Edwards Brings Hollywood to N.H.
BEDFORD, N.H. -- It was a celebrity winter wonderland in Peter and Jo Smith's driveway this afternoon.
Tim Robbins, Susan Sarandon, James Denton, and Madeleine Stowe stood behind John Edwards as he stumped for tomorrow's primary election in New Hampshire.
"I think we're doing great in New Hampshire," said Edwards. "We've got momentum here. We've had extraordinary response in ther last 30 hours or so. And we had it before that."
This suburban home buried deep in the Granite State woods was littered with lights, cameras, satellite trucks and buses for a true "only in New Hampshire" moment.
Overheard was one gentleman saying they expected just John and Elizabeth and maybe 25 people. But the convergence of Hollywood and Washington starpower made for a somewhat surreal event.
After speaking to voters (whose numbers, after an unscientific glance appeared to match up evenly with the media presence), Edwards took questions with reporters who wanted to know if Hillary Clinton had an "Ed Muskie" moment earlier today in which she fought back tears.
"Oh I don't know," he said. "These campaigns are grueling. And they're tough and difficult affairs. Running for president is a tough process."
Earlier today, Edwards had much more to say about the Clinton moment: "I think what we need in a commander in chief is strength and resolve and it's you know... Presidential campaign's a tough business. But being President of the United States is also a very tough business.And the United States is faced with very difficult challenges every single day and difficult judgments every single day."
The Bedford stop marked the 27th hour of Edwards' latest 36-hour marathon. Noticeably absent on the tour this time around are Edwards's young children Jack and Emma Claire, whom Mrs. Edwards said were skiing at Mt. Sunapee.
"Jack wanted to come on the 36-hour tour," said John Edwards. "And I said, you know, I'm up for some pain but not that much pain. Because I know what it would have been like to have Jack Edwards climbing all over me at 5 o'clock in the morning."