John Edwards Trial to Hear From Staffer He Fired Over Mistress
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Sara D. Davis/Getty Images(GREENSBORO, N.C.) — The trial of John Edwards is expected to hear Wednesday from a former campaign aide who was fired after a yelling match about Edwards’ mistress Rielle Hunter.
Josh Brumberger is expected to be sworn in as a witness after Cheri Young concludes her fourth day on the stand.
Brumberger was 27 when he was part of Edwards staff during the 2007-08 presidential campaign and was present when Hunter first approached Edwards in a hotel bar, telling the Democratic presidential hopeful how handsome he was.
Brumberger thought he had succeeded in shooing away the latest woman to hit on the former senator who was seeking the Democratic presidential nomination, only to see the two of them talking later on the street outside the hotel.
In the book about the Edwards’ sex scandal Game Change by Mark Halperin and John Heilemann, Brumberger and others watched as Hunter became increasingly attached to Edwards while working as his campaign videographer.
Brumberger twice tried to diplomatically warn Edwards that people on the campaign were noticing the relationship and that it could damage his candidacy.
Edwards, according to the book, called Brumberger to an airport meeting after rumors began appearing in the National Enquirer and blamed Brumberger for spreading the rumor. The men ended up yelling at each other in the airport meeting room before Edwards fired him.
Before Brumberger is called, Edwards’ lawyers will finish cross examining Cheri Young, the wife of Edwards’ former aide Andrew Young. The couple helped hide Hunter for more than a year, handling more than $1 million from wealthy backers to keep Edwards’ affair secret.
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