John Edwards trial jurors: Panel majority wanted to acquit

[1monster]

16. I think John Edwards probably is the man he could have been, should have been and would have been --

but he is also human.

I do not doubt that John and Elizabeth had a loving and committed relationship. Afterall, they were married for many years and shared common goals which they worked for together through the good time, the bad times, and times of tragic loss. They supported each other.

My personal belief is that the Edwards should have pulled out of the Presidential race as soon as the cancer came back and tended themselves first. But remember, Elizabeth wanted that presidencey as much as John did. When one member of a family is ill or has a major problem, the whole family sufferes from symptoms, espcially the spouse. And no one is necessarily thinking clearly.

It is sad that in the final chapter, the stresses of the presidential run and the return of Elizabeth's cancer allowed the vulnerabilities of their bond to be exploited by predator Rielle Hunter. Once Edwards succumbed to temptation, a whole new bag of crises opened up -- "Oh what a tangled web..." In attempting to hide his failure, Edwards opened the door to many more problems.

But I doubt that it changed who he was in the past, or what he believed or the good he tried to do or what he believed or his basic character. We all have weaknesses. (Or let he who is without sin cast the first stone.)