It's obviously too late for this argument but I was thinking that the Reason Edwards

[Quixote1818]

tended to vote more centrist when he was in the Senate was because he was a Senator in ultra conservative North Carolina! For Christ sake he took Jesse Helms's seat! It's a miracle that someone like Edwards could win there at all.

I think the John Edwards we saw during the campaign was actually the real John Edwards which makes his losing all the more depressing.

[ursi]

1. that could be ...man, I missed his presence on that stage tonight ...

[saracat]

2. Somewhat true and his voting record got more and more populist so that he was condemned for it!

[Occam Bandage]

3. It's hard to tell, y'know?

Was he centrist then just because he was representing a red state? Was he liberal now just because he was running in the Democratic primary and trying to appeal to the base? You can't really know what a candidate is thinking--and that goes for any candidate, mine included.

I think John Edwards is more progressive than he was in the Senate, and is more centrist than he was now. For what it's worth.

[Proud2BAmurkin]

4. yup and nobody should call that "cowardice"

[littlebit]

5. You have a point

he has moved a lot more to the left since he has left the senate. Which I think is a good thing. I loved him when he was my senator and I still do. Also just a little correction. Elizabeth Dole took Helms seat not Edwards.

[Quixote1818]

6. Thanks for the correction. I did a search to see if he took Helm's seat

and saw this:

Political Radar: Edwards Touts Red State Electability
As a progressive democrat, John Edwards took the Senate seat of the ultra conservative Jesse Helms in North Carolina. When he left, it reverted back to the ...
blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2007/09/campaign-edward.html - 35k -

That person must have had his facts wrong.