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Edwards does Hotlanta
Posted at: Thursday, February 19, 2004, 09:56 PM
A sign of spring’s approach: On the sunniest day in Atanta in a long time, it got so hot in the Robert W. Woodruff Library at Clark Atlanta University that John Edwards cut his speech short during a campaign rally there.
“I had some other things to say, but it’s hot in here,” he told the crowd gathered to hear him speak Thursday afternoon.
The North Carolina senator disappeared into the bowels of the vast building for a series of interviews, mostly with local television stations. WXIA’s Brenda Wood was one of the anchors who got a one-on-one with the presidential hopeful.
Whisked out from the frenzy via a back door and cramped elevator, a frazzled Edwards looked at his aides and said, “chaos.”
Away from the madding media and in the serenity of a white SUV, Edwards soothed his cough and downed an ice-cold Diet Coke, the official drink of the campaign. Apparently, he has converted his entire staff to the drink of his choice. (Good news for Coke staff at Atlanta HQ.)
On the drive over to the Buckhead home of a friend and fellow lawyer, Edwards began what was supposed to be a 20-minute interview with the Journal-Constitution.
But it was 3:30 in the afternoon and I-85 was, of course, its usual traffic nightmare. Edwards’ car stopped cold in the HOV lane, though no one seemed to notice the presidential candidate sitting in the passenger seat.
“It’s bad, isn’t it?” Edwards commented. He was curious about Atlanta’s sprawl problem. “How many people live in the metropolitan areea?” he asked.
Though belted down in his gray leather seat, the gregarious senator with the boyish looks and Southern charm couldn’t but help turn all the way around to look at aides in the back seats. He waved his hands about while talking, just as he does on stage.
The Edwards-mobile finally got off the ramp onto Lenox Road. As it drove past the glass exterior of the fashionable Bluepointe, Edwards said, “Hey, I think I’ve eaten there before.”
Just then the phone rang. It was Edwards’ wife, Elizabeth, calling before she took to the trail herself in Santa Rosa, Calif.
“Hi, sweetie,” Edwards said, taking the cell phone from his chief of staff.
The car turned onto Brookhaven Drive and into the driveway of a stately, white-columned house. Edwards was ready for some R&R and his daily four-mile jog. Exercise, he said, is the best way to burn stress on the rigorous campaign trail, especially since he likes to down a good burger every now and then.
“I did have some salad and some soup today,” he said. ” For me, that’s as good as it gets. I’m really bad about eating double cheeseburgers. That’s what I love.”
— Moni Basu
