Sen. Edwards Announces White House Run

AP | 1/02/03 | REBECCA MILLER

[kattracks]

RALEIGH, N.C., Jan 02, 2003 (AP Online via COMTEX) -- Democratic Sen. John Edwards will run for president in 2004, telling guests at a party at his home Wednesday he will form an exploratory committee.

The first-term senator from North Carolina told about 200 friends he will announce his plans publicly Thursday, said Walter Dellinger, a former U.S. solicitor general who attended the New Year's Day party.

Edwards' guests gathered in his back yard while the senator thanked them for their support during his time in the Senate and in "what I'm going to do next."

As he spoke, a loud cheer went up.

"John was talking about where he wants to lead the country," Ed Turlington, a former state Democratic party executive director, said afterward in describing the announcement. "He asked for our support. Our answer was yes."

Edwards' announcement gives him the jump on several of his colleagues in Congress who are also expected to join the Democratic field in 2004.

Vermont Gov. Howard Dean and Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry are already running, and associates expect Missouri Rep. Dick Gephardt to announce he's running within the next week.

Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman is leaning toward a run, though he hasn't set a timetable for his decision. Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle is still talking with supporters with a plan to decide by mid-January, and Florida Sen. Bob Graham has said he will decide this month.

Edwards, 49, a millionaire former trial lawyer, has spent months making the rounds at Democratic functions in Iowa, New Hampshire and elsewhere.

Standing with his youngest children, 2-year-old son Jack and 4-year-old Emma Claire, Edwards said before the party started that his family was uppermost in his mind as he considered whether to run.

"I've been thinking about North Carolina and the nation and what effect it's going to have on my family," he said.

He is scheduled to appear on NBC's "Today" show Thursday morning to make his announcement official. He also has two fund-raisers scheduled for Saturday in Raleigh.

Edwards would be up for Senate re-election in 2004, a factor that had to be weighed in making a decision on the presidential race.

Edwards' move toward a run has drawn a lot of attention. He was an early hit with Democratic activists who saw him as telegenic and able to connect with voters.

The last three Democratic presidents - Lyndon Johnson of Texas, Jimmy Carter of Georgia and Bill Clinton of Arkansas - have been from the South.

Edwards grew up as the son of a textile mill employee, born in South Carolina but spending his teenage years in Robbins, N.C. He became a successful trial lawyer in Raleigh, winning personal injury cases against big companies and amassing a fortune of $14 million.

---

Associated Press writers Ron Fournier in Washington and Scott Mooneyham in Raleigh contributed to this report.

---

On the Net:

Edwards' Senate Web site: http://edwards.senate.gov

By REBECCA MILLER Associated Press Writer

Copyright 2003 Associated Press, All rights reserved

[Constitution Day]

You don't wanna know.

Happy New Year, bud!

[null and void]

• AGE-BIRTH DATE: 49; June 10, 1953

OH DEAR GOD, NOOOOOOOOOO! I'm older than him!!!

[ConservativeDude]

"Walter Dellinger, a former U.S. solicitor general who attended the New Year's Day party. "

Dellinger is an extreme, left wing nut case who was never SG, b/c Helms wouldn't let him be confirmed. He was acting SG. This really pisses me off.

I also just read about how Frist yet again intervened in an auto tragedy to assist the hurt. One of my thoughts was that if Edwards had been there, he would have been handing out a law firm business card (apparently there was a tire blow out). What different people Frist and Edwards are.

[maxwell]

Thanks, happy New Year to you too dude!

Edwards sounds like a putz. I know I recommember reading something retarded about him, probably here on FR...

[null and void]

Now imagine 10+ years of Her Royal Clinton...

[Servant of the Nine]

Edwards gives me flashbacks. I swear to God he has Glen Campbell's 1969 hair.

Yeah, but he's not as eloquent.

So9

[Mo1]

Now imagine 10+ years of Her Royal Clinton...

That ever happens .. we are DOOMED!!

[RightWhale]

Bush is going to be in big trouble if the economy is tanking in 2004, there is another big terrorist attack, and he's still dragging his feet on preventing illegal immigration.

Adding 10,000 border agents won't solve any problem. It's like Clinton's adding of 100,000 police to the streets of the cities. What did that do?

[johnny7]

10+ is right. Republican males and females will have forced neutering.

Only one branch of govt. will continue... HILLARY!

She would disolve the House, Senate and Judicial... elections? Why! They take up too much time and money.

IT'S FOR THE CHILDREN!!!!

[wbill]

Whatta nightmare.

I don't know if she's electable......she ran for senate in an ultraliberal state, against a sacrifical lamb of a candidate who entered the race late and whose only platform was "Vote for me because I'm not her!"......and she still didn't win in a landslide. I think that it finally wound up 55% - 45%.

Everyone here is still right, though. Much better not to give her the chance to suprise the country. God knows what dirt she has on potential opponents.

[Mo1]

Both his regional origins and his vague ideology may well boost Edwards outside of the south. Remember that many states now have open primaries in which independent voters can choose either a Democratic or a Republican ballot on primary day. Assuming that Bush is breezing through the GOP race, these voters will grab a Democratic ballot. Many of them may respond well to a youthful, attractive candidate who doesn't sound stuffy or scary.

BINGO ... It's the Indendant's they are after

[null and void]

I don't sleep well. What can I say?

[Servant of the Nine]

The Lib/Dim press is just desparate to find someone, anyone, who can win and they will think they have found that in this homo who, frankly, has little baggage.

MAYBE

The reporter covering the anouncement on PMSNBC this morning commented that if Edwards didn't get the nomination, he could always join a "Boy Band".
Even the liberal press thinks he is a joke.
And the reason Kerry has had trouble getting traction is that the entire Washington Press Corps despises him.

The press will certainly get on board for the Democratic nominee, but they are gonna beat these clowns bloody during the primaries.

So9

[AlwaysLurking]

The national press did not take Clinton serious for a long time either....trust me....the Dims do not have anyone else they can, one, afford to waste if Bush continues to be strong, and two, to rally behind....they won't rally around the northeasterners, Kerry et al....And I am not convinced the Kerry wants it.

[Servant of the Nine]

The dems want Kerry for the nomination. He looks like Abe Lincoln w/o the beard.

The Dumbocrats tried that in '72 with Ed Muskie.
"The Man From Maine" was the frontrunner till everyone from Garry Hart to Hubert Humphrey to George McGovern beat him like a gong. Then Nixon buried them all.
They've brought back every other loser of the last 30 years, so maybe '04 is Muskie's year.

So9

[AlwaysLurking]

The case that helped make John Edwards rich was the one where the little girl had
part of her intestine sucked out in a pool drain.

She got a big settlement,
read he got BIG $$$.

Note however, that he is one of the very few senators who
voted against the ban on partial birth abortion,
where little baby girls & little
boys get their brains sucked out.
Oh, that's o.k.
What hypocrisy!!!

[Servant of the Nine]

The case that helped make John Edwards rich was the one where the little girl had part of her intestine sucked out in a pool drain.

Note however, that he is one of the very few senators who voted against the ban on partial birth abortion, where little baby girls & little boys get their brains sucked out.

Oh, that's o.k.
What hypocrisy!!!

That is not to say he wouldn't be willing to sue abortionists if the money was right.

So9

[Mamzelle]

How is it that's he's so old with such young children? Did he adopt, or did he marry a young wife? How old was the child who died in the car accident?

[kcvl]

In 1993, a five-year-old girl named Valerie Lakey had been playing in a Wake County, N.C., wading pool when she became caught in an uncovered drain so forcefully that the suction pulled out most of her intestines. She survived but for the rest of her life will need to be hooked up to feeding tubes for 12 hours each night. Edwards filed suit on the Lakeys' behalf against Sta-Rite Industries, the Wisconsin corporation that manufactured the drain. Attorneys describe his handling of the case as a virtuoso example of a trial layer bringing a negligent corporation to heel. Sta-Rite offered the Lakeys $100,000 to settle the case. Edwards passed.

Before trial, he discovered that 12 other children had suffered similar injuries from Sta-Rite drains. The company raised its offer to $1.25 million. Two weeks into the trial, they upped the figure to $8.5 million. Edwards declined the offer and asked for their insurance policy limit of $22.5 million. The day before the trial resumed from Christmas break, Sta-Rite countered with $17.5 million. Again, Edwards said no. On January 10, 1997, lawyers from across the state packed the courtroom to hear Edwards' closing argument, "the most impressive legal performance I have ever seen," recalls Dayton. Three days later, the jury found Sta-Rite guilty and liable for $25 million in economic damages (by state law, punitive damages could have tripled that amount). The company immediately settled for $25 million, the largest verdict in state history.

More importantly, our attorneys helped the Lakeys in urging North Carolina to pass laws to better protect children in swimming pools. These laws have become a model for the nation. The story of Valerie's case received international publicity. In 1997, John Edwards and David Kirby were awarded the Steven J. Sharp Public Service Award by the Association of Trial Lawyers of America for their representation of Valerie Lakey.

Kirby & Holt, L.L.P., is unique in North Carolina with its own full-time staff of Registered Nurses. Our nurses provide valuable assistance with medical issues in your case.

[kcvl]

Kirby & Holt Leads Large Verdicts and Settlements List Again

The legal publication North Carolina Lawyer’s Weekly recently published its 2002 list of the largest verdicts and settlements in the state over the past year. Once again, Kirby & Holt led the way with the most large verdicts and settlements. Of the 54 recoveries of $1 million or more reported statewide, Kirby & Holt had 10 cases on the list. The firm with the next largest number had 5 cases. Since the firm was founded in 1993, it has led the list in the number of large verdicts and settlements reported by Lawyers Weekly in every year but one.


Since the firm was founded in 1993, our representation has led to numerous record-setting recoveries, including:

Largest personal injury verdict in North Carolina
Largest personal injury settlement in North Carolina
Largest medical malpractice verdict in North Carolina
Largest birth injury settlement in North Carolina
Largest verdict in the U.S. in a workplace violence case
Largest product liability verdict in North Carolina