Posted on 01/01/2003 11:16:22 PM PST by 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.
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Associated Press writers Ron Fournier in Washington and Scott Mooneyham in Raleigh contributed to this report.
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On the Net:
Edwards' Senate Web site: http://edwards.senate.gov
By REBECCA MILLER Associated Press Writer
Copyright 2003 Associated Press, All rights reserved
Yeah, baby!
It would be very sweet indeed to have an '84-style win (except this time I'd like to expand the majorities in the Senate and House), and its a worthy goal to work towards. I'm just saying let's not get overconfident about our chances nor underestimate the danger of someone like Edwards, especially when the media is on his side as it obviously is or likely will be. We were overconfident about Bush I and Clinton blindsided us. Everyone was salivating over the prospects of taking on Clinton and his excess baggage, thinking it would be a cakewalk to blow away a womanizing, no-substance empty suit "pretty boy", then being chagrined that the sheeple would vote to throw out a good and decent man with a genuine record of accomplishment.
People will vote their pocketbooks in '04, like they always do. I know it takes time, but all the rate cuts and tax reductions haven't turned things around yet. I understand the business cycle and how the economy tends to be cyclical, and that no President has or ever will "run the economy", but my fear is that most of the sheeple don't, and will punish whomever is in office at the time when they think things are bad. If the economy is still in the tank in '04, I can envision Edwards laying claim to Clinton's "legacy" of the (false) "boom years of the '90s", and the press mouthing the line "are you better off now under Bush than you were (and will be again with President Edwards) under "President Clinton"? I really hope things will turn around by '04 and events prove my fears groundless.
"(12/21/02) The Washingtonian magazine takes a look at the spouses of the potential 2004 Democratic contenders and how they stack up.
The take on Edwards: She "is shaping up to be a hybrid of the past two first ladies, blending the Southern charm of Laura with the moxie of Hillary (she's whispered to be "the smarter one" in the marriage ...)."
Ha!
Beating him on both counts would be a double blessing. One less trial lawyer in the Senate (not to mention the Presidency) would be a very good thing indeed. Is NC one of those strange states where a candidate can run for two offices at one time? If so, it would be fun to make John-boy a two-time loser in a single election cycle.
Well isn't this nice.....another co-presidency. I also think that they've confused 'moxie' with 'b*tchiness'. Moxie....along with being a tasty soft drink...is defined as "The ability to face difficulty with spirit and courage". Ain't nothing courageous about riding your husband's coattails to a Senate victory and being a liberal in the most liberal state in the union.
Now, if Hillary! wants to go to Texas and talk about gun control.....that would be showing some Moxie.
So true. They'll snuggle up to Kerry also.
Being from NC, Edwards would fair better than Kerry nationwide. It's a crap shoot who wins their primary.
You're right about that. What baggage he does have, that of being a trial lawyer, is of concern and obvious to people like us at FR who understand the deleterious effects these creatures have in a free economy/society, but my concern is that most of the electorate doesn't know or care. In any case, I predict that the Rats will attempt to neutralize that my saying something like "yeah, well, sure, he's a trial lawyer, but in his case, that's a good thing because he fights for and cares (there's that word again) for The Little Guy", blah blah blah. Combine that with his college-boy looks, young kids and wife, and the sucker moms will get all hot and wet over him, the unions and lawyers will eat it up, and the media will have a field day contrasting it with how Bush II "is only interested in foreign policy". When Edwards starts talking about "focusing like a laser beam on the economy" and signs on Carville to set up another "It's The Economy, Stupid" War Room, I'm going to start checking the date to make sure its not Groundhog Day.
I have---Hillary.
Crawford was filled with high spirits over this announcement. He declared that the clintons back Edwards and that he is considered a potential running mate for hillary.
I think his candidacy it taken lightly at our peril.
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