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John Edwards to hold press conference

post #1 of 38
3/22/07 at 12:52am
Thread Starter 
Press conference is scheduled for tomorrow (Thursday) and his wife Elizabeth will also be there.

He might be getting out of the race and could be due to Elizabeth's health deteriorating.
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post #2 of 38
3/22/07 at 3:31am
He never had a chance.
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post #3 of 38
3/22/07 at 3:44am
I knew he'd be coming out.
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post #4 of 38
3/22/07 at 3:51am
I think he's an asset to the party. I hope all is well.
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post #5 of 38
3/22/07 at 8:54am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jesse The Mind
He never had a chance.
This amazes me. Being Canadian, I'm no expert about US politics but Edwards seemed to be the only Democratic candidate who was running on a platform of ideas instead of image or brand recognition.

I especially liked how he was always talking about ending poverty. I know it's an exageration, but anything that can offset the social imbalances in North America would have been welcomed.
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post #6 of 38
3/22/07 at 9:30am
I think he had a chance if he could have made it to the primaries.

My theory has always been that Hillary and Obama will end up destroying/canceling each other out allowing for a less-showy, but grounded guy like Edwards to take the lead.
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post #7 of 38
3/22/07 at 9:41am
You'd be surprised how much he was actually in the game, but off the radar. He has a great grassroots/ground team in the early (well, once early) primary states. Obama and Clinton were getting all the press, but Edwards was the one out there meeting with primary voters for the last year. He was also locking in support from major groups in the background. Damn shame about his wife's condition. I respect him even more if he stops the whole campaign to focus on his wife. Very honorable.
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post #8 of 38
3/22/07 at 9:53am
Quote:
Originally Posted by donde
Damn shame about his wife's condition. I respect him even more if he stops the whole campaign to focus on his wife. Very honorable.
Honor's got nothing to do with it, sadly. If his wife does have a recurrence (which I hope is not true), he would have no choice but to pull out.

After all, if he stayed in despite bad medical news, then he'd be no better than Newt Gringrich. After all, Newt asked for a divorce from one of his wives while she was in the hospital for cancer treatment. Wotta guy.

I think the race is more interesting with Edwards in it than not. Obama vs Hilary is already starting to get dull.....
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post #9 of 38
3/22/07 at 12:35pm
I heard about this over on Drudge. Definately some terrible news in regards to his wife. While I wasn't crazy about his policies, you still don't want to have someone contend with that. Not to mention the extremly screwed up way their first son died.
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post #10 of 38
3/22/07 at 12:38pm
This sucks. Edwards w/ Obama as Veep was my campaign of choice.
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post #11 of 38
3/22/07 at 12:46pm
His own fault for jumping in so early.
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post #12 of 38
3/22/07 at 12:55pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by devincf
His own fault for jumping in so early.
Only Devin could blame this on him, while his wife is battling cancer.

I know nothing of Devin's family or life experiences, but if aren't familiar cancer can come and go pretty quick. Just yesterday I talked with a guy who was in remission for fifteen years, feeling great. Goes to the doctor for a normal check-up and BAM, monster flare-up and now he has less then 20% chance of survival. His wife may have been fine and recently relapsed.

Devin is always cold and matter of fact - but the above statement seems rough, even for him.
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post #13 of 38
3/22/07 at 1:09pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Brian Wehman
Only Devin could blame this on him, while his wife is battling cancer.

Devin is always cold and matter of fact - but the above statement seems rough, even for him.
And your point would be?

We all know what kind of person Devin is. He's left tens of thousands of posts as raw evidence. You take the stuff you like, like his reviews and interviews, and flush the rest.

In other words....forget it, Jake, it's Chinatown.

I'm no fan of Edwards and his dead-baby-channeling ways, but I never wished ill upon him and his family.
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post #14 of 38
3/22/07 at 1:14pm
I assume Devin was being sarcastic.

But from what reports are saying Edwards is going to suspend his campaign. What he should do is suspend, have her die then run for Vice President under whomever and play it as it's what his wife would have wanted.*

* joking of course... but it wouldn't surprise me if it happens.
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post #15 of 38
3/22/07 at 1:42pm
Her cancer has returned but Edwards will continue with the campaign.
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post #16 of 38
3/22/07 at 1:42pm
I'm not being sarcastic. His run for president is probably over, for good. That's because he announced so early - if he had not announced and his wife had gotten sick they could have dealt with the illness and taken another look at their options in eight months. Maybe treatment would work. Maybe not. But now he's out, whatever happens. It could be that he'll be able to jump back in if the wife's condition improves, but I think the momentum is gone. And his next announcement, should he make one, won't be exciting to the press.

This is just one of the reasons why this new two year election season is a disaster. Who knows what happens in June to any of these people? A personal scandal that could have been dealt with quietly becomes huge when you're running. A response to a national situation that would have never made the papers suddenly makes or breaks your very early campaign.
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post #17 of 38
3/22/07 at 2:11pm
I agree. I found it quite odd that Clinton and Obama were announcing their intentions so early. I never understood it. Like people have said, how long can the Obama love stay strong for? He's popular now but in the summer? Like you said Devin his next announcement won't be so happy and then he'll pull out. He'll be too concerned with the loss that he won't be able to focus on the campaign. I guess all he can do now is try and get attention to some causes to help pull people to the Democratic side.
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post #18 of 38
3/22/07 at 2:15pm
A written statement would have been something he should have had on hand to fall back on. I understand the circumstances of the situation, but his announcement was completely jumbled, he was fumbling all over his words explaining the what his wife was going through.

I also agree that this 2-year election cycle is ridiculous.
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post #19 of 38
3/22/07 at 2:27pm
His wife actually spoke better than he.
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post #20 of 38
3/26/07 at 10:58am
I was eating lunch when the announcement came on the television there at the restaurant. I thought the whole thing was just kind of strange. Having a press conference, the weird, "happy" expressions on their faces while talking about this--it was all just very peculiar to me.

And you're right, there will be no good news of his wife being "cured", as bone-mets has no cure. All they can do is prolong her life with treatment. My wife is a breast cancer survivor, and bone-mets is her biggest fear, because it will just suddenly appear out of nowhere, and there's nothing you can do about it once it's onset.
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post #21 of 38
3/26/07 at 5:35pm
I really don't see how he can do this with his wife's condition. I think the average person will look at this and think that Edwards would rather spend his wife's last few years shaking hands with strangers at a pig roast in Des Moines than with her and their family. I don't think the public will focus on his dedication as much as his ambition.

Yes, he's getting some desperately-needed attention for this, but ultimately it won't play well. Also, who doesn't think that if his wife's condition worsens dramatically in the next year that he will pull out of the race? What big donors are going to line up behind a guy whose candidacy faces a huge, seemingly inevitable stumbling block in the near future? John Edwards is done.

* Edit: If Edwards somehow wins, I expect this post to be resurrected and shoved directly into my face come November '08.
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post #22 of 38
3/26/07 at 5:53pm
My dad had bone cancer. It was an all-encompassing project to take care of him. It took my mom, my sister, myself, and the good hospice people that would visit to help us out with him. And that was over the space of a year.

If John Edwards wants to continue to run for president, that's his perogative. But if this is indicative of his mindset he maybe shouldn't be president. His wife will need him far, far more than the American people will.
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post #23 of 38
3/26/07 at 6:02pm
That's one way of looking at it but I think you need to come from her mindset. I find both of the Edwards amazingly easy to believe. They don't come off as your typical political bullshitters and I actually believe that they want to make this country better than it is. So, when Elizabeth says that she's unwilling to allow her illness to stop her husband from running for president, I really think that she feels that way. Also, it's something about not allowing the illness to win. There's something to be said for saying "fuck you, I'm not going to let this get in my way". I think it's important to her that he's not going to give up.

It's entirely possible that he knows he doesn't have a chance and that he's just doing it for her.
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post #24 of 38
3/26/07 at 6:07pm
If anyone has ever read anything on Edwards' wife, then they'll know that she would just as soon smack Edwards upside the head if he said he was going to stop the campaign to just sit around and "spend her remaining days with her". Please. As has been said, the cancer in its current form is only treatable and sitting at home and walking on eggshells isn't going to change anything. People deal with situations like this everyday by continuing to work and Edwards is doing the same. He said he's going to be with her almost all the time and they're rich enough to get the best treatment no matter where they are.

I agree with Devin that this earlier campaign season seem ridiculous, but there have been polls recently showing that a surprising majority of Americans are actually tuned into what's been going on. Edwards entered early probably because he knew that his chances were lower to begin with and needed more time to gain ground. That's why he's in the lead in current Iowa primary polling. There's still a long way to go and who knows what will happen.
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post #25 of 38
3/26/07 at 6:24pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by donde
If anyone has ever read anything on Edwards' wife, then they'll know that she would just as soon smack Edwards upside the head if he said he was going to stop the campaign to just sit around and "spend her remaining days with her". Please. As has been said, the cancer in its current form is only treatable and sitting at home and walking on eggshells isn't going to change anything. People deal with situations like this everyday by continuing to work and Edwards is doing the same. He said he's going to be with her almost all the time and they're rich enough to get the best treatment no matter where they are.

I agree with Devin that this earlier campaign season seem ridiculous, but there have been polls recently showing that a surprising majority of Americans are actually tuned into what's been going on. Edwards entered early probably because he knew that his chances were lower to begin with and needed more time to gain ground. That's why he's in the lead in current Iowa primary polling. There's still a long way to go and who knows what will happen.
There's a difference between continuing to go to your 9 to 5 job and committing yourself for 19 more months of the most grueling, expensive, stressful, public, and time-consuming job interview in the country. I can understand the sentiments you, GFC, and the Edwardses have said might be or are behind their decision. I just think it is unrealistic to think he can campaign and raise money the way he needs to while his wife's condition worsens.
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post #26 of 38
3/26/07 at 6:24pm
It's their lives, and if that's what they want to do, more power to him. And cancer affects people differently, that's true.

But I know what I saw, and what I went through. It was 20 years ago, so maybe the drugs are much better now. Maybe she won't be in agonizing pain for months on end, or be unable to walk. But if she really feels strongly about him running, I hope she's right, because I like John Edwards and before all this he was my man for the primary. He may still be, I'm not sure yet. I just have a really hard time with this personally, because my mom and my family couldn't run to the store without making sure everything was okay, much less run for president.
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post #27 of 38
3/26/07 at 6:37pm
Of course it's unrealistic. When you're facing death, though, I think concepts like 'unrealistic' are thrown out the window.

Like I said, I wouldn't be surprised if Edwards is just doing it for her sake.
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post #28 of 38
3/26/07 at 7:36pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jonvoight's car
I just think it is unrealistic to think he can campaign and raise money the way he needs to while his wife's condition worsens.
There's no idea on how her condition will develop in the near future. As she said at the presser, the cancer is treatable. This is the same as for people with HIV. Both are terminal, but there's medicine out there now that makes a person's life livable. Hell, there are chemo drugs out now that don't have patients lose their hair. As I've said, they can get access to the best (i.e., most expensive) treatment and there's nothing to say that she's gonna be on her deathbed by this December.
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post #29 of 38
3/26/07 at 7:41pm
I wouldn't completely discount the idea that Edwards' handlers decided that this could be good for his campaign. I don't know that they would say it to him in quite that way, and I doubt that he's the kind of person who would use it to those ends. But political handlers are generally cockroaches.
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post #30 of 38
3/27/07 at 6:56am
I can see where Devin's coming and I wholeheartedly agree with the two year election cycle...but yet while I wasn't really caring much aout Edwards, I respect the grassroots campaign and building a lot of support from different groups...

but what I find funny, with all these major democratic candidates battleing each other out...I still see them all canceling each other out and another republican taking the white house.
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post #31 of 38
3/27/07 at 7:17am
You'd better be knocking on wood while crossing yourself and throwing salt over your shoulder when you say that, or I'm going to beat you.
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post #32 of 38
3/27/07 at 7:52am
hey I'm as liberal as can be...but when it comes to presidential elections, if the democrats can't rally a truly good nomination....then we're simply and utterly fucked.
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post #33 of 38
3/27/07 at 12:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Marc Wrz
but what I find funny, with all these major democratic candidates battleing each other out...I still see them all canceling each other out and another republican taking the white house.
The thing is, one of them will emerge as the winner. Unless the fight is so bitter that the loser's bloc refuses to get behind the eventual nominee, the Dems will probably be pretty united come convention time.

The Republicans, on the other hand, face a real revolt on the right if either McCain or Rudy gets the nomination. There is no real, legitimate conservative candidate who has emerged so far with a real chance to win. Romney is the closest, but is not viewed as a "real" conservative due to his past positions and comments while running for office in Massachusetts. Brownback? Hunter? No one has heard of these guys in their own home states. Someone like Pat Buchanan (but probably not Buchanan himself) could probably gain a lot of support as a conservative 3rd party candidate. That would mean split Republican votes and a Democratic win.
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post #34 of 38
3/27/07 at 12:52pm
As far as the whole race is concerned, I will go on recard and say McCain and Clinton are the two biggest, pandering whores in the race right now. This of course means that they are the two who are most likely to get the nomination for their respective parties.
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post #35 of 38
3/27/07 at 2:36pm
White House Press Secretary Tony Snow's cancer has returned! Way to steal the Edwards thunder Bush Administration!
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post #36 of 38
3/27/07 at 3:47pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Brendan
White House Press Secretary Tony Snow's cancer has returned! Way to steal the Edwards thunder Bush Administration!
Oh, yeah. I'm certain Snow's cancer has been kept in the back pocket for just such an emergency.

I suppose that's why Bush has twin daughters, so if something happens to Chelsea (remember her? No one else does either) they can off one and still have a spare.

Speaking of Chelsea, I wonder how she's gonna do in the brave new world of the media. She was untouchable back during dad's run. Now, I can't see that happening at all.
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post #37 of 38
3/27/07 at 4:13pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dr Vivisector,
Speaking of Chelsea, I wonder how she's gonna do in the brave new world of the media. She was untouchable back during dad's run. Now, I can't see that happening at all.
If any of the reports about her (i.e., her work, personality, etc.) lately are true, then she's learned from her parents quite well and will be a shark in the future should she ever decide to run for public office.
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post #38 of 38
3/27/07 at 4:17pm
I don't know, if I had Tony Snow's job right now, I think I'd look at recurring bowel cancer as stroke of blessed providence.
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