Hey, don't take my word for it regarding John Edwards....

This is what Paul Waldman has to say, of Gadflyer.com fame:

On Edwards
Paul Waldman (2:48PM) link

Before I get into this, let me say that for a number of reasons, I will not be giving public support to any Democratic presidential primary candidate in 2008. Just about all of them have a lot to commend them. But it's no secret to anyone who has read my latest book (join the dozens who have read it!) or been a faithful reader of The Gadflyer since 2004 that I have a soft spot for John Edwards.

So here's something to think about. Back in 2004, when Kerry had the nomination sown up, a friend told me about a conversation he had with a Republican pollster. My friend asked the pollster what they would have used against Edwards had he been the nominee. The pollster's reply was essentially, we got nothin'. They tried attacking him for being a trial lawyer, and it didn't work with their survey respondents. They couldn't find any line of attack that had any real impact.

Why doesn't the standard "He says he's for regular folks but he's really a rich guy" attack work? Because it almost never works. People just don't resent politicians for being rich alone. When the attack works, it's because the politician in question seems out of touch or elitist, not just because he's rich. Here's a secret: in America, everybody wants to be rich. And frankly, Edwards is the kind of rich guy we all want to be - someone who came from modest circumstances, got rich because of his talent, and never forgot where he came from. Candidates get punished for not being like regular folks because of who they are and what they do, not what they've got. George H.W. Bush got pilloried for his wonderment at seeing a supermarket scanner when they had been in operation for years - he didn't seem able to relate to ordinary people during a time of recession. The "elitist" attack worked on John Kerry because he did stupid things like allow himself to be photographed in activities ordinary people can't afford, like windsurfing. The actual contents of either man's bank account were irrelevant. Edwards may have a big house, but when he talks about poverty or the struggles of the middle class, it sounds completely sincere to all but the most committed wingnut.

And consider this as well: you can bet that the GOP opposition research team went over his life with a fine tooth comb once he became the VP nominee. If there were any deep dark secrets in his closet, they would have found them.

Again, I'm not trying to get you to vote for Edwards. When you think about it, the current crop of announced and prospective Democratic candidates is a pretty extraordinary group in terms of experience, knowledge, and talent. There are a bunch of good choices there.

But as we get into one more round of discussions about electability, try to keep in mind that choosing the person who looks most electable on paper is a losing strategy. That's who Kerry was: war heroism, deep policy resume, etc. And look how that turned out.

A Hesitant Start...

I hesitate to start now because I don't have a website yet, but I'm excited about promoting my outlook and healing practices this way. I hope that you'll be patient because I'm going to take this slowly....