Turn of Phrase - Dramatic Testimony In the Joyless Case of John Edwards

Cheri Young
Wife of ex-aide to Edwards
Photo: dailymail.co.uk

"I felt like everything had been dumped in my lap. Everybody was on board but me. ... I didn't want the campaign to explode and for it to be my fault. I ultimately decided to live with a lie."

- From the tearful testimony of Cheri Young, wife of a former John Edwards campaign aide, explaining why she lied to cover up Edwards' 2008 mid-primary extramarital affair. 

Young and her husband Andrew have admitted to conspiring with Edwards to misappropriate about $1 million in campaign donations, much of which the couple used to support Edwards' pregnant mistress.

Edwards' trial is underway in North Carolina, and the former senator faces six charges related to campaign-finance violations. He has entered a plea of not-guilty on all counts.

Few contemporary political figures have suffered as monumental a downfall as John Edwards, and the fact that his saga has been brought about by his own shameful actions makes it only slightly less tragic. 

The prominent Democrat's epic slide from legit presidential contender to philanderer to liar to criminal has all occurred in the span of a few short years. Throw his wife Elizabeth's death from cancer into the mix, and even the most vicious and hard-hearted Republican (Dick Cheney's current role) would have to feel a sense of pity for Edwards. 

If convicted, Edwards faces up to 30 years in prison and $1.5 million in fines. That $400 haircut doesn't seem like such a big deal now, does it?

Newt Gingrich Can't Quit Because He Thinks Too Much of Himself

Photo: AP/ Jose Luis Magana

Imagine you're running for President of the United States of America.

After almost a full year of campaigning, you've won 2 of the 29 state primary contests, you've spent more cash than you raised, and you've admitted that it is mathematically impossible for you to amass the number of delegates needed to win your party's nomination.

What would you do?

Reasonable human beings would acknowledge that their ideas failed to adequately ignite the passions of voters, and that their campaign lacked the support and structure needed to win. Rational people would graciously step aside, and allow the electoral process to unfold naturally.

Pompous egomaniacal blowhards, however, would apparently take a different tact. They would forge ahead pointlessly, cutting their staff by one-third and reducing their campaign activity, while simultaneously shifting their focus to behind-the-scenes manipulation of the Republican political machine.

Newt Gingrich honestly believes he is one of a handful of politicians who can save America, one of the few who is smart enough, skilled enough, and tough enough to see us through the next four years. He thinks his answers are better than anyone else's, and what's more, he is likely stunned that the rest of us can't see that. Newt cares too darned much about this great nation of ours to let it fail, or so he thinks.

In light of Gingrich's ongoing delusions of grandeur, I think it's time for an intervention. I think it's time for Newt to take someone else's advice, for a change. The time has come for Newt to get a heavy dose of the truth, whether he likes it or not.

The reality is the former House Speaker is delusional and sad. He is an arrogant and egomaniacal man, who in the face of a fair and honest beatdown at the hands of Mitt Romney, is holding out hope against all odds that he can steal the Presidency of the United States. And when his efforts to cheat his way into the White House are unsuccessful, he will secretly wish us all a fast trip to Hell in a handbasket, and pity us for our ignorance in not recognizing him as our own best chance at survival. So be it.

Give it up, Newt. Your time has come and gone long ago, and no one wants to play with you. Pack up your toys and your bloated bag of big ideas, and just go home.

Fun Facts About Newt's $10 Million Dollar Man

1. Sheldon Adelson has made two donations totaling $10 million to Newt Gingrich's Super PAC.

2. According to Forbes, Adelson is the 8th richest man in America. He is also the self-proclaimed "richest Jew"in the world.

3. He made his fortune in the casino biz and he is the CEO of the Las Vegas Sands corporation.

Campaign finance experts indicate Adelson's individual contributions are among the largest in American history. Should we care? Hell yes.

I acknowledge the fact that there is likely no getting the money out of politics, but I don't accept that the first amendment protects the rights of individuals, corporations, and unions to make UNLIMITED donations in support of a single candidate. But, that's the law since the Supreme Court handed down a ruling known as "Citizens United" in January 2010.

This landmark judicial decision prohibits government from putting limitations on "independent" campaign spending, meaning people and corporations cannot dump their cash directly into a campaign's coffers, but they can contribute whatever they want to a candidate's Super PAC. Super PACs, which are legally unaffiliated with formal campaigns, often operate for the sole purpose of supporting a single candidate, and they are typically run by political operatives who are former employees of a candidate's campaign team.

The "Citizens United" ruling overturned decades of campaign finance law, and blew a giant hole in the structure that existed to ensure singular donors, individual or corporate, did not wield undue influence in the political process.

Romney's "Baggage" Ads Annoy Newt

I'm writing this post mostly because, like Mitt Romney, I'm interested in anything that will piss off Newt Gingrich. Romney and his Super Pac supporters have "gone negative" against Gingrich with their latest campaign ads in Iowa, and the former Speaker of the House has been whining non-stop about it.

From what I can ascertain, the former Speaker's complaints are not rooted in concerns over campaign ethics (Newt has no professional ethics legs to stand on), nor are there issues with making the campaign personal (Newt has no actual feelings to protect). Instead, Newt's opposition to Romney's negative media burst must stem from more practical concerns, like the ad campaign's effectiveness and Gingrich's declining poll numbers in Iowa.

Romney's response to Gingrich's vociferous objections to the negative ads is a simple that one I can support - Tough sh*t, Mr. Speaker.

I kind of enjoy the ads, but you can evaluate one of them for yourself. I give you "Baggage," starring Newt Gingrich.

(Oh yeah, gay people...no need to waste your time watching this ad. Mr. Gingrich has already provided your marching orders. Just vote for Obama.)

Rick Perry Throws the Anti-Gay Hail Mary Pass

Texas Governor Rick Perry has launched a new ad campaign attacking President Obama and his alleged "war on religion."

Unbelievably, Perry's campaign posted this video to YouTube, but forgot to turn off the like/dislike function. As of this writing, there were just over 4,000 "likes" and more than 200,000 "dislikes."

Perry, who finds himself unable to gain ground on his top conservative rivals since poor debate performance catapulted his poll ratings over a steep cliff, has done what Republican Presidential contenders always do when they are unable to gain even the smallest amount of traction - they throw the family values Hail Mary pass.

With a struggling economic recovery, a nearly unsolvable budget impasse, a dysfunctional Congress, and the Arab spring/awakening, you would think Perry would have plenty of critically important issues to focus on, and to his credit, he has made some effort to do so. After all these months on the campaign trail though, the lack of enthusiasm generated for Perry's flat tax economic plan is matched only by the absence of coherence in his approach to foreign policy.