John Edwards

Judge Won't Toss John Edwards Campaign Finance Case

Ryan J. Reilly | October 27, 2011, 10:52AM

John Edwards

Updated: Oct. 27, 11:34AM

A federal judge in North Carolina has declined to dismiss campaign finance charges against John Edwards. The case is set to proceed to trial in January, according to the Associated Press.

Edwards' lawyer argued Wednesday that the case was politically motivated and shouldn't move forward.

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John Ensign

John Edwards Defense Strategy: But What About John Ensign?

Ryan J. Reilly | October 27, 2011, 6:00AM

John Edwards

Lawyers for former Democratic presidential candidate and Senator John Edwards have a question for the Justice Department officials prosecuting his case: what ever happened with that whole John Ensign thing?

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Anthony Weiner

Weiner Faces Mounting Legal And Ethics Questions Over Sexting Scandal

Susan Crabtree | June 7, 2011, 12:13PM

Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY)

Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) may be in far more ethical and legal trouble than initially thought.

New information about Weiner's use of Congressional resources to conduct extramarital online relationships -- and possibly to help manage the chaotic public relations fallout since their discovery over Memorial Day weekend -- is raising red flags for ethics watchdogs.

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John Edwards

John Edwards Plea Deal Undone By Prospect Of Jail Time

Eric Lach | June 6, 2011, 10:01AM

Former Senator John Edwards (D-NC)

Prosecutors made a final offer to John Edwards before he was indicted last Friday, but the former senator and presidential candidate could not accept the prospect of jail time, according to a report in The News & Observer. The deal would have avoided felony charges for Edwards, making it possible for him to keep his law license. But in exchange for pleading guilty on three misdemeanor campaign finance law violations, prosecutors wanted a sentence that would result in up to six months in prison.

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John Edwards

Could Old Dem Divorce Loan Boost Edwards' Legal Case?

Ryan J. Reilly | June 3, 2011, 5:27PM

Former Sen. John Edwards (D-NC)

The feds say former Senator and presidential candidate John Edwards had a wealthy donor give money to his mistress because his campaign relied on his image as a family man.

But the Edwards camp has a pretty strong -- if sleazy -- rebuttal: he would have asked the friend to give money to his mistress even if he wasn't running for president to keep her and the child they had together hidden from his wife.

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John Edwards

John Edwards: I've Done Wrong, But I Did Not Break The Law (VIDEO)

Ryan J. Reilly | June 3, 2011, 3:35PM

Former Senator and presidential candidate John Edwards just made a brief statement to cameras outside of a federal courtroom in North Carolina where he pled not guilty to charges he skirted campaign finance laws when he used donor money to cover up his affair.

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John Edwards

John Edwards Lawyer Greg Craig: 'He Has Broken No Law' (VIDEO)

Ryan J. Reilly | June 3, 2011, 2:33PM

Former Senator John Edwards (D-NC)

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."

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Rielle Hunter

How John Edwards' $400 Haircut Lead To Alleged Illegal Donations

Ryan J. Reilly | June 3, 2011, 12:25PM

John Edwards

It was April 2007 and Bunny Mellon, a then 96-year-old wealthy supporter of former Sen. John Edwards, was angry over how the media was over-blowing the news that the North Carolina Democrat got a $400 haircut.

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John Edwards

Feds: John Edwards Skirted Campaign Finance Law To Cover Up Affair

Ryan J. Reilly | June 3, 2011, 10:31AM

Former Senator and Presidential Candidate John Edwards

As expected, former Senator and Presidential candidate John Edwards has been indicted by a grand jury.

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John Edwards

Reports: John Edwards Facing Indictment Today

Ryan J. Reilly | June 3, 2011, 8:32AM

John Edwards

Former Senator and Presidential candidate John Edwards will face criminal indictment today for allegedly violating campaign finance laws unless a last-minute deal is reached, ABC News reports.

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John Edwards

With Reports Of An Imminent Indictment, John Edwards' Attorney Issues Defiant Statement

Susan Crabtree | May 25, 2011, 6:20PM

Rielle Hunter with her baby, and John Edwards

After reports that Sen. John Edwards (D-NC) is on the verge of being indicted for using campaign funds to cover-up an extramarital affair, his attorney Wednesday issued a defiant statement impugning the legal underpinnings of the government's case.

The statement suggests that Edwards, a onetime presidential contender, is either taking a firm stand in plea negotiations or outright fighting the charges and will opt for a trial instead of agreeing to plead guilty for a lesser charge.

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John Edwards

Report: Obama Justice Department Green Lights John Edwards Prosecution

Ryan J. Reilly | May 24, 2011, 11:45PM

Rielle Hunter with her baby, and John Edwards

The Obama administration's Justice Department has given federal prosecutors the go ahead to prosecute former Senator and presidential candidate John Edwards, ABC reported late Tuesday.

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John Edwards

Feds Near Decision Point On Whether To Indict John Edwards

Ryan J. Reilly | February 15, 2011, 11:05AM

Former Presidential Candidate John Edwards

After a two-year grand jury investigation into former presidential candidate John Edwards, federal prosecutors are reviewing the final evidence in what they believe is a strong case against the former Senator from North Carolina, NBC News reports.

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Westboro Baptist Church

Westboro Baptist Church To Picket Elizabeth Edwards Funeral

Ryan J. Reilly | December 9, 2010, 11:12AM

A member of the Westboro Baptist Church protests at a military funeral.

A Kansas-based church known for its high-profile protests of service members' funerals is planning to show up at the memorial service for the late Elizabeth Edwards, the group said Thursday.

The Westboro Baptist Church's website said the group will hold a protest on Saturday from 12:15 p.m. to 1 p.m. at a memorial for the Elizabeth Edwards, the wife of former Senator and 2004 vice presidential candidate John Edwards. Edwards, a lawyer and health care advocate, died Tuesday after a six-year battle with breast cancer.

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John Edwards

New Subpoenas Issued In John Edwards Campaign Probe

Ryan J. Reilly | October 7, 2010, 11:49AM

Former Presidential candidate John Edwards

Federal prosecutors have issued a new round of subpoenas in their probe of John Edwards' campaign finances -- giving the investigation seemingly stalled for a year fresh signs of life, the Associated Press reported.

Lawyer Wade Smith told the AP that he learned from other attorneys and sources that several new subpoenas were issued, but declined to discuss who received the subpoenas or what those subpoenas were seeking. Smith did not immediately return a message left by TPMMuckraker, and Justice Department spokeswoman Laura Sweeney said the department was declining comment.

But according to CNN Producer Raelyn Johnson, prosecutors are casting net "much wider than they did a year ago."

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Nancy Pelosi

Pelosi Pulled Strings For Man Who Funded Edwards' Mistress

Ryan J. Reilly | August 30, 2010, 3:02PM

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi allegedly pulled strings to help a major Democratic donor, Fred Baron, get access to an experimental drug after the manufacturer refused to give permission to use the drug to treat his bone marrow cancer. Though it wasn't public at the time, Baron was simultaneously bankrolling the relocation of John Edwards' pregnant mistress, Rielle Hunter.

Fred Baron, known as the "King of Toxic Torts," built a fortune suing on behalf of asbestos victims, and died shortly before Election Day 2008 at age 61. He served as financial chief for John Edwards and it later came out that he'd been funneling money to Hunter. At the time Pelosi intervened, his role in bankrolling Hunter and her daughter with Edwards was unknown.

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Sex

The Best Sex-Scandal Haikus

Zachary Roth | November 27, 2009, 12:52PM

The entries in our sex-scandal haiku contest are pouring in. Here are a few of our favorites:

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Mark Sanford

TPM Reader Challenge: The Sex-Scandal Haiku!

Zachary Roth | November 27, 2009, 11:46AM

The Los Angeles Times notes that a text sent by Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) to his girlfriend is just one syllable away from being a haiku -- the Japanese poetic form that consists of five syllables in the first and third lines, and seven in the second.

Wrote Ensign to his beloved:

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Ken Starr

Strange Bedfellows: To Weaken Campaign-Finance Law, Starr's Group Defends Edwards Backer

Zachary Roth | November 19, 2009, 11:25AM

Ken Starr

A heavy-hitting group of conservative lawyers led by Ken Starr and Ed Meese is jumping to the defense of a Democratic trial lawyer and major John Edwards backer.

No, Starr, Meese et al. haven't suddenly undergone a political conversion. Instead, they see a chance to undermine campaign-finance laws they never supported in the first place.

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