Jody and I attended BlogHer07 this year in Chicago and among the great speakers we had there was Elizabeth Edwards (that's me with her to the left!!), wife of Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards. I have to say, on a personal level, I was inspired… and I’m not the type to say that lightly. I went into the keynote session she was in with excitement but also with a clear thought of where I was casting my vote come November 2008 (If you must know, it was Obama – please use the comments area for feedback and slams).  I walked away from her Q&A session with a floundering feeling of not knowing where I stood on my candidate choice… I even wrote to the blogging buddy next to me, “Forget Hillary and Barack, I’m voting for Elizabeth!”

And there you have it. Ask Patty has become political. Let me douse some cold water on you hotheads for a second. My opinions are mine alone and do not reflect those of the Ask Patty staff or company, though I think anyone worth his salt will vote outside the Republican ticket this year.

Elizabeth had a lot to say about supporting education and for making it easier smart people to become teachers and nurses because we need more of these gifted people in these fields. She also touched on John’s issue of gay marriage but she made sure to point out that she and John both support repealing all limitations in all 50 states, whereas other candidates (even the left ones) only support repealing some convenient ones.

Okay so what does this have to do with cars? Well, I caught up with Elizabeth at an after party and grabbed an email from her group where I can send this burning question: “What will John Edwards and his Administration do to push back harder on the automotive manufacturers and fuel economy requirements? Will you make them do a better job?”

And I ask you as well: Why haven’t we, as a country and as a people with a fast fading planet beneath us, why haven’t we stopped and told the Toyotas and the GMs and the Fords and the Kias and the Dodges of our world to stop messing around and think about their consumers and the environment for once? Why aren’t we DOING that? The technology is there so why aren’t the large manufacturers being held accountable?

Let me leave you with some food for thought. According to the Consumer Federation of America, “the average fuel economy across nine of 13 major automakers’ lineups is worse today than it was in 1996.” Wow, there’s advancement for you.

by Breanne Boyle