DES MOINES, Iowa (CNN) - Cate Edwards took questions in Des Moines Sunday on behalf of her father, former Sen. John Edwards, D-North Carolina, but she could only answer a few without referring to a campaign staffer for the details of her dad's positions.
She needed no help, however, in responding to a question relating to her position on gay rights, specifically gay marriage.
"I'm on my mom's side with this, not my dad's," Edwards said. "It's the word 'marriage' that he is hung up on."
"It's not about gay rights," she added.
John Edwards has said he does not support gay marriage, but his wife, Elizabeth, does.
"He very much does not understand–he has trouble, I guess, with the term 'gay marriage.' I don't," Cate Edwards said.
"I'm not going to try to defend him on that because I don't agree with it, but that's where he stands. But I don't want it to be understood as not standing for gay rights because that's certainly not true."
Cate Edwards and 'Desperate Housewives' actor James Denton were at a stop during a two-day swing through the Hawkeye State stumping for the Edwards for President campaign.
Only about a half dozen questions were asked, but a significant amount of her answers included referrals to a campaign staffer named Oliver–so many, in fact, that his name was soon becoming a small running joke, even to Edwards.
"Oliver will get you that information. You should all get to know Oliver," Edwards said laughing.
Related video: Watch Cate Edwards explain her father's position on gay marriage
- CNN Iowa Producer Chris Welch