People like Amanda Marcotte never lose their jobs. They just get their job titles changed and get assigned to duties outside the public eye. I'll bet you anything she's still working for the Edwards campaign as a consultant, incorporated under an anonymous, innocuous name. I wouldn't be surprised if Edwards himself didn't help set it up for her.
The "voluntary" golden parachute is the only way to go... through three or four layers of institutional cut-outs, natch.