The Enquirer claims to have caught former presidential candidate and possible Barack Obama running mate John Edwards visiting his mistress and their love child at the Beverly Hilton in L.A. in the wee hours of the morning. Said mistress, a divorcee named Rielle Hunter, allegedly drove from Santa Barbara for her secret meeting with Edwards, who was in L.A. for a press event with mayor Antonio Villagairosa. Edwards allegedly visited with Hunter and his child for a brief time, then attempted to sneak out of the hotel...but was caught by Enquirer reporters. An account from the Enquirer website:
Senior NATIONAL ENQUIRER Reporter Alexander Hitchen asked Edwards why he was visiting Rielle and whether he was ready to confirm that he was the father of her baby.
Shocked to see a reporter, and without saying anything, Edwards ran up the stairs leading from the hotel basement to the lobby. But, spotting a photographer, he doubled back into the basement. As he emerged from the stairwell, reporter Butterfield questioned him about his hookup with Rielle.
Edwards did not answer and then ran into a nearby restroom. He stayed inside for about 15 minutes, refusing to answer questions from the NATIONAL ENQUIRER about what he was doing in the hotel. A group of hotel security men eventually escorted him from the men's room, while preventing the NATIONAL ENQUIRER reporters from following him out of the hotel.
Said reporter Hitchen: "After we confronted him about seeing Rielle, Edwards looked like a deer caught in headlights!
"He was clearly surprised that we had caught him at this very late hour inside the hotel.
"Some guests up at this late hour watched the spectacle in amusement from a staircase nearby."
The Enquirer has been investigating this story for months, and previously reported the existence of the love child, a report that was denied by Mr. Edwards. And do I need to remind everyone that John's wife Elizabeth is currently being treated for cancer? I know one name we can scratch off that list of Obama running mates.
