Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Assessing John Edwards' Comeback Chances

Atlantic polls image-makers on how to repair the damage

By Will McCahill,  Newser Staff

Posted Feb 7, 2010 9:59 AM CST

(Newser) – John Edwards’ public image hit new lows the past week, but the likes Richard Nixon, Eliot Spitzer, and Michael Milken have made successful comebacks, the Atlantic notes, in polling political spin doctors about Edwards’ comeback chances:

  • Bob Shrum: "The reality is so contrary to the image that he projected,” says the veteran of Edwards’ 1998 Senate and 2004 vice-presidential campaigns. “I regret that I was complicit in picking him.”

  • John Weaver: No chance, says the Republican. His advice? “Buy a satellite dish and move to the island where the Bounty crashed in the South Pacific.”
  • Peter Mirijanian: “The American public likes a feel-good story, they like a story of redemption,” the public-relations exec says, so make a beeline for Oprah. And Edwards must “do the one interview. And I think it has to be a visual medium. I don’t think the full-page story in the New York Times cuts it.”
  • Anonymous: Wait until cancer takes away the constant reminder of wife Elizabeth. “I honestly don’t believe he can make a true comeback until well after Elizabeth has passed away,” says the you-can-see-why-he/she-wanted-anonymity consultant. “As long as she is alive, his comeback chances are dead.”
For more advice, check the link at right.

Former Sen. John Edwards and wife Elizabeth are seen in a 2009 photo.
Former Sen. John Edwards and wife Elizabeth are seen in a 2009 photo.   (AP Photo)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
My TakeCLICK BELOW TO VOTE
9%
4%
21%
4%
6%
57%
To report an error on this story, notify our editors.
A snapshot of the day's best news stories.
 
COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 44 comments
freethemall
Feb 9, 2010 2:54 AM CST
Well I got 1 thumb down. so far on, the above comment, which I will assume is from cbossi 1. Since (s)he didn't choose to reply to my query, I will reply for him or her: "Yeah, Gingrich also cheated on his terminally ill wife, but he never pretended to be anything but an ass hole, whereas Edwards pretended to be a nice guy, who cared about those living in poverty. That's the difference. Am I right, cbossi?
Cher
Feb 9, 2010 1:56 AM CST
Edwards doesn't have a snowballs chance in hell for a comeback.
hankhill
Feb 8, 2010 7:30 AM CST
hang him high

More Newser Stories

Edwardses Candid in Oprah Interview


NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   Betty Confidential   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   Fark   |   Timelines   |   The Frisky   |   Geek Sugar   |   NewsOne