Hayes: Edwards: Talk to Ahmadinejad, Not to Insurance Companies

John Edwards will not be the Democratic nominee and he will not be president. We saw one reason even the far-left he has courted so assiduously might have reservations about him. His positions are sometimes, well, absurd. But in a small way they illuminate the differences between Democrats and Republicans on national security and the war on terror.

This morning, on ABC's "This Week," Edwards reiterated his position that if he were elected president he would not talk to insurance companies as he implements his health care plan. Last night, he raised the case of Nataline Sarkisyan.

What's happening now is insurance companies are running all over people. I mean, the case of Nataline Sarkisyan, which a lot of the audience will be familiar with -- 17-year-old girl who lost her life a couple of weeks ago because her insurance company would not pay for a liver transplant operation.

She had health insurance, but the insurance company wouldn't pay for it. They finally caved in a few hours before she died. We need a president who will take these people on.

Edwards told the story again this morning on ABC and accused the insurance company of killing her. Summoning up his best trial lawyer outrage, he asked: "People expect me to negotiate with these people?"

And then we have Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who, in addition to leading the world's foremost state sponsor of terror, has denied the Holocaust and proposed another one. John Edwards wants to talk to him. In fact, he says negotiating with Iran is the most important step in solving our problems with Iran.

"First, America should be negotiating directly with Iran, which Bush won't do," he said. He was asked later in the interview to clarify this view.

Q: So we should, first step, talk to Iran, try to open up negotiations?

A: Correct

Q: Do it, if necessary, bilaterally?

A: Absolutely.