IOWA CITY—Barack Obama is trying to peel away some of John Edwards' labor support in Iowa, with a campaign flyer that questions the former North Carolina senator on several issues.

The Obama campaign mailer notes that Edwards supported North Carolina's Right-to-Work law when he ran for the Senate in 1998, Rob Christensen reports.

It also notes that Edwards voted to normalize trade relations in with China in 2003. It also points out that Edwards earned $479,000 from Fortress Investments, and received $167,460 in contribution from Fortress executives. Fortress has one hedge fund that incorporated in the Cayman Islands—a move companies make to pay fewer taxes.

Edwards has significant labor support in Iowa. An Edwards rally on Monday in Des Moines was dominated by members of the United Steelworkers Union.

Money magazine says John Edwards is worth $54.7 million.

In an article on the millionaires running for president, the financial magazine estimated the net worth of the former North Carolina senator, based on his investments and income.

Most of his money comes from awards he won as a medical malpractice and personal-injury attorney, but it also includes hedge fund investments with Fortress Investment Group and North Carolina county bonds.

The magazine quotes an investment manager saying that Edwards should reduce his holdings in hedge funds because they come with high fees and more risk.

Edwards is not the richest candidate, however. That would be Mitt Romney, who is worth between $92.3 milliona and $276.2 million. 

He is worth more than Democratic rivals Hillary Clinton ($34.9 million) and Barack Obama ($1.3 million), however.

Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards earned nearly a half million dollars while working as a part-time adviser for a New York-based hedge fund.

Edwards, a former North Carolina senator, reported in a campaign filing today that he earned $479,512 as a senior adviser to Fortress Investment Group LLC last year, Rob Christensen reports.

Edwards also earned $333,334 in royalties from his book on boyhood homes that was published by HarperCollins Publishers. He donated the money to charity.

Edwards reported that he earned $40,000 from his position as director of UNC-Chapel Hill's Center on Poverty Work and Opportunity.

He also reported earning $415,000 in speaking fees, mainly to universities. He typically charged $32,000 to $40,000 per speech.

John Edwards said he did not know that his former employer was involved in subprime lending.

On the campaign trail, the Democratic presidential contender has attacked the high-risk mortgage industry, which targets buyers with bad credit.

But he worked as a consultant in 2005 for Fortress Investment Group, which owned a major stake in subprime loan broker Green Tree Servicing LLC.

He told the Washington Post that he could not recall whether Fortress told him about its ownership. 

"Those are the things I remember," he said. "They may have told me more." Had he learned that Fortress owned a loan servicer with a history of predatory lending practices, he said, "I would have asked some very specific questions about it." 

John Edwards' ties to the Fortress Investment Group have already paid off.

According to campaign finance records, he's raised $145,760 from employees of the New York-based hedge fund.

Edwards worked as a Fortress consultant from October of 2005 until he announced his campaign late last year.

Contributors include top Fortress officials: CEO Wesley Edens, who gave $2,300; and presidents Peter Briger Jr. and Michael Novogratz and COO Randal Nardone, who each gave $4,600.

Edens, Nardone and Novogratz also gave to U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd's presidential campaign. Edens also gave to U.S. Sen. John McCain, and Novogratz to U.S. Sen. Barack Obama.

Edwards also got donations from the company's rank and file in New York and California, at least 78 donors in all.

A handful of Fortress employees gave to both Edwards and another candidate: Elam Ali also gave to to former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani; Sara Sprung, to U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton; and Jonathan Atkeson, to former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

John Edwards has ties to a hedge fund that raises money for wealthy insiders.

In 2005 and 2006, Edwards was a consultant for the Fortress Investment Group, a New York-based investment firm that works mainly in hedge funds, the Washington Post reports.

Hedge funds typically handle big money accounts for small groups of investors and take bigger risks than retail mutual funds like the one in your 401(k) plan.

The work has attracted attention because Fortress has used offshore tax shelters in the past.

The company, which has more than $30 billion in assets, incorporated its hedge funds in the Cayman Islands to allow partners to avoid or defer paying U.S. taxes. An Edwards spokeswoman said it ended the practice around the time he left the company.

Edwards was criticized during his 1995 Senate run for using a personal tax shelter. He's also criticized them in his campaigns.

On the trail in 2003, he spoke out against "tax-free tax shelters for millionaires that are bigger than most American's paychecks for an entire year."