Disgraced former presidential candidate and North Carolina Sen. John Edwards (D) is back in the news, as a new book by Obama campaign manager David Plouffe reveals that Edwards offered both Obama and Clinton a stunning quid pro quo: an endorsement in return for a the VP slot.
Following the New Hampshire primary and Nevada caucuses, Edwards still had not won a single contest. Obama’s momentum, meanwhile, had stalled following Clinton’s upset victory in New Hampshire, despite polls that showed her losing decisively. The Edwards camp, realizing that their candidate was effectively out of the running by this time, tried to convince Plouffe that Clinton could only be stopped by a united Obama/Edwards team. An Edwards campaign official tried to make the case that their candidate could “vouch for Obama with blue-collar and Southern whites and is running on a change message.”
In retrospect, such a proposition seems absurd, given all we now know about John Edwards — and Obama’s performance on Super Tuesday and thereafter. Indeed, Obama dismissed the deal out of hand, according to Plouffe.
Yet at the time, Clinton was still seen as the overwhelming favorite, and the polls showed no evidence of the 30 point victory Obama would eventually claim in South Carolina. In fact, that contest was believed to be fairly close, and a loss there — on the heels of Clinton’s victories in New Hampshire and Nevada — was believed to be catastrophic, even campaign-ending, for Obama. Clearly, Edwards viewed the scenario this way, and saw at least the glimmer of hope.
H/T: Christina Bellantoni
Late Update: An Edwards staffer has confirmed Plouffe’s account to The Plumbline’s Greg Sargent.
Matthew Spieler
Matthew Spieler is a former policy analyst for Congressional Quarterly, where he covered health care, education, labor, and veterans’ affairs. A graduate of The George Washington University, he has also worked as a reporter for CQ covering ...
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