Reply #36: Russ nails it. This is my *exact* problem with Edwards.

[Tatiana]

When you had the opportunity to vote a certain way in the Senate and you didn't, and obviously there are times when you make a mistake, the notion that you sort of vote one way when you're playing the game in Washington and another way when you're running for president, there's some of that going on.

Now I don't necessarily think that Edwards was "playing the game." I think he really did believe the way he voted on those issues like the Patriot Act, IWR, NCLB, etc. Either he really believed in that legislation, or he wasn't smart enough to see what the impact of such legislation would be. Of course, not everyone is a Wellstone or a Feingold, but it sure helps if the President has a knack for that sort of thing.

To a lesser extent, I feel the same way about Hillary.