Staff Photo by Shawn Rocco
John Edwards' former mistress Rielle Hunter enters the Terry Sanford Federal Building in Raleigh in this file photo.
John Edwards admitted this morning to being the father of Frances Quinn Hunter, the two-year-old daughter of his former mistress Rielle Hunter.
The admission comes after more than two years of rumors and tabloid hounding and an investigation into campaign money federal authorities suspect circulated around Edwards' mistress. Edwards, former North Carolina senator and failed presidential candidate, has repeatedly denied being Frances Quinn Hunter's father since August 2008.
"It was wrong for me ever to deny she was my daughter, and hopefully one day, when she understands, she will forgive me," Edwards said in a statement. That statement was released to NBC's Today show and The News & Observer.
Edwards said he has spent time with Frances Quinn Hunter in the last year. He says he has, and will continue to, financially support her.
"I will do everything in my power to provide her with the love and support she deserves," his statement continued. "I have been able to spend time with her during the past year and trust that future efforts to show her the love and affection she deserves can be done privately and in peace."
Harrison Hickman, a long-time friend and political advisor, said that the acknowledgment of Quinn had been weighing on Edwards for some time. The repeated denial of her is not simple to unpack, he said.
"It is a very complicated set of reasons why he lied," Hickman said by phone from D.C. "I'm not sure he even knows specifically why he did. The important thing, instead of untangling why, is to acknowledge that he did."
He continued: "His heart wanted to do this for a long time. For head-related reasons, it was not possible."
Edwards' relationship with Rielle Hunter has reverberated since 2006, when their affair hatched on Edwards' campaign as he worked to secure the Democratic nomination for president. Quinn was conceived three months after Edwards' long-time wife Elizabeth learned that her cancer had returned and that it was terminal.
Hickman said that Elizabeth Edwards was at peace with John Edwards' announcement today.
A federal grand jury is investigating whether Edwards misused campaign money to force Hunter to be quiet about their affair. He is still under investigation.
This morning, Edwards apologized for his dishonestly about Quinn, saying: "To all those I have disappointed and hurt, these words will never be enough, but I am truly sorry."
Andrew Young, a long-time aide to Edwards, had said he was Quinn's father. In a book soon to be published, Young denies having any sexual relationship with Hunter and fingers Edwards as the father.
Young is expected to appear on ABC's 20/20 later this month to discuss his book, "The Politician."
Hickman hopes that the attention to Edwards and Frances Quinn Hunter will die down and allow them to have some semblance of a normal father-daughter relationship.
"Eventually, the tabloids will quit snooping. The value of their photographs will go down. I don't know exactly when that will be, though," Hickman said.
