With less than two weeks before the DNC convention (aka D-Day), John Edwards has come clean, at least a little bit, about his extramarital relations with former webmaster Rielle Hunter – though he insists he’s not the father of Frances Quinn, Hunter’s new daughter.
In an interview with Bob Woodruff on tonight’s Nightline, Edwards will admit he cheated on wife Elizabeth in 2006, which was after her cancer went into remission, but because of the timeline of when his affair ended and when Frances was born, he’s certain he’s not the dad, even without taking a paternity test.
seitan-on-a-stick
Never be fooled by the Good Looks of the candidates. At least if Hillary cheated, she would have had higher approval numbers and high fives. I sure hope Michelle Obama is a firecracker in bed for the suave Barack as I don’t want to go back to Monicagate….unless it’s a Gay Scandal!
ChicagoJimmy
Why can’t politicians keep their pants zipped? Is he not aware that Bill Clinton got impeached for this kind of crap? Did he not know what kind of scandal he would create, cheating on his cancer ridden wife?
I like John Edwards, but he couldn’t get on board with gay marriage. He’s certainly a shining example of sacred heterosexual marriage
mark
I’m sympathetic to Elizabeth and his adult daughter, hopefully his younger children won’t be as aware of this story.
just sad
emb
It’s a bit horrifying to think that he could have been the nominee, in a slightly different reality. Then a good shot at a Dem victory would have vanished. The sheer ego of this guy: Knowing this li’l skeleton was in his closet, to go ahead and run anyway, in full knowledge that if/when it leaked his party’s chances would be cratered! I used to like Edwards; not so much any more. People are certainly entitled to be flawed, to make poor choices, and even to behave badly; but please: not when the stakes for the nation are so high.
John, I know Bill Clinton; you are no Bill Clinton.
emb
And right, ChicagoJimmy: what’s with the “oh I think marriage is a special man-and-woman thing” when he’s doing any number of other “man-and-woman things” with other women? Tsk tsk.
seitan-on-a-stick
THIS IS FOR CHICAGOJIMMY from Wikipedia:
Former President of the United States Bill Clinton was impeached by the House of Representatives on December 19, 1998, and acquitted by the Senate on February 12, 1999. The charges, perjury and obstruction of justice, arose from the Monica Lewinsky scandal and the Paula Jones law suit. The trial proceedings were largely party-line, with no Democratic Senators voting for conviction and only five Democratic Representatives voting to impeach. In all, 50 senators voted “not guilty,” and 50 voted “guilty” on the obstruction charge. The Senate also acquitted on the charge of perjury with 55 votes cast as “not guilty,” and 45 votes as “guilty.” It was only the second impeachment of a President in American history, following the impeachment of Andrew Johnson in 1868.
Rock
Politicians are all cheating dogs.
How could he do this to Elizabeth? She deserves better than that.
Tim
He’s just another het marriage hypocrite. Can’t let the gays marry, but doesn’t mind parking his pecker in strange holes all they while he’s married himself. Used to think he was a fairly decent guy, now he’s just another lying, hypocrite who can’t keep his dick in his pants. And, he had the balls to run for high office when he had to know this would come out. Looks like he was trying to destroy what’s left of the Democratic party, intentionally.
Key
@ Rock
No one deserves this. Not his wife, certainly not his children, and I would say not even the poor woman he’s casting off on one of his aids.
I’ll happily thank gods the man is out of the running for president as well.
Tim
Don’t call him a man, men don’t act like that. Men are faithful to their commitments. When Edwards is called a man, it smears all men.
marco channing
The funny thing is, McCain left his first wife, a former model, after she lost her looks and the ability to walk normally, in a horrific car accident. He paid alimony with Cindy McCain’s money. McCain is also against gay marriage and gay adoption. Family values my ass. Why is the MSM ignoring this?
This doesn’t excuse Edwards behavior, but it is just as bad.
Bob R
Cheating on your cancer ridden wife. How noble. How Republican. Your political career is probably over, as it should be. No VP offer. No Attorney General offer or cabinet slot should Obama be elected. This is what happens when you allow the little head to make decisions for the big head. Did you really think that you wouldn’t get caught? Did you really think that some GOP opposition research guy or just someone who knew your secret wouldn’t eventually talk? Very poor judgment or very arrogant, either way you shouldn’t be trusted to hold public office. I’m angry because I once supported your candidacy. Your wife and family deserve better.The nation deserves better. Just go away now Mr. Edwards and let us be done with you.
gayinsf
Good point, EMB … if he had been the Democrats candidate and if this story had broken (as it surely would have) it would have ruined our chances. I personnally don’t give a crap that he cheated on his wife, he’s human and that’s between him and his wife.
Alexa
Oh please, people cheat all the time. Most of them just don’t get caught. JFK was a notorious cheat, yet that hasn’t sullied his reputation. And what about McCain and the awful way he dumped his first wife, yet he’s still running for president. In a year, this will so not be a big deal, especially if Elizabeth has already forgiven him (two years ago).
I’ll bet most of the people whining about this have cheated at some point.
damien
There’ so much I want to say, but I can’t get past the fact that The National Enquirer actually got a story correct.
emb
Alexa, it’s not the cheating itself I care about, particularly: that’s between him and his wife (and his mistress, too, I suppose). It’s the hypocrisy of being all pious about Heterosexual Marriage and then behaving like this, and the sheer, inexcusable self-centeredness of risking the destruction of the Dems’ chances to retake the White House by running for president while knowing this lurked in his closet and would be found out.
The cheating? Meh. That’s the least of the issues.
mark
The best all the Edwards could do is travel outside the US for a few months, either seperately or apart. Get out of the glare of the paparazi, it can’t be easy for any of you.
Charley
There is also a baby involved. He denies it is his, but he doesn’t seem to know how to tell the truth.
Tim
It’s HIS baby alright! He says (lies) that the affair happened too long ago for it to be his, but he was photographed with that woman and her child less than a month ago. That doesn’t sound anything like an ended affair to me, that sounds like baby-daddy making a visit.
Well, in any event, it’s nice to know that John is such an upright Baptist that he can’t get behind gay marriage. But, at least it doesn’t stop him from putting his tiny little pecker in any old hole he can find — as long as it’s a woman’s.
charlie
What’s new? Sex and love both make people do stupid things. Gay, straight, liberal, conservative, rich, poor, religious, non-religious – nobody’s above giving in to sexual temptation, given the right circumstances.
The worst part is the lying and the hypocrisy though. And it’s hard to sympathize much with people who flaunt their families and the family values.
But let’s not go overboard and get all huffy on this. The guy screwed around on his partner. And if we’re honest with ourselves, most of us have done it a time or two. (Be honest and don’t get all Mother Theresa on me!) I’m just glad I’m not running for office.
Tim
It’s not the cheating, it’s the rank hypocrisy and the repeated lying. John Edwards portrayed himself as Mr. Moral Baptist for God’s sweet sake. He was so Baptist that he had a real problem with GLBT people wanting to participate in the same institution he took a steaming dump on. He couched his opposition to GLBT marriage in his ‘faith’ and ‘values’ which we now know to be utter shams. Just another moralist who’s a lying immoral pig when he thinks he’s out of sight. All these moralist assholes are the same. All religious people, all hets, all shame-filled punks living double lives. They only reason they dump on us all the time is to make themselves look good, it’s all an act. People like Edwards aren’t a symptom, they’re the disease.
Rock
Right on, brother!
mark
John in the future, DON’T f*ckin judge gay marriages
Tom
The most unfortunate thing about this is that it has relevance. It serves no purpose for people to take private, sexual behavior and transform that into how Edwards would govern as a leader. The two are completely unrelated. Think about it, fucking and governing are two different things.
We all are horny, sexual beings and we would fuck the letters on this screen if we could, but then for everyone to pretend they don’t lust and have sex is naive and unrealistic.
How wonderful and strong his wife is? Come one, people. He had a mistress, big fucking deal.
The biggest problem is that in this country, he would have lost the lection or been impeached for fucking/getting a blow job.
If I were king, I’d fuck hm and his mistress.
hell's kitchen guy
I’d bang him.
Charley
The baby’s father is supposed to be a former campaign staff member. Seems weird. Were they having three ways ?
AJCanuck
He would probably argue that his opposition to GLBT marriage is not a sham but is completely consistent with his deeply held and devoutly expressed Baptist beliefs (and what a deep devotion it is!).
After all, in classical Christian moral theology, he committed a sin “according to nature” (i.e., with a woman) rather than a sin “contrary to nature (i.e., with another man). He committed a serious sin, but not a seriously serious sin. If he had had an affair with a man, that would have been a seriously serious sin. But he didn’t, so it isn’t.
All he has to do is to pray for Jeebuz to forgive him, and all of this will be washed away as if it never happened at all. It’s not as if he has to both ask for forgiveness AND pray to be healed of homosexuality. The Great and Omnipotent WooHoo is very tolerant toward heterosexual adultery. Not so much with the gay stuff.
Mr C
C’mon girls your criticism of him are very hard. Considering the “IN THING” for the Gays are “OPEN RELATIONSHIPS” Now isn’t that nice you can have a civil union, or marriage depending where ou live and still have a piece on the side….WHOO HOO
C’mon kids a mistake was made.
His wife knew this back in 2006. We just didn’t know. It happened he apologized lets move on.
WOW!! Clinton supporters he shouldn’t have a job in politics? What about your beloved Bill?
For real lets not be hypocrites. We all live in Glass houses and are busy throwing stones.
LOOK OUT your window could be next
Vicente Fox
Who the fuck cares?
Charley
He let down our men in uniform overseas. The moral of our troops in Iraq will suffer because they are not getting any fresh pussy.
Tim
AJCanuck,
I guess that’s why there’s no Commandment about adultery and there is one against homosexuality.
/sarcasm
Mr C
Actually Tim,
There is one about it
Thou shalt not covet one’s wife!
But I got the sarcasm out of it…LOL
Charley
I guess they get a pass on being stoned to death Leviticus 20-10. She wasn’t married. Quote King James Version – “And the man that commits adultery with another man’s wife, even he that commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.”
mark
Color me disappointed, I hoped to read comments how the resident unflushed turds made Edward’s affair reflect badly on Black people.
Churchlady step up to the plate
seitan-on-a-stick
An Unscientific Presidential POLL (kinda like Fox)
[ ] McCain is this year’s Bob Dole
[ ] Obama is the “Black†John Kerry
[ ] McCain will pick Condi as Veep for Checkmate
[ ] Obama will be a Bill Clinton two-termer
[ ] McCain will be like Papa Bush’s third term of Reagan
[ ] Obama will be ousted by Big Oil in one term
[ ] Bush will declare Martial Law to stay in Office
[ ] Obama will have an Affair in Office
[ ] Bill Clinton will hit on Michelle Obama
[ ] Hillary will run for President in 2012
[ ] McCain will Die in Office
[ ] Al Gore will return to complete his 2000 elected term as a result of civil unrest
[ ] Paris Hilton’s Thong will Run Up her Ass
Multiple answers allowed (and encouraged!)