You may remember John Edwards as the two-time presidential candidate who also tried to shut down betting on amateur athletic, namely college sports in Nevada. At the turn of the century, Edwards backed a bill that was intended to prevent Nevada casinos from making any revenue from amateur athletics. It was a move that made him wholly unpopular in the gambling community.
Now Edwards is in the news after being indicted by a federal grand jury for diverting campaign funds to silence a mistress and her pregnancy to maintain his image as a family man. If convicted on all six counts of conspiracy, accepting illegal campaign donations, and trying to conceal the money, Edwards could spend up to 30 years in prison.
What’s interesting here is how in the past Edwards attacked the gambling industry about the contributions lobbyist gave politicians, when championing his anti college gambling bill Edwards said, “Instead of rooting for a university because of loyalty, bookies in Nevada root for a team for one reason, and only one reason: money…We will hear today from folks in Nevada about how well-regulated the gaming industry is … We will not hear much, though, about the millions of dollars they give annually to politicians. You will not hear them talk about the influence their money has in Washington.”
Well, we have now heard how Edwards spends his campaign contributions, maybe that’s why he wanted to get into the White House, so he can have as many mistresses and secret pregnancies as he wished and cover it up with gambling industry lobbying dollars.
