Note: I am a volunteer precinct captain for John Edwards in the Des Moines suburbs.

Last week I wrote about John Edwards' recent direct mail piece to Iowa caucus-goers. This past Friday, I received a second mailer from the Edwards campaign, a shorter piece focused on Iraq.
Here is a link to the mailer (pdf file) (thanks to NC Dem Amy for the link).

For those who do not want to download the pdf file, I'm reproducing the text.

The cover has a photo of Edwards speaking at a rally, and a photo of a soldier hugging his wife or girlfriend. The text says, "The John Edwards Plan for Iraq," with this quotation underneath: "Tell the Truth, Show Some Backbone and End This War."

These words repeat and reinforce the main message from the new tv ad for Edwards that is running in Iowa. In that commercial, Edwards says,

It is time for our party, the Democratic Party, to show a little backbone, to have a little guts, to stand up for working men and women. If we are not their voice, they will never have a voice.

Back to the mailer. The crease is along the short edge of the paper, so when you open it up, pages 2 and 3 read as one long page, 22 inches long and 8 1/2 inches tall. The headline running across pages 2 and 3 is "John Edwards: The President We Can Trust to Tell the Truth and Bring Our Troops Home."

Underneath that are sentences I believe will resonate with frustrated Democrats (liberals in particular):

America voted for change in 2006, and we're still waiting for it. Congress has the power to end this war--they should use it. We will never bring our troops home or rebuild America's leadership without a leader with the courage to admit mistakes and the backbone to stand up to a broken system.

There are four paragraphs on pages 2 and 3, underneath the following subheads:
End the Conflict by Bringing Troops Home
John Edwards understands that there is no military solution in Iraq. There is only a political solution, and it must be forged by the Iraqi people. In order to get the Iraqi people to take responsibility, John will show them we are serious about leaving by immediately ordering troop withdrawals. Congress should force the president to begin withdrawing troops immediately by using its funding power.

Withdraw All Combat Troops Within Nine to Ten Months
John opposed President Bush's "surge" and supports immediately drawing down 40,000 to 50,000 troops. He believes we should completely withdraw all combat troops from Iraq within nine to ten months--leaving only what's necessary to protect the embassy--and prohibit permanent U.S. bases. He will step up diplomatic efforts by engaging directly with all governments in the region, including those of Iran and Syria, to bring a political solution to the sectarian violence inside Iraq.

End No-Bid Contracts for Corporate Cronies
John will end the current system of outsourcing security missions to private contractors. Unaccountable corporate cronies have put our troops at risk and damaged our moral standing in the world. John will also stop awarding no-bid contracts to politically-connected firms like Blackwater and Halliburton, and fix broken Washington practices like taking campaign contributions from those seeking government contracts.

Stand Up to Bush Before He Attacks Iran
Democrats should not be supporting the Bush administration's drive towards war with Iran. Those who voted for the recent resolution have encouraged Bush and Cheney to stay in Iraq and prepare to attack Iran. John Edwards has learned from his mistake--you can't give George Bush even a non-binding vote. We must use economic and diplomatic options while they are still available.

The bottom of pages 2 and 3 reads, "John Edwards for President Building One America."

The back page has contact information for the campaign under a photo of Edwards and this quotation: "Congress needs to have the courage to end this war. No timeline, no funding. No excuses."

Although I tend to vote on domestic policy, and domestic issues were what drew me to support Edwards in this race, I think this is a very strong mail piece, perhaps even better than the 12-page mailer that went out a week or so earlier.

Even if you don't open up this piece and just glance at it while you're sorting your mail, the message is very clear. Right there on the front, in large type, it calls on Democrats to show some backbone and end this war. On the back page, again in large type, it calls on Congress to use its power to end the war: "No timeline, no funding. No excuses."

Many Democrats are angry at how little has changed since we voted in a new Congress a year ago.

In discussing this issue with undecided voters, I will also tell them more about the Edwards plan to end the current system of outsourcing military and security missions to private contractors (that's a link to more detail on this from the campaign website).

As I mentioned above, I also like that the message of this mailer reinforces the main message of the tv ad Edwards is running in Iowa. The quotation that appeared in large type on the back page of the previous direct mail piece from Edwards struck a similar tone:

"Washington is broken. Real, honest change is our only course. It's time for some backbone--to fight for regular people against the powerful interests. Help me build One America."

Before I sign off, I want to mention that training sessions for the Edwards precinct captains have begun. Without revealing any details, I can tell you that so far, they are better than the training I received as a precinct captain for John Kerry four years ago. We will be very prepared for January 3.