Dan's Papers - August 17, 2007 - John Edwards And His Wife Campaign Here

It was the loveliest of August summer afternoons in the Hamptons. The glow of a beautiful Sunday's sun reflected on the swimming pool as the guests sipped chilled white wine and Perrier water. I was in attendance myself, a little out of my element. I watched the soon to be former wife of a Beatle talking about her experience dancing on national T.V. I listened to the present Tony-Award-winning actress for Best Female Lead talk about her next job, my buddy was talking to perhaps the number one rap music mogul about politics and there was even one of the girls from T.V.'s hit series "Sex In The City" there, acting shy.

Why was everyone there? To support and hear the message of Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards. Senator Edwards, wearing a tailored blue shirt, arrived late because of traffic problems -- after all, it is August in the Hamptons. The surprise for me as a seasoned political observer was not the talent of John Edwards, but the force of his wife Elizabeth. As has been reported, she spoke of her bout with cancer, only saying that she was just with the children in Italy and she feels fine.

Dennis Erdman, a T.V. director/producer had been asked to organize a fundraiser for the Edwards campaign at his Spaeth Lane home off of Further Lane in East Hampton. Dennis had invited me, because he knew I was not committed to John Edwards but was interested in presidential politics -- something I had studied at both George Washington University and Georgetown University. I attended the fundraiser with a completely open mind and without intimate knowledge of the candidate. Being a political junkie who once did some polling for a presidential campaign while in college, I knew Senator Edwards' poll number, number 3 nationally, behind Hillary Clinton and Senator Obama, but most electable against all the Republican candidates. So, I went to the event to see how Senator Edwards believes he will win the nomination. That is, until Elizabeth Edwards spoke.

There is something about the words of a young mother looking certain death in the eye. Something about her convictions. Something about what makes her smile and what makes her concerned for the long term. I never realized this woman, who dated John Edwards at Law School in North Carolina, was a very convincing speaker. Her commands of the facts were beyond that of the usual political wife. She was charming but deliberate, stern but friendly. What she most of all was convincing, not that John Edwards was going to win it all, but that she believed he was the best candidate for the country, that barring a miracle, she would soon be leaving behind through death. These two have a wealth beyond the adding up of coins -- a wealth of conviction that something better needs to be done for everyone in this country, especially the underprivileged, from whose ranks John Edwards came.

She looked everyone in the eye and told us all he was ready to do what must be done, what can be done and why. She explained why the other candidates, who are friends, good committed people, do not measure up to her husband. Her tone was quiet, convincing, deliberate and effective. Perhaps she was the one who schooled him on how to win over a jury. Perhaps it was her fires that sparked him to seek new heights. Everyone in the room listened to every word she said. There is something about her words that convey truths about living and the future -- our futures.

John Edwards is a polished political speaker. He nodded to his wife while making his points on why he will bring America back to the people and our prestige back to the world. He answered all the questions directly, from immigration to animal rights. He spoke of the Iraq quagmire and his thoughts on what must and can be done. But most of all, he personified the values so many preach about when they talk about the partnership between husband and wife. In a room filled with politics, there was love between a husband and wife who are fighting the good fight together. They have already won the most important battle -- being true to what they believe and being true to each other. In Elizabeth's eyes, her husband is worth a $400 haircut and she would work overtime to get the money to pay for it. Elizabeth Edwards did not steal the show, she just made it worth watching.