Since the former Democratic Presidential candidate John Edwards admitted to having an extra-marital affair, bloggers from around the world following the story have largely focused on two major issues: First, the sad irony of a politician having an affair while his wife, Elizabeth, fights breast cancer; Secondly, the role the mainstream press played in keeping the story silent.
A few reporters admitted they knew of the candidate’s infidelities with a videographer long before John Edwards provided proof in a recent statement [1] from Chapel Hill, North Carolina. In fact, the supermarket tabloid National Enquirer had been reporting the story for nearly a year [2]. Now that it has proven true, at least some members of the mainstream media establishment are soul searching and shocked [3]that they sat on it for so long, especially when papers such as the New York Times reported [4] on the alleged affairs of presumptive Republican nominee for President John McCain.
For reid (1053) [5], a commentator at Kiwiblog, not reporting the story doesn’t prove the impotence of the mainstream press in the United States. Rather, holding “scandals†over candidates’ heads anoints the media as kingmakers.
The media have got enough to screw either McCain or Obama and it just depends which one those who control the agenda want to become POTUS. I said in Jan/Feb that the media will hold the dirt on Obama until about 4 weeks before the vote when it’s too late to do anything about it. (I imagine that homosexual trysts fueled by cocaine will be enough to prevent the first black candidate from being elected.)
At present that prediction still stands but as Adolf has pointed out on No Minister, Shillary hasn’t released her delegates and that’s an interesting wild card. Note though that there’s dirt on her too.
I find it amusing that some people really seem to think the US elections are free and open. They’re anything but.
One of the reasons the story stayed in the news — at least the supermarket press — is that Reille Hunter, the object of Edward’s affection, became pregnant out of wedlock. (Hunter gave birth to a daughter on February 27, 2008.) Edwards, once a Senator from North Carolina, said he is not the father of the child.
A minor debate in the blogosphere targets the fallen image of John Edwards, who was once seen as a charismatic politician who this election cycle helped push working-class poverty to a more prominent place in the political debate.
Shiloh Musings [6], a blog in Israel, writes:
I remember how upset people were when it was revealed that JFK (and the other men in the family) weren't loyal to their wives. It's so hard to keep one's illusions, to believe what we see. I feel sorry for the young.
Over at the Cuban-American blog babalú, there’s plenty of talk about two-faced Democrats [7], who have now gown through two major infidelity scandals in the past decade: “Good old liberals….every hair in place during TV speeches…But after 5:30 PM, some R&R.”
On the other hand, Egypt’s own Rantings of a Sandmonkey [8] considers himself an Edwards fan, stating “ I like my politicians the way I like my lawyers- scummy, fake, manipulative and pretty.â€
Sandmonkey, however, holds out no compassion for Elizabeth Edwards, who after the 2004 election, learned she had breast cancer.
But before you feel bad for his wife, please take a minute and chill. Don't think she is a victim. Ok, so she has cancer, that makes her a cancer victim, but come on, u get the idea. She knew of the affair in 2006 [9], and still supported his running for office in 2008, knowing full well that if that thing exploded around general election time- and of lookie, it just did- the chances of the Dems winning the presidency would've been close to nill. But she went ahead anyway, aware of the affair, and keeping her mouth shut, defending him, appearing everywhere, using her cancer to guilt people into donating to their campaign and most recently to get herself a speaking gig at the convention- in order to get that coveted female terminal cancer victims whose husbands cheated on them demographic, it's soo important- and a Think Tank job. The woman's ambition and complicity puts Hillary's to shame, and now that Hillary knows that, she is probably glad that Elizabeth has cancer.
Dove’s Eye View, a blog from an Arab-American, who is also a cancer survivor, has a suggestion for those who think Elizabeth Edwards will crawl under a rock after this very public incident.
Press coverage of her often includes comments that “she's dying.” Or they talk about how bad her prognosis is.
Fiddlesticks.
Elizabeth Edwards is living. First of all, I have been on Femara, which seems to be what EE is taking based on the Vanity Fair profile; my experience is that it's very easy to tolerate. You take a pill every day. Big deal. Elizabeth's cancer is not spreading and she is doing what she wants to do. She has problems. But she is living her life. And so am I.
I meet women all the time in the chemo ward who have been living with metastatic breast cancer for YEARS. One lady has had it for twelve years.
I am LIVING with cancer, and so is Elizabeth Edwards. Don't write us off.