Subject: Re: good news, bad news
From: "Daniella Leger" <[email-masked]>
To: "Jennifer Palmieri" <[email-masked]>, "Winnie Stachelberg" <[email-masked]>, [email-masked]
Date: Wed, 23 Jul 2008 19:51:56 -0400

This is redic!!!

----- Original Message -----
From: Jennifer Palmieri
To: Winnie Stachelberg; Daniella Leger; John Podesta <[email-masked]>
Sent: Wed Jul 23 19:07:26 2008
Subject: good news, bad news

Good news:  "Half In Ten" was written about in a publication with 15 million readers! 

Bad news:   It's the National Enquirer.   

JOHN EDWARDS LOVE CHILD 
UPDATE: The NATIONAL ENQUIRER is revealing new details about the political scoop we broke yesterday - the secret meeting between Vice Presidential candidate John Edwards and Rielle Hunter.

A team of ENQUIRER reporters caught the married ex-senator <http://www.nationalenquirer.com/john_edwards_love_child_update/celebrity/65199>  visiting his mistress and secret love child late Monday night at the Beverly Hilton hotel <http://www.nationalenquirer.com/john_edwards_love_child_update/celebrity/65199>  in Los Angeles hotel.

As we reported previously, Edwards arrived at the hotel at 9:45 p.m. (PST) Monday, driven by a friend in a BMW, and was seen by ENQUIRER reporter Alan Butterfield. 

We can now reveal that the man who drove Edwards was Bob McGovern, the same man who drove Rielle to the hotel from Santa Barbara and rented her room in his name. 

He was driving a 1999 four-door midnight blue BMW.

Said Butterfield: "The car had a baby seat in the back for Rielle's infant. He pulled into the parking lot, took a ticket from the automated machine, pulled forward, and stopped right after the parking gate lowered. Edwards got out of the passenger side, walked around the front of the car and went in a side entrance near the swimming pool.

"McGovern parked the car and then slowly walked back inside the hotel and went upstairs."

In the aftermath of our exclusive story, the NATIONAL ENQUIRER has now learned:

* Edwards' advisers are "spitting mad and furious" that his late-night escapades have made international headlines because it could derail his chances of becoming Barack Obama's running mate.

* Edwards has not explained his whereabouts to any members of other news media outlets who have been trying to follow up on the story.

* His mistress, blonde divorcee Rielle, meanwhile, has returned to her home in Santa Barbara, Calif., and sources say she is "in despair" that Edwards might cut off contact with her because their latest rendezvous has been exposed in the media.

After we posted the details of Edwards shocking meeting with Rielle, political sources close to Edwards revealed how he was candidly scolded by his advisors hours later.

One political source divulged: "His advisors told him they were furious that this had been brought out by the NATIONAL ENQUIRER right when Obama <http://www.nationalenquirer.com/john_edwards_love_child_update/celebrity/65199>  is considering whether he's V.P. material with the Democratic National Convention (Aug. 25-28 in Denver) only weeks away.

"From what I hear, John was read the riot act by his people. The fallout from this could cost him the job of running mate. They told him Obama doesn't want to pick someone and be embarrassed by the choice. This 'bimbo eruption' at this critical time will do him absolutely no good.

"While his people are not trying to tell him how to live his personal life, this baggage isn't going to help him convince Obama that he's the right guy to be his veep."

A day after the incident, Edwards traveled to Denver for an appearance at the University of Denver in support of the anti-poverty campaign, called Half in Ten. The very first question put to him at the event was about whether he'd become Obama's running mate.

Edwards was quoted as saying: "I'm not seeking the job. I don't expect to be asked…but anything that Sen. Obama would ask me to do, whether it's in his campaign or in his presidency, I would consider seriously."

But Edwards made no official comment on our bombshell disclosure about his late-night antics less than 24 hours earlier.

Said another source: "He's going out of his way to avoid discussing it - he knows whatever he says will come back to haunt him. If he denies being there, he doesn't want to be found out to be a liar." 

In other new details, the NATIONAL ENQUIRER has learned that McGovern, the man who picked up Edwards and dropped him off at the hotel, has become one of Rielle's closest friends. 

McGovern reserved rooms 246 and 252 at the Beverly Hilton <http://www.nationalenquirer.com/john_edwards_love_child_update/celebrity/65199>  under his name. Rielle was in one room and McGovern was in another with her baby. This allowed her and Edwards to spend time alone.

Another source said: "Bob McGovern is someone Rielle met in Santa Barbara when she recently moved there. He's become one of her closest friends and agreed to help her see Edwards."

Rielle has not yet made any public comments about her Monday night visit from Edwards