Former presidential hopeful John Edwards was more "a spectator than a participant" at a 2007 meeting wherein his now-deceased wife, Elizabeth, railed at two political donors because they'd maintained ties to his mistress, Rielle Hunter.
Jennifer Palmieri, a former aide to Edwards who's now the White House deputy director of communications under Barack Obama, said Elizabeth Edwards was angry at Fred Baron and his wife Lisa for taking Hunter on a shopping spree.
"Rielle Hunter was a loose cannon and Fred and Lisa thought it was important to maintain the connection going," Palmieri said, in describing the 2007 meeting at a hotel in Davenport, Iowa, at which she was present.
"Elizabeth just wanted Rielle out in their lives entirely," she said.
John Edwards, 58, is accused of violating federal election laws by soliciting greater than $900,000 in illegal campaign contributions, mainly from Baron and heiress Rachel "Bunny" Mellon, as he pursued the presidency in 2008.
The federal government contends that he sought money to hide the affair, knowing revelations that he was cheating on his cancer-stricken wife and had fathered Hunter's child would destroy his campaign.
At issue is whether or not John Edwards knew information about efforts by campaign supporters to maintain the affair from being publicized through the campaign, or only became conscious of them much later, as his lawyers have claimed.
The government says the cash need to have been reported as political donations since it was meant to offer protection to Edwards' image and candidacy.
The defense argues that the payments were from one private third party to a different and shouldn't be characterized as campaigned contributions.
Edwards has pleaded not guilty. He faces as much as five years in prison and a $250,000 fine on each count if convicted. The trial is in its third week.
Prosecutors said they expected to conclude their presentation today. and submitted an inventory in their final witnesses, which failed to include Hunter.
From WhatNewsToday.net
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