six months. The idea is to help people learn workplace discipline and prepare them for the job market. The minimum-wage jobs would last 12 months. Workers would have to stay off drugs, not commit any crimes and pay child support.
Pro: Could help move unemployed people into the permanent job market.
Con: These would be make-work jobs. If the jobs were valuable, they would already exist.
2. Raise the federal minimum wage from $5.15 per hour to $9.50 per hour by 2012.
Pro: Would help 15 million low-wage workers earn more income.
Con: Some businesses may hire fewer workers if they must pay workers more.
3. Cut taxes for low-income workers by tripling the Earned Income Tax Credit to $1,236 per year for single adults.
Pro: The proposal would give 4 million low-income workers an average tax cut of $750 per year, helping lift them out of poverty.
Con: Cost to taxpayers.
4. Pass the Employee Free Choice Act, which would allow workers to form a union by signing cards saying they favor a union, rather than by a formal election.
Pro: The Edwards campaign points to studies showing that union workers earn
28 percent more than non-union workers. Unions claim that companies often use intimidation tactics to fight union votes.
Con: Many businesses don't like unions and say the proposal is less democratic than current law. Companies say the change would make it easier for unions to intimidate workers into signing cards.
5. Help low-income workers save with "work bonds" that provide a tax credit. The credit would match wages up to $500 per year and be directly deposited in individual savings accounts.
Pro: Would help low-income workers save money.
Con: Cost to taxpayers.
6. Pass a federal predatory lending law to prevent deceptive terms and abusive interest rates, capping them at 36 percent.
Pro: Helps protect homeowners from losing their houses through questionable practices.
Con: These loans exist because there's a market for them.
7. Pay the first year of college for low-income students when students agree to work part-time and keep their grades up.
Pro: Helps boost college attendance among people from less-educated families.
Con: Cost to taxpayers.