Edwards trial and big picture

[veronica_rich]

Eight years ago, I voted for John Edwards - well, I voted for John Kerry, but Edwards was his VP candidate on the ticket, too. I liked some of his ideas, how he was one of the first to point out "the two Americas" and bring attention to the disparities in human services and distribution of opportunity in this country, and I liked that he didn't start out rich. (I'm also one of the few people who understands while you should never trust a lawyer too far, they're not usually evil bastards with no soul - I worked for a criminal defense lawyer for several years, knew others through him, and found they were basically decent people trying to make a living who largely believed even if a person HAD committed a crime, the justice system still needed to observe rules in treating them a certain way; trust me, they didn't like some of their clients any more than you or I would. And some of them even had lines - the one I worked for wouldn't take rape cases).

Yesterday, Edwards got off of federal charges of criminal use of campaign funds, on jury indecision and technicalities. Was this right? I don't know all the details, so I'm not going to tell you. I can say I don't think any conviction, had it happened, should have been based on his personal behavior involving his now-dead wife, mistress, and child - a low-down dirty dog he might be, but if there was campaign malfeasance, THAT'S what needed to be proven. (And I'm not saying there wasn't, just because it wasn't proven beyond reasonable doubt or convicted. Remember O.J. Simpson, y'all ...) For this reason alone, though, I know there are going to be people angry he didn't get his "just deserts." They're sure entitled to be angry with him personally, as am I. Possibly even on campaign finance law.

But what I want to know is, are these same people just as upset that there are war criminals still on the loose who were in charge of our country for the first several years of this century, who've never been charged or tried - one of whom got his portrait hung up in the White House yesterday? It's just a thought I had early this morning while driving to work.

Comments

[veronica-rich.livejournal.com]

Carter, I think, may have come the closest to being a decent human being. Possibly Adams (the first; don't know about Quincy) as well. Nobody's perfect, but it seems like they at least did the best they could with what they had. (You could argue Lincoln was, too, but Lincoln was a schemer - what he did looks good in history, but at the time he had a lot of accusations of "he let his happen so he could better get this done" which is also a charge you could level against FDR - another good president IMO ... but we're talking about good human beings, not good presidents of course).

[bayliss.livejournal.com]

You are right about Carter. He's done more decent things outside of being President, then he did in office. He really is a good man. I don't fully trust people who's moral compass is more skewed then my own.(which is rather fucked up to say the least. My religion says as long as your not out killing people and raping babies we don't care what you do.)