John Edwards suspended his run for the White House today in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans where he launched his campaign in Dec. 2006. He said it was time to step aside “so that history can blaze its path” in a campaign now left to a woman and an African-American, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
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| Glynn Wilson |
| John Edwards ends his campaign for president where he started it, in New Orleans |
“With our convictions and a little backbone we will take back the White House in November,” Edwards said of the Democratic Party.
Clinton and Obama both pledged in phone conversations that “they will make ending poverty central to their campaign for the presidency,” Edwards said. “This is the cause of my life and I now have their commitment to engage in this cause,” he said before a small group of supporters in Musician’s Village, joined by his wife Elizabeth and his three children, Cate, Emma Claire and Jack.
Edwards told a story about his drive over to make his statement, where he stopped and talked to a number of homeless people living under a bridge. One woman asked him never to forget the homeless and the plight of the poor.
“Well I say to her and I say to all those who are struggling in this country, we will never forget you. We will fight for you. We will stand up for you,” he said, pledging to continue his campaign-long effort to end what he frequently said was “two Americas,” one for the rich and powerful, the other for the poor and struggling, working middle class.
The former North Carolina senator did not immediately endorse either Obama, the strongest black candidate in history, or Clinton, who is seeking to become the first woman president.
Both of them praised Edwards - and immediately began courting his supporters, according to the Associated Press.
“John Edwards ended his campaign today in the same way he started it - by standing with the people who are too often left behind and nearly always left out of our national debate,” Clinton said.
Obama praised Edwards and his wife, Elizabeth.
At a rally in Denver, Obama said the couple has “always believed deeply that two Americans can become one, and that our country can rally around this common purpose. So while his campaign may have ended, this cause lives on for all of us who still believe that we can achieve that dream of one America.”
The impact of Edwards’ decision will be felt next week, when Democrats hold primaries and caucuses in 22 states, with 1,681 delegates at stake.
Four in 10 Edwards supporters said their second choice in the race is Clinton, while a quarter prefer Obama, according to the latest Associated Press-Yahoo poll.
Edwards amassed 56 national convention delegates, most of whom will be free to support either Obama or Clinton.
As expected, Edwards said he was suspending his campaign rather than ending it, but aides said that was simply legal terminology so that he can continue to receive federal matching funds for his campaign donations.
After the announcement, Edwards planned to work with Habitat for Humanity rebuilding one of the homes in Musicians’ Village.
His recent loss in South Carolina, where he was born and he had won in 2004, may have had a lot to do with his decision, along with his wife’s influence.
