Persona Non Grata

A few days ago I posted about a couple of politicians that the Republican Party didn't want at their convention, and went out of their way to ignore in convention speeches because frankly, they were an embarrassment to the party -- George W. Bush and Michael Steele. The Democrats are not immune to this phenomena themselves. They have their own persona non grata politician -- John Edwards.

Edwards was once a rising star in the party, and many thought he had a good chance to become president someday. To my own shame, I once supported Edwards (for a short period in 2008 after Richards dropped out, and before it was obvious that the race was between Obama and Clinton). A lot of other Democrats have that same dark memory.

But that was before Edwards revealed his true nature -- as a scumbag. We now know that Edwards cheated on his wife while she was battling cancer, had a child with his mistress, and misused campaign money to pay that mistress of in an effort to save his political career. He was an adulterer and a criminal (regardless of whether he was finally convicted), and he was a liar. He lied to his wife and family, to his staff and supporters, to Democrats, and to the American people in general.

Edwards will not be at the convention in Charlotte. He was not invited and is not wanted there -- either by party leaders or delegates. And while he hasn't shown himself to be the brightest bulb on the tree, he is smart enough to know that he would not be received well if he went. Democrats are still angry at him (and he would stand a better chance of being tarred and feathered and ridden out on a rail, than being accepted or praised).

No one can predict the future, and there might be a time in the distant future when Edwards will again be accepted in the party (if he is able to suppress his narcissism and truly become repentant for his actions). But that time is not now. Currently, he's just a bad memory for most Democrats.