Taegan Goddard's Political Wire

May 06, 2009

Why Do This?

Wendy Button, a former speechwriter for John Edwards, asks the relevant question of Elizabeth Edwards as she embarks on her book tour:

"Why do this? That's the question. Why put four children through the scandal and spotlight all over again? Why pour salt on the wound for those who gave up their lives to work on the cause? Why play with fire when so many feel that what Elizabeth and John did, launch a campaign for the presidency in which they asked people to raise millions of dollars knowing it never had a chance at succeeding, was fraud?"

First Read: "With her upcoming book and her appearance on Oprah this Thursday, it was inevitable that Elizabeth Edwards would begin to receive some backlash -- given that she campaigned so aggressively for her husband in 2007 and 2008, despite her book's claim that she begged him to drop out of the race after she learned about his affair."

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Taegan D. Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country, including the Washington Post, USA Today, Boston Globe, San Francisco Chronicle, Chicago Tribune, Philadelphia Inquirer and Christian Science Monitor.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

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