John Edwards Is a Cad, His Wife's a Partner In Grime

Wed, 06 May 2009 08:30:43 +0000 – By Michael GoodwinNew York Daily News Columnist/FOX News Contributor

The news that federal prosecutors are investigating John Edwards' presidential campaign payments to his mistress brings a sense of satisfaction. The phoniest man in American politics is finally getting the comeuppance he so richly deserves.

With his $400 haircuts and investments in predatory lenders, all while saying ending poverty was a "moral issue" and the "cause of my life," Edwards set new standards for hypocrisy as he sought the Democratic nomination. His contrived compassion was a joke among rivals.

And that was before we learned he had an affair with a campaign aide.

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Yet any sense of justice served is complicated because the saga involves his feisty wife, Elizabeth. Bad enough she was betrayed by her husband. She also has incurable bone cancer.

She was battling breast cancer when she learned of his affair in late 2006, just days after he announced his candidacy. Recall that she lost her first son in a car accident years ago and the temptation is to shout, "Leave the poor woman alone."

That's easier said than done. After all, Elizabeth Edwards helped to perpetrate a fraud on voters, namely, that her husband was fit to be president.

To read Mr. Goodwin's complete column, click here.