Goodbye and Good Riddance to John Edwards, Adulterer
John Edwards invited critics to beat him up over his extramarital affair and lies about it. The invitation is hereby accepted.
The former presidential candidate and vice presidential nominee of the Democratic Party has betrayed his supporters, his fundraisers, and, most of all, his wife and family. He deserves scorn.
Edwards had portrayed himself as a loving family man who was fighting through his wife's battle with breast cancer. So much for that picture.
In fact, Edwards started his long campaign as a happy warrior, a smiling populist from the South. He spent more time in Iowa than any other presidential candidate of either party. He finished second in the Iowa caucuses, but his campaign tanked from there.
One reason for that quick collapse was his ugly turn to angry and bitter attacks. He was especially rough on Sen. Hillary Clinton in the many debates when she was the front-runner for the nomination.
Edwards then waited until Sen. Barack Obama had safely secured the nomination before endorsing him. Obama must be more than even ambivalent now about his support. Edwards has lost his chance to speak at the party convention in Denver.
Some commentators have suggested that Edwards could come back after four or eight years because time and the American people are forgiving. Forget about that scenario.
Edwards dug his own deep pit by being a holier-than-thou politician. Other officeholders in both parties have strayed from their marital vows, but Edwards was convincing regarding his own fidelity.
The National Enquirer, the grocery-store tabloid, broke the Edwards story. It prompted Sean Hannity, the right-wing Fox News (naturally) blowhard, to claim that the mainstream media would have been more persistent and vigilant if it had been a Republican. Hannity must have been on another planet when President Clinton's personal problems were detailed by the media.
It so happens that the plateau of journalistic verification is much higher for the mainstream media than for the National Enquirer or Sean Hannity.
As for Edwards, it is a fast goodbye and good riddance.
Tags: John Edwards
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Reader Comments
I always suspected he was sleeze
I could never get pass the idea that he was sleezy. The day he and his wife announced her cancer was back I knew something bigger was wrong. He was not doting on her. It was as if they were announcing a business transaction. His reaction should have been devastation but instead he "reassured" his supporters that he would continue his quest for the white house. It just seemed off. Sort of selfish.
He is a sleezeball - no different from Bill Clinton. He is full of himself. Good riddance!
A Shame...The Poor Lost a Champion
I tend to agree that Edwards dug his own grave, but I will mourn the loss of his much needed message--helping the poor among us. It is unfortunate that the many innocent and worthy targets of the Edwards appeal will lose their visibility and will leave the national consciousness all because their messenger strayed and ruined his own credibility.
What a shame that it all ended this way! He moved me along with millions of others more fortunate with tragic stories of the nation's working poor. Now they have been victimized again because their messenger not only did the misdeed, but lied about it repeatedly and drowned his own worthy message along the way.
Final thought--Why is it that the most effective of messengers are often unworthy of carrying their much needed message?
john edwards
I would like to see him ousted from politics all together.
He does not reflect the majority of values in this country. This is a time when the world watches our country's actions and we are being judged by others. Edwards does not deserve a spot among those dedicated government servants of the people where values and righteousness have always been important.
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John W. Mashek covered politics in Washington for four decades with U.S. News & World Report, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and the Boston Globe. His primary beats were Congress, the White House, and national politics. He covered every presidential election from 1960 to 1996. He was a panelist in three televised presidential debates in 1984, 1988, and 1992.