Writing about Edwards makes me feel as if I've pawed through a garbage dump. I always want to wash my hands afterward. I knew after 3 days of deliberations by the jury that they'd either be hung or acquit him. The fact that John Edwards was acquitted on only one of six counts of campaign finance fraud and conspiracy while the judge declared a mistrial on the five other charges speaks to the complexity of the case and the prosecution's failure to adequately explain Edwards' crimes to the jury. New York Times: "I did an awful, awful lot that was wrong," he said. "I am responsible. I don't have to go any further than the mirror. It's me and me alone." But he was not guilty of using campaign funds to hide those sins, he said. Certainly, Mr. Edwards has lost in the court of public opinion. But on Thursday he was vindicated, for the moment, by a jury of mostly working class North Carolinians who could not reach a verdict on the five charges of campaign finance fraud and conspiracy he...(Read Full Post)