Celebrities
As One VIP Trial Lawyer Still Soars, John Edwards is MIA at Convention
Posted Aug 27, 2008, 01:24 pm CST
By Martha Neil
Two renowned trial lawyers are being accorded very different treatment at the Democrat National Convention this week.
Former senator and presidential candidate John Edwards is a pariah after the recent revelation of an admitted extramarital affair in 2006 that he concealed from the public and lied about for months, reports the Raleigh News & Observer.
He did not attend, and the delegation from his home state of North Carolina was moved from its front-and-center position four years ago to nosebleed seats amongst their counterparts from Texas and Arizona, the home states of President George Bush and presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain.
However, Fred Baron, a wealthy Texan who is a former finance chair for Edwards' presidential campaign, is being accorded VIP treatment, even though he reportedly helped pay expenses for Edwards' mistress, Rielle Hunter, says ABC News.
"Mr. Baron, 61 and perhaps the single biggest financial backer of Texas Democrats" has long wanted to be more than just a major political donor and sold his interest in Baron & Budd six years ago to take a more active role in party politics, reports the Dallas Morning News.
Although he still remains a prominent figure among Texas Democrats, he isn't flying nearly as high as he might have, had Edwards won the presidency.
"Fred had ambitions to go into government, whether he went to the White House or to be an ambassador," says Ben Barnes, a prominent name in Texas political circles. "But I think he would have wanted to go to the White House."
Related coverage:
Dallas Morning News: "Eyes on Texas: Dallas lawyer Fred Baron not sweating John Edwards frenzy"