DRUDGE SIREN: sneaky Democrat traitor and Albany Statehouse custodian Andrew Cuomo had his campaign pay $1,383.86 in January to a stylist that made him look pretty for commercials and debates in last fall's campaign. But it wasn't just any stylist: this was Daytime Emmy award-winning stylist Alx Galasinao, who is used by Cuomo's Food Network personality girlfriend, Sarah Sandra Lee. Given that no one cared about the election anyway, maybe he could have cut costs in the makeup department. After all, pride and $400 haircuts (and maybe a sextape) goeth before a fall. more ›

Give me your tired, your poor / your huddled masses yearning to be free. Give us your $400 haircuts / your sexy videographer / your adulterous, toothy grin. more ›

Hey ladies, I'm John Edwards, former presidential candidate, single term Senator, and—let's not forget!—son of a mill worker. You may also remember me as the guy who cheated on his cancerous wife, fathered a secret love-child, and allegedly spent almost a million dollars to keep the whole thing hidden during the primaries in 2008. Hey, I'm the first to admit it was bad timing on my part, but how many times does a guy have to bite his lower lip in public to earn redemption? The key word there, ladies, is ALLEGEDLY! Look at these sparkling pearly whites—could a guy with this kind of charisma really be so bad? Hey you, behind the camera—how about dinner and a hair appointment once I make all this go away? more ›

Two years after making the National Enquirer look respectable and breaking the hearts of inspired college students everywhere, we thought that John Edwards would just lay low in Chapel Hill. Maybe pick up an order of fried oysters every now and then, watch an old sex tape, just ride off into the sunset. That dream has died, as ABC is reporting that Edwards will soon be indicted for "using campaign cash to cover up an extramarital affair." Because this has never been done before in the history of American politics, ever. more ›

If you recently heard a friend or co-worker inexplicably shouting, "I HOPE YOU GET ASS CANCER," he or she was probably just reading that John Edwards has proposed his mistress Rielle Hunter. Now, some may say that Elizabeth Edwards, who died last month from cancer, is "barely cold," as the saying goes, but you know what's colder? John Edwards's rotten heart. His marriage to Elizabeth ended, you'll recall, in the wake of news that he had an affair and fathered a child with Hunter. News of the marriage proposal is being reported by the National Enquirer today, so take it with a grain of salt, but the tabloid has led the pack on the Edwards adultery scandal since the beginning. more ›

Elizabeth Edwards, the estranged wife of presidential candidate John Edwards, died today at 61 in her Chapel Hill, NC home. Seen as a driving force behind her husband's political ascent, Edwards' struggle with breast cancer became part of his campaign story (as did his affair and love child). Edwards' cancer had recently metastasized to her liver. Yesterday, it was revealed that doctors advised her not to pursue further treatment and that she posted a farewell message on Facebook, "I have been sustained throughout my life by three saving graces - my family, my friends, and a faith in the power of resilience and hope." more ›

Rielle Hunter, John Edwards's baby momma, onetime lover and sex tape co-star, says a GQ photographer told her he'd capture her mostly from the neck up, but that doesn't explain why she wasn't wearing pants. The blonde posed on a bed, cradling her child. In one photo she's kneeling next to stuffed animals, wearing only a collared shirt; in another she's sprawled bare-bellied on tousled sheets. Hunter claims she "cried for two hours" upon seeing the pictures, but GQ says she's faking. "Rielle is a smart woman," said her interviewer. "She knows what she wore and what she was doing in the photo shoot." more ›

Apparently it's "John Edwards-Rielle Hunter" Day. Besides Hunter's extensive interview with GQ, there's more dirt to spill on the one-time presidential contender. The Daily Beast's Diane Dimond writes the blog "can now describe the video in detail, based on accounts from multiple people who have viewed it." And what's more, "based on the swollen state of [Hunter's] belly and nipples," the tape appears to have been filmed in October 2007, "smack in the middle of Edwards campaign for the presidency." Here's the description—warning, it's pretty detailed: more ›

There's nothing like an exclusive interview from a former presidential candidate's baby mama! Rielle Hunter, John Edwards' former (?) mistress and the mother of his 2-year-old daughter, spoke to GQ's Lisa DePaulo and tells her lots of things. For instance, she's not engaged to Edwards, she's not being paid for the interview, she "loves Johnny," never "hit on" him and he told her, after they had sex at the Regency Hotel, "Falling in love with you could really f--- up my plans for becoming president." Hey, and having sex with her without a condom really did f--- up his marriage!! more ›

Finally! Former senator and presidential and vice-presidential candidate John Edwards has admitted to fathering a child with mistress Rielle Hunter. After denying he ever had a love child, now Edwards tells NBC News in a statement, "I am Quinn’s father... It was wrong for me ever to deny she was my daughter and hopefully one day, when she understands, she will forgive me." more ›

While this headline may read: "For Edwards, Drama Builds Toward a Denouement," it should have really just said "John Edwards Promised Rielle Hunter Rooftop Wedding in NYC, Soundtracked by the Dave Matthews Band, Once the Other Mrs. Edwards Died." The end. more ›

Former presidential candidate John Edwards dropped out of a politics event scheduled for Monday at Hofstra University; it would have been his first public appearance after admitting his affair. Hofstra is hosting the third and final presidential debate and has planned a series of other talks with politicians and notables in its Educate '08 program. Edwards's wife Elizabeth was scheduled to appear as well, but she canceled last week--Newsday reports, "At that time, John Edwards confirmed he would show up." But now Edwards has decided to lay low (at least until after the election), saying he doesn't want to be a distraction, "Nothing is more important than electing Barack Obama and Joe Biden." more ›

Newsweek reporter Jonathan Darman has a "First Person" article, What Rielle Hunter Told Me, based on his interactions with "campaign filmmaker"-John Edwards's mistress before it was known she was John Edwards's mistress. Darman saw her on a commuter flight, as he followed the Edwards campaign back in July 2006, "I had no reason to suspect there was anything between them." more ›

Rielle Hunter came out yesterday and said that she will not make her former lover John Edwards take a paternity test "now or in the future." Edwards has denied being father, saying that his relationship with Ms. Hunter ended long before the pregnancy that resulted in Ms. Hunter’s giving birth on February 27. Rielle Hunter did not indicate a father on Frances Quinn Hunter's birth certificate. more ›

After confirming that he had an affair with a former NYC party girl-turned-filmmaker --but denying he fathered her baby-- former Senator, vice-presidential candidate, and presidential contender John Edwards spoke to both ABC News and CBS News about the situation. And, on the other side, a source described mistress Rielle Hunter as "an idiot, a fool, a moron, a faux guru, but not mean-spirited." more ›

After speculation stirred up by the National Enquirer and debate about whether mainstream media should cover it, John Edwards has admitted to having an affair with filmmaker Rielle Hunter. Nightline will broadcast an interview tonight, where Edwards will also deny being the father of Hunter's daughter (forget a paternity test--apparently the baby's birthdate tells him it's not his; a former campaign staffer says he's the daddy). Edwards apparently “made a point of telling [Bob] Woodruff that his wife’s cancer was in remission when he began the affair with Hunter.” But ABC News leads its web article with how the one-time presidential candidate "repeatedly lied during his Presidential campaign about an extramarital affair." Gawker points out this announcement comes as it was reported ABC News investigative reporter Brian Ross was working on the story. more ›

Former senator and presidential candidate John Edwards will endorse Senator Barack Obama at an event in Michigan today. Edwards, who dropped out of the Democratic hunt for the nomination back in January, had been expected to support Obama, especially after statements referring to him as the likely nominee. more ›

In an echo of its 2006 article about her Senate re-election campaign spending, the NY Times finds Hillary Clinton donors are concerned over her campaign's spending. Some of the line items that emerged after her campaign finance report was published: $100,000 in party platters and shovels for Iowa caucus parties (where Clinton placed third - and where it did not snow), $25,000 in hotel rooms at Las Vegas' Bellagio, $275,000 to a South Carolina firm "that was supposed to turn out black voters for her" (Barack Obama won SC by almost 30%) and $267,000 for adviser Howard Wolfson's January fee. more ›

Barack Obama won yesterday's Maine caucus, with about 57-60% of the vote to Hillary Clinton's approximate 40-42%. This makes Obama's fourth win in a row, after sweeping the Democratic contests in Louisiana, Nebraska, and Washington yesterday. more ›

John Edwards will drop out of the presidential primary race. The Caucus finds symmetry in the announcement, since Edwards will give "a speech this afternoon at the same place where he began this campaign — in New Orleans." Which now means the path is cleared for a full-tilt boogie Hillary Clinton vs. Barack Obama fight for delegates and the nomination. We also expect some wooing from Clinton and Obama for Edwards' delegates. more ›

Barack Obama won the South Carolina Democratic primary yesterday, taking 55% of the vote, winning by a greater margin than most pundits and recent polls had predicted. Hillary Clinton finished second with 27% and John Edwards came in third. The NY Times headline writes that he won by "forging a coalition of support among black and white voters in a contest that sets the stage for a state-by-state fight for the party’s presidential nomination." more ›

With the South Carolina's Democratic primary on this coming Saturday, the three leading Democratic candidates, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John Edwards gathered together at a Martin Luther King Day Jr. debate in Columbia, S.C. When Clinton addressed the crowd, she said, "We have come so far together. Barack Obama, an extraordinary, young African-American man with so much to contribute. John Edwards, a son of the South — in fact, a son of South Carolina. And a woman — all of us running for president of the United States of America!” more ›

Tyler Sargent plays bass in a little band called Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, which may have caught your eye back in 2005 when they played the Gothamist Movable Hype 3.0 show at the Knitting Factory. We don’t want to call ourselves kingmakers, but ever since that night the band’s become kind of a big deal, in part because they were one of the first bands to break wide through blog buzz and a self-released album that moved over 45,000 copies in six months, all distributed out of Sargent’s Park Slope apartment. Tomorrow night they play a benefit concert at Bowery Ballroom for Planned Parenthood NYC; it’s sold out, of course, but mark your calendar for February 15th, when Gothamist anoints a new crop of indie rock darlings at Movable Hype 12.0 (it's also Gothamist’s 5th birthday.) Anyway, at some point over the weekend Tyler Sargent sat down at his computer and processed pithy answers to our questions. more ›

Over the weekend, Democratic and Republican caucuses were held in Nevada, bringing victory to Hillary Clinton and Mitt Romney while John McCain won the South Carolina primary (the Democratic primary will be held next Saturday). more ›

Yesterday the three top Democratic contenders for the presidential nominations debated in Nevada. The debate wasn't as testy as previous ones, in part because Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama were trying to maintain an aura of good will and love for the Democratic party - and not bicker over race or gender. Which meant that Clinton, Obama and John Edwards were pretty boring in their happy, friendly paces. The NY Times noticed that even Tim Russert, one of the moderators, "seemed subdued" in a night of "'John' and 'Barack' and 'Hillary,' soft voices, easy jokes and belly laughs." more ›

Hillary Clinton proved the polls and pundits wrong with her New Hampshire primary win last night and dominated the front pages for a second day in a row. Clinton and John McCain, who won the Republican primary, are being called comeback...adults as New Hampshire polling centers had record turn outs. WNBC's Gabe Pressman writes that their wins are a defeat for pollsters and journalists who had written them off. more ›

Senator John McCain won the Republican primary in New Hampshire, with the race being called for him early on. Senator Hillary Clinton beat Senator Barack Obama by a few thousand votes in a very close race. Comebacks all around! more ›

At last night's ABC News/Facebook debate in New Hampshire, both parties' candidates held debates. After the Thursday's Iowa results presented Barack Obama as a winner and Hillary Clinton as a disappointing (to her campaign) third place, some interesting things transpired during the Democratic debate. Obama and Iowa runner-up John Edwards apppeared to team up against Clinton. The NY Times called it an "allegiance of convenience" and noted that the defining moment was when Clinton tried to call out Obama's leadership:

As Mrs. Clinton attacked Mr. Obama as waffling on the Patriot Act and Iraq war funding, she sought to make an ally out of Mr. Edwards. She suggested that Mr. Obama had hypocritically tried to paint Mr. Edwards as inconsistent on the issues. All eyes turned to Mr. Edwards, and he delivered a coup de grace — siding dramatically with Mr. Obama instead of Mrs. Clinton. more ›

That just happened! Senator Barack Obama won the Democratic Iowa Caucus with at least 37% of the vote (projections are changing). Former Senator John Edwards got 30% of the vote while Senator Hillary Clinton got 29%. The media is playing this as a huge failure for the Senator from New York, given how powerful the Clinton machine has seemed. Also stunning: There were 82% more Democratic voters in this year's caucus compared with 2004, which pundits suggest means Iowa, which President Bush won in 2004, is certainly in play for the Democrats. more ›