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A CONSEQUENTIAL DISASTER
Prologue
The Presidential Election of 2008 can be described in three words, "A Consequential Disaster". On January 20, 2007, Hillary Clinton announced her Presidential campaign. About a month earlier John Edwards, the party's 2004 Vice Presidential Nominee, announced his campaign, and about a month later than Hillary's announcement came the announcement of Barack Obama, the Junior U.S. Senator from Illinois. The three of them would participate in the most bizarre Presidential election of the 21st Century and it would bring them into the history books forever.
Most political analysts felt that the 2008 Democratic Primaries would be the general election. The ongoing War on Iraq, a Democratic landslide in the 2006 MidTerm Elections, and general fatigue of the Bush Administration were all considered factors into what would become a blowout for the Democrats in the Presidential Election. With Clinton the clear front runner most people expected that two years to the date after she announced her campaign she would become the first female President of the United States. Of course Democratic Party Insiders recruited Barack Obama, the charismatic senator from Illinois to challenge her. Senator Obama had electrified the Democratic National Convention in Boston during the 2004 Election and was since seen as a potential candidate in 2008, even though he'd served less than a full term in the United States Senate. It was an election between change and experience.
And then there was John Edwards. Edwards was a top tier candidate for the Presidential Nomination in 2004 until he lost to John Kerry after a series of victories in Iowa and New Hampshire gave the Massachusetts Senator a clear advantage in terms of momentum. For a consolation prize Kerry gave Edwards the Vice Presidential spot on the ticket, giving Edwards the edge in a potential presidential campaign in 2012, but then Kerry lost and that expected edge in 2012 was reduced to a small boost in name recognition in 2008. Still, Edwards was committed. He fought hard to win and thanks to a nasty primary between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, Edwards was able to position himself as a top tier candidate, commanding respect, endorsements, and donations. When his wife was diagnosed with cancer in March most thought he'd withdraw but Edwards pushed on and his campaign only got stronger.
On April 26, 2007, MSNBC hosted the first debate between the party's presidential aspirants. Clinton and Obama were supposed to be the main contenders and everyone looked to them to see who would become the front runner but it was John Edwards who made himself a force to be reckoned with. He cruised to victory in the debate and receive a shift in momentum in his favor post-debate. The next several debates were also hosts to strong performances by Senator Edwards and it quickly transformed from a two-person race to a three-way contest. In Iowa, Edwards held a strong lead. He was tied with Senator Obama in South Carolina while he fell behind in Nevada and New Hampshire. He pushed Clinton and Obama on the facts and soon his campaign really got going. By September of 2007 some polls had him winning nationally, upsetting Senators Clinton and Obama.
Still, both the Clinton and Obama Campaigns felt that John Edwards was a fluke in the polls and would eventually go away. They kept the attention focused on them, hoping they could make Edwards go away if they pretended he wasn't there. The strategy backfired. The Edwards Campaign surged and by then it was far too late for the Clinton and Obama machines to make up for lost ground. The attention was turned to Edwards where Hillary hit him from the right, Obama hit him from the left, and the guns were all pointed at Edwards who was now the clear front runner. Senator Edwards loved the attention. "I guess it's a good thing when Hillary and Barack stop hurling mud at each other and turn their attention towards you," Edwards joked at one campaign rally in December of 2007.
On January 3rd, Former Senator John Edwards was declared the winner Senator Barack Obama finished a somewhat close second with Senator Hillary Clinton finishing a distant third. Lower tier candidates like Joe Biden and Chris Dodd ended their Presidential campaigns on that night and the race was now Edwards' for the taking. A surprisingly close second place to Senator Obama in New Hampshire. With Barack Obama winning New Hampshire and John Edwards winning Iowa some said that Hillary's campaign was dead in the water, but victory in Nevada, with Edwards in second, gave her the rebound to make South Carolina a competitive race. With each of the major candidates having one win each it was South Carolina that held the opportunity to break the tie. It broke for Edwards by a somewhat wide margin and Hillary Clinton finished in third. On Super Tuesday Edwards, Obama, and Clinton went back-and-forth, but Edwards victories in Ohio and Texas in early-March forced Hillary out of the race and soon after Senator Obama dropped out to. The nomination belonged to Edwards.
The Republicans had already wrapped their nominating process up. Senator John McCain of Arizona, who had run in 2000 but lost to George W. Bush, was declared the presumptive nominee after several large victories by Super Tuesday. The nomination was his and the general election was set. It would be Senator McCain of Arizona, an elder statesman with considerable foreign policy experience against former Senator John Edwards of North Carolina, a charismatic smooth-talker with great hair and a passion for helping the poor.
John Edwards only had three names on his short list for Vice President: Barack Obama of Illinois, Evan Bayh of Indiana, and Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas. Though Edwards had initially leaned towards selecting Sebelius, who would appeal to moderate and female voters, he ultimately decided on Senator Obama. The Edwards/Obama ticket prepared for a grueling general election, preparing to enter the Democratic National Convention in Denver where both members of the ticket were hoping to make their case to the voters. It was an election to remember.