Edwards Said to Be Leaning Toward Clinton

Barack Obama flew down to the home of John and Elizabeth Edwards on Sunday for a secret meeting that didn’t stay secret for long. Both Obama and Hillary Clinton have courted their former rival’s endorsement, but the Associated Press reports that Edwards is leaning toward Clinton, in part because “Obama has been less attentive.”

AP via Google:

People close to the Edwardses, speaking privately, say they have been torn about whom to support. The former North Carolina senator is concerned that Obama may not be ready for the presidency and that his health care plan is inferior. But Edwards was highly critical of Clinton — her policies, her ties to special interests and her character — during his campaign, making it more difficult to support her now.

The couple has been impressed with Clinton, who has more effectively courted them since the 2004 vice presidential nominee dropped out, people who talk to the Edwardses say. Obama has been less attentive, they say, and some of those close to the Edwardses have been annoyed that Obama has continued to ridicule him for once saying his biggest weakness is that he has a powerful response to seeing pain in others.

Still, since Edwards has left the race, Obama often praises him in public. This week he told Wisconsin voters that Edwards will “be a major voice in the Democratic Party for years to come, and I want him involved and partnering with me in moving this country forward.”

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