A lawyer for former Senator and presidential candidate John Edwards said Friday that the Democrat has broken no law and that the Justice Department’s case against him was “unprecedented.”
“In the history of the federal election campaign law, no one has ever been charged, either civilly or criminally, with the claims that have been brought against Senator Edwards today,” former White House Counsel Greg Craig told reporters.
“No one would have known or should have known or could have been expected to know that these payments would be treated or should be considered as campaign contributions. And there is no way that Senator Edwards knew that fact either,” Craig said.
“He will enter a plea of not guilty. He has broken no law. And we will defend this case vigorously,” Craig added.
Craig previously said in a statement that while Edwards “has done wrong in his life,” he did not break the law. Edwards is expected to speak after his appearance in court this afternoon.
Read the indictment against Edwards here.
Ryan J. Reilly
Ryan J. Reilly is a D.C.-based reporter for TPM. Prior to joining TPM, he worked for a news website covering the Justice Department and was a researcher for Bloomberg News. His email address is ryan(at)talkingpointsmemo.com.
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