Sunday Roundup
This week brought us the latest twists in the John Edwards infidelity story -- a story with many inconsistencies, which HuffPost began to explore last September. Edwards told ABC that he will have no more to say on the matter, but so many loose ends remain -- the incomplete birth certificate, the money paid to Edwards' mistress by his campaign's finance chairman, that blurry pic of Edwards and the baby he claims isn't his -- that more revelations seem inevitable. I've long pushed for a giant border fence separating public life and private lives. But the issue here wasn't Edwards' infidelity, it was his lying directly to the American people. The last thing we need is a sexual purity test for our politicians, but we desperately need political leaders whose word we can trust.
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The MSM furor over Edward's infidelity and lying about his private affair is absurd when viewed in the context of the horrendous lies perpetrated by the Bush administration upon the United States and the world. What a bizarre and lopsided set of values the media seems to embrace. It's mind numbing.
On the one hand, we have Edwards who lied about a private affair that he wanted to keep, well, private. On the other hand, we have a set of premeditated, institutional, Bush administration lies that have negatively impacted the lives of millions in real and devastating and measurable ways, causing hundreds of thousands of unnecessary deaths in Iraq and trillions in unnecessary additional U.S. taxpayer debt.
And then there are a whole, continuing series of other Bush/Chene
Where is the moral outrage over the Bush administration's systemic lies that have served to destroy so much that is so precious to us all?
I couldn't agree more and you've said it all perfectly.
I've been reading Ron Suskind's book...slo
I don't know how we got to this time and place, but I sure hope we can find our way back to sanity. Most of us miss that time when we were a respected and ethical country. I have a sense that the upcoming election is far more important than even the most sceptical of us recognize.
It's a turning point.....
Thank you for your insight.
It is a turning point for sure, MsDoc. It's an absolutely critical election. It will be devastating if we were to lose it. Obama must not be afraid to lambaste the Republicans for all of the serious harm and damage that they have done while simultaneously offering the electorate a new vision forward. It is amazing how much good or ill can be done from that one office -- the presidency. These past eight years have been pure torture. I'm sure that there are many who feel as I do -- that because of Bush and his policies, we have become unwilling passengers on a Titanic of sorts and that we can no longer cosmetically just change seats. We need real change and we need it fast. God help us.
All strong and valid points...b
You say it all very well, indeed, "Frappe"!
Those lies are ok, they weren't about sex.
Maybe we should just give up sex entirely. It's great economics, really. If we don't have a next generation then we don't need to worry about the load of debt we're leaving them.....
Isn't it unreasonable to expect honesty about a subject that is none of our business in the first place? One's reason to lie would be to protect one's loved ones. Often, that is the right thing to do.
I prefer to hear "My personal life is none of your business" from someone who has done this. Not lies.
arianna,
why don't you link to this site: http://www
everyone can enjoy intellectually impressive, fair and balanced bits like this:
http://www
-AND- bill-o and his lacks would be far more inclined to leave you alone, then perhaps, we can go back to speaking openly, honestly and truthfully to power and each other in comments and you can get a budget break by putting your wonderful moderators to more productive use.
I want to make it clear that I am in no way defending Edward’s infidelity or his lying in my earlier post. What he did was totally stupid and was a tragedy waiting to happen and he should have known better. But we have too much biased reporting by the neo-con corporate media who are working non stop to see that John McCain is elected. I see no reason why the HP should be jumping on the sensationalism band wagon and helping them. If you had proof that the story was true before the National Enquirer; you should have published your take on it, which I’m sure wouldn't have been so slimy. But being afraid of being sued, you waited, like the rest of the corporate media until Edwards confessed and then jumped all over it, giving the right wing nuts something else to spin against Obama. That’s cowardly and in my book as sleazy as what Edwards did. And stop this phony “feeling sorry for Elizabeth” nonsense. The constant news coverage is hurting her more than her husband did, who she has forgiven. Enough already!
Edwards lied about the affair, however his wife went along with it the stakes were high for him. personally i think too much emphasis is put on this story. i feel for them in this scandal god is their judge.and the people that spoke up on their behalf . however, when the republicans lie to the American public about going to a fictitious war and all the soldiers that have died, and the innocent Iraqi people that have died all for the sake of oil there's America we have a problem.
look what bush did to us took us to war for on false premises and he and Karl rove, Chaney are walking around so bold. with all the crimes the have committed and not being punished. and we make a big deal because he had an affair. the ted Stevens was indicted last week for criminal activities. it 's a shame that we have a talented contender for president who has to run against a sub standard, out of touch, unable to keep to it together candidate for president who constantly lies every time he open his mouth . my fear is the lies told will take into a third world war.
When did we start feeling that candidates owe it to us to tell "the truth" about their sexual infidelity? With consenting adults, that's private. 1) Presidents who were with other women: JFK / Eisenhower / FDR and then 2) the ones who weren't (or were thought not to be): Nixon / Bush Jr (Bush Sr famously had a rather open romance while president). So, what's the problem here? Do we want a good president? Or do we want a Reverend in the White House? (Seems our worst presidents did not have that particular outlet.)
To me, it's audacious that we feel we have a right to demand to know what office holders' private marital lives are -- whether they are 'faithful' to their spouses or not. Why shouldn't they 'lie' when asked that ? -- they don't owe us the truth. It's the spouses they shouldn't lie to but again that's a private matter between them. To the extent they have bad judgment because voters have become
puritanical and voracious in our questioning on this, that shows how out of balance things are when we are looking for people who will handle the duties of the job, which are complex enough on their own.
Now if campaign funds were used illegally, that's another matter.
But didn't it trouble anyone when Edwards made the decision to continue to pursue the presidency AFTER his wife had been diagnosed with a recurrence of cancer which this time would ultimately be terminal? Regardless of her urging him on, how could he have chosen to continue that campaign? This decision spoke volumes about his character. Real family values (as opposed to the phony baloney touted by Republicans) would mean not making choices which would put him on the world stage, with all of those responsibilities, when his wife could very well be in the end stages of a terrible disease.
And what about his poor performance against Cheney in the 2004 debates? I had so looked forward to seeing him take Cheney apart, this man who reportedly was a brilliant trial lawyer up against a Neanderthal like Cheney. But it didn't happen, that debate was a very unpleasant surprise and was revealing about Edwards as a political leader.
It was a source of continual amazement to me that he was regarded as a serious contender in the primary . Why was he taken more seriously as a leading competitor to Senators Obama and Clinton than accomplished heavyweights like Biden and Dodd? I don't get it.
I think it was because he had that "Presidential Look."
It has always mystified me that no one called Edwards a lightweight who isn't experienced enough to be President, when he ran on a far thinner resume than Obama. And by "mystified," I mean "not at all mystified because those words are just code words for 'black,' in Obama's case," but still.
Please be careful judging their decision to continue the campaign after she was found to have Stage IV cancer. How one chooses to spend the time they have left after learning they have terminal cancer is one of the few things left they have control over. When I had cancer I wanted to go to work more than I ever did when I was healthy! Because you believe he should have stopped the campaign and stayed home with Elizabeth does not mean he had bad character (in that case). Had I been Elizabeth I would have wanted him to continue, too. Trust me - when you think you are dying, you don't want everyone hovering over you just waiting for you to die. The more 'normal' your life can be, the better.
His character regarding the affair is another story.....
Since the media seems obsessed with its "fidelity tests", when will we begin to see what lies in McC's infidelity closet? Or is that a taboo subject for the MSM?
Or even better: reporters. I'd love to see all these people who keep harping on it to have their personal lives exposed.
Even if the subject of McC's infidelities are taboo for the MSM they aren't for the Huffpo, are they? I'd love to see some investigative work done by Huffpo on the numerous questions raised on this site.
Well said. I would add that there are political leaders who live and work to earn our trust everyday. Unfortunately, most of us lack a complete awareness of these honorable leaders because the media and blogosphere ignore and dismiss their efforts while politicians who are unworthy of our trust are given voice.
"His lying directly to the American people" and " Desperately need political leaders whose word we can trust"
No truer words written, this is when as a nation we should think critically of our leaders when they speak directly to us.
Words spoken by our leaders are not gospel, but to be challenged by us using our intellectual capacity to shift true and find the truth and look for the evidence within the words. In Edwards case all the evidence was there in his robust denial of the claims but because of mental laziness he was given the benefit of doubt.
Oh, give it up. Edwards can take a number and stand in line when it comes to "lying to the American people." He can get behind Bush, McCain, Cheney--and probably Obama as well (if you want to stretch the meaning of flip-flop).
Arianna : I find myself agreeing with every point you made above. Especially the part where " ... we desperately need political leaders whose word we can trust. " !!
( And I so liked John for AG in the upcoming Democratic Administration that will be moving into the White House next January. )
I wouldn't be suprised if this news pretty much truncates any of John's future political aspirations !
I certainly hope he gets his life together, and that nobody is hurt in any of this... Any more than they have already been hurt, that is. What a mess !
Oh well... We still have a Presidential election to win so, onward and upward !
More to follow. -ralph
"... we desperately need political leaders whose word we can trust."
That, Dear Lady, is a very tall order indeed. Politicians are most closely related to fishermen describing a lost catch. The truth is not in them. It's the nature of the beast, as it were. They are as young children, writ large.
There will come a time when mankind will look back upon these centuries and wonder at the lack of collective sense embodied in placing the power of nations in the hands of single individuals.
It's not the infidility, or even the lying. It's judgment. It's the fact that they, because Elizabeth was complicit, were willing to let the whole election explode into controversy and scandal and bring us all down with them. It was also that it was MY MONEY (I have contributed to Edwards for a while) that he gave that woman!! I am so pissed. All we need is another politico who can't keep his pants on or his priorities straightI. So much for the best AG ever. I was so looking forward to the hearings to come.
I don't care what people do in their personal lives generally, but the standards are different for a politician. They have to keep it zipped up or get out of politics or they risk killing their chances at winning or at getting things done, which makes them useless as politicians. It's not fair and it's not right, but it's what the American public demands. I find it disgraceful that someone like Edwards goes out and begs for campaign donations then has an affair which he knows may kill his chances at winning the election. Whose money was he spending anyway? He jeopardized his chances and knew it. That makes him the worst kind of loser in my book.
I have a TS clearance. If I was having a secret affair and had an illegitimate child born out of that affair, it would be grounds for my clearance to be rescinded. It's risky, unwise behavior, so it would speak poorly for my suitability for cleared work, and it's blackmail material, besides. I see no reason why the President should be subject to looser standards for his clearance than I would be for mine.
Arianna Huffington is correct on this. The arrogance of the trial lawyer and former candidate is appalling.
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