In the spirit of year-end lists, recriminations, and accounts, the News & Observer?s Rob Christensen offers his annual predictions in a column yesterday.
Of our senior Senator, he writes ?Edwards prepares for his retirement from the Senate but begins laying the groundwork for a second presidential bid in 2008.?
I?ll go out on a limb here (but not too far) and make my own prediction. Should a Democrat win the White House and Edwards is not on the ticket?he is a shortlist candidate for Attorney General. To date he has run a cautious campaign based on policy suggestions and has gone out of his way to avoid the intra-party nastiness that sometimes lingers long after the primaries. He is well-spoken and an attractive face…features that arguably have been in short supply for the previous two attorneys general (Reno and Ashcroft). Consider that the times when Americans usually see or hear from the AG is in times great stress or crisis i.e. judicial nominations, civil rights debates, the Waco and Elian Gonzales debacles, and currently, in conjunction with the USA Patriot Act. On top of all this, a powerful faction of the Democrat party — the trial bar — would be represented in the Cabinet.
It is a safe bet that the next step in Senator Edwards? career will certainly be in the public eye if not in public office. Once the fruit of national exposure has been tasted it is hard to turn back. It is a safer bet that his colleague from Chappaqua will keep a keen eye on his activities as they both vie for the moderate middle of their party.
