Elizabeth Edwards has posted a diary at Daily Kos. As Jesus General rightly says, this is “the only commentary that matters”:
Our family has been through a lot. Some caused by nature, some caused by human weakness, and some – most recently – caused by the desire for sensationalism and profit without any regard for the human consequences. None of these has been easy. But we have stood with one another through them all. Although John believes he should stand alone and take the consequences of his action now, when the door closes behind him, he has his family waiting for him.
John made a terrible mistake in 2006. The fact that it is a mistake that many others have made before him did not make it any easier for me to hear when he told me what he had done. But he did tell me. And we began a long and painful process in 2006, a process oddly made somewhat easier with my diagnosis in March of 2007. This was our private matter, and I frankly wanted it to be private because as painful as it was I did not want to have to play it out on a public stage as well. Because of a recent string of hurtful and absurd lies in a tabloid publication, because of a picture falsely suggesting that John was spending time with a child it wrongly alleged he had fathered outside our marriage, our private matter could no longer be wholly private.
The pain of the long journey since 2006 was about to be renewed.
John has spoken in a long on-camera interview I hope you watch. Admitting one’s mistakes is a hard thing for anyone to do, and I am proud of the courage John showed by his honesty in the face of shame. The toll on our family of news helicopters over our house and reporters in our driveway is yet unknown. But now the truth is out, and the repair work that began in 2006 will continue. I ask that the public, who expressed concern about the harm John’s conduct has done to us, think also about the real harm that the present voyeurism does and give me and my family the privacy we need at this time.
It would be nice if that was the last word on the matter, although I rather doubt that’s going to be the case.
although I rather doubt that’s going to be the case.
Of course not. “Journalists” and wingnuts feed on this kind of stuff. They just have to reach into that well of bile frothing and bubbling in the depths of their loins, conjure up a sneer and let their in their inner harpy do the rest. I predict snide variations on “Stand by Your Man.”
Sorry, I just can’t get past the fact that my first choice of candidates would have handed the Republicans the perfect October surprise. I’m mad as hell that he thought he was somehow different, special, or too smart to get caught. If he would have been the nominee, we would almost certainly be inaugurating President McCain in January. Elizabeth may forgive him – that’s really none of my business. I will never forgive him for proceeding with his campaign with this (what should be private, but get real, it’s the US) skeleton in the closet.
After the whole Swiftboat campaign, I really don’t it matters.
What the Democrats have to do is start ratfucking themselves. It’s really long past overdue and there’s too much at stake.
sb. “…don’t think it matters.”
I hope they get some sense of peace.
The media should back away from them.
Being a politician is an ugly and abusing choice of career and most people have done things that the media would gladly splash across the newspapers if they were running for office.
In fact, I’m not sure I would want to vote for a politician that had absolutely nothing worth hiding. Makes it seem like he/she hadn’t yet lived their lives.
Dr. Prole — I can relate to that feeling. His behaviour was inexcusable and it was a betrayal of trust on more than just a personal level.
Still, “to err is human, to forgive divine,” as Pope said.
Liz has shown a sense of class here. This would not be an issue in the UK.
It would be better for him to have admitted his affair before the campaign launch. There are still questions. What was the reason for the payments to Ms. Hunter? This is the juicy part. Leads to further speculation and this is a similar to what Gatsby did to cover up for Daisy in that F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel.
Edwards will not be seen around the Democratic Party any time soon. Not that he had much political cred among the Obama people anyway.
Aeneas,
I am not sure about that. There are always these weird affairs over in the UK. Remember Cecil Parkinson, David Blunkett, Jonathan Aitken, and Jeffrey Archer?
Having had to go through infidelity in my own life I know how painful it is on the family and especially the spouse. there is hurt beyond comprehension, and the healing takes a long time. Having it brought up, and thrown in your face by anyone just brings it all back and makes the hurt resurface. And it causes some of that healing to go backward. I only hope that the edwards remain strong in their resolve to protect their marriage and family and to continue on a path to healing. The media has had their say,now it is time to let them solve this private problem, privately!
RT, when most of us err, the fate of the free world isn’t at stake. And I don’t listen to the pope.
I don’t listen to the one in Rome either.