Echoing MLK on Vietnam, Edwards to Say “Silence Is Betrayal” on Iraq

ABC News’ Teddy Davis Reports: Forty years after the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke out against the Vietnam war from the same pulpit, former Sen. John Edwards (D-NC) plans to say "silence is betrayal" when he speaks at Riverside Church at 4:00 pm ET.

Edwards will not only challenge what he calls the "McCain Doctrine of escalation," he also plans to implicitly challenge his rivals for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination by urging them to use the power of the purse.

"You have the power to prohibit the president from spending any money to escalate the war," Edwards plans to say, "use it."

Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) has been quiet on whether she will fund the surge. Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) has said that he will consider blocking the surge – but he has stopped short of endorsing such a move.

"If you’re in Congress and you know this war is going in the wrong direction, it is no longer enough to study your options and keep your own counsel," Edwards plans to say while urging his listeners to call their elected representatives.

While in the Senate in 2002, Edwards voted to authorize the use of force in Iraq. But based on conversations with the liberal interest groups which constitute the recently formed anti-escalation coalition, he seems to have repaired his relations with anti-war activists by authoring a 2005 Washington Post op-ed which began with the words "I was wrong," by calling for the immediate withdrawal of 40,000-50,000 troops, and by urging Congress to flex the power of the purse.