John Edwards: The Boy From Robbins

To be blunt, Johnny Reid Edwards is a flower among the political realm's weeds. A devoted husband, a loving father, and an overall good man who grew up poor (unlike many politicos) and can relate to the everyday individual, his odyssey began in Seneca, SC on June 10, 1953.
The Edwards family moved to Robbins, NC, where his father Wallace worked in a textile mill and his mother Bobbie worked at several jobs. As early as age 11, John already knew what he wanted to do - to become an attorney - and even wrote an essay titled "Why I Want To Be A Lawyer." In high school, he lettered at four sports - football, tennis, track and basketball - and briefly attended Clemson University on a football scholarship. He went on to complete his Bachelors in Textiles at North Carolina State University, then headed for UNC-Chapel Hill's Law School, where he met Elizabeth Anania, who not only became an attorney in her own right, but went on to become John's wife.
In the courtroom, John specialized in plaintiff law after a beginning in the corporate realm. His most notable case was that of a young girl named Valerie Lakey, who ended up permanently disabled after a swimming pool drain sucked out her intestines. *side note: Miss Lakey was one of John's last clients before he entered politics.*
In 1998, John entered politics for the first time, and he did it in a big way: He ran for the U.S. Senate against Lauch Faircloth, a Jesse Helms protege who'd held the seat a number of years. And despite the odds - the most notable among them being that North Carolina is as conservative a state as you can get - John won.

Upon coming to the Senate, John's courtroom skills were put to good use. He deposed Monica Lewinsky during the Bill Clinton impeachment hearings, coauthored the Patients' Bill Of Rights, served on a number of Senate committees, and served as a voice for North Carolina in a way that Jesse Helms couldn't touch. Another thing that many (including your humble webmistress) noticed about John were his drop-dead gorgeous looks. Athletic (he is said to run five miles a day) and telegenic, with a beautiful, soft drawl, a silky shock of reddish-brown hair, a cute babyface, and big blue eyes, he looks far younger than his 51 years...in 2000, People magazine named him their "Sexiest Politician" in their "Sexiest Men Alive" issue - and no politician has made that list since.

In 2003, John kicked things up a notch by making a run for the Presidency of the United States. His message was positive, but to the point, stating that special interest groups should be "cut off at the knees" and that he would do more for health care, the economy, and the War on Terror. He even had the best catchphrase of all the candidates: "I'm the guy that can beat George Bush ANYWHERE in America. In the North, in the West, in the Midwest, and TALKIN' LIKE THIS, IN THE SOUTH! You give me a shot at George Bush, and I will give you back the White House!"
Unfortunately, John's positivity wasn't enough to derail Massachusetts Senator John Kerry's momentum during the 2004 primaries. But he wasn't done, oh, no. In July 2004, John was named Kerry's vice-presidential pick and locked up the VP nomination at the Democratic National Convention several weeks later. Many critics say that Kerry picked John as his running mate because of his sex appeal alone - sex appeal that the comparatively wooden Kerry lacks. Me, I think it was because John was the best possible guy for the job - PLUS the fact that he's sexy as hell.

Okay, I'm being partisan here. Kerry can play his guitar and ride his Harley all he wants, but he will never be sexy in my eyes. A smart guy, yes, but not sexy.

THIS is sexy.

This AIN'T.
Anyway, where was I?
The 2004 Election didn't turn out that great, I'm sad to say. Kerry and Edwards lost, meaning we'll have to suffer through four more years of the Bush administration. On a sadder note, John's wife Elizabeth was diagnosed with breast cancer the day they conceded the election, and right now John's primary focus is to get her well. Having lost most of my family to cancer, I sincerely hope she pulls through this. Elizabeth is a truly wonderful woman, and she and John deserve many more years together.

John and Elizabeth have had four children: Wade, Cate, Emma Claire and John Atticus, nicknamed "Jack". Sadly, Wade was tragically killed in a 1996 car crash, not far from the family's beach home on Figure Eight Island on the North Carolina coast. Cate, a recent graduate of Princeton University, now works for Vanity Fair magazine. Emma Claire, 6, and Jack, 4, attend school - and after Elizabeth's treatments are completed the Edwards family plans to relocate to a farm near Chapel Hill, NC.
Where he goes from there, all I can say is, God bless him.

Read the John Edwards: The Boy From Robbins guestbook
Sign the John Edwards: The Boy From Robbins guestbook

Johnny Reid, And Johnny Reid-Friendly, Links

A grassroots page supporting JRE
The HOT POLITICS blog
Women For John Edwards group at Yahoo!
Lovemarks.com now has our boy!
What makes John Edwards so damn sexy? My thoughts...
What JRE's doing now...

A Few Of JRE's Favorite Things...

Diet Coke - he drinks a LOT of it! (well, he used to...)
Double cheeseburgers
"Butter Burgers" - hamburgers with a pat of butter on them
Anything sweet, as long as there's ice cream involved
Watching cartoons with Emma Claire and Jack

Email: britcomgirl33@yahoo.com