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On Monday, our beloved Editor and patriarch, Jason, warned us of the looming threat we face regarding John and Elizabeth Edwards. Highlighting a piece about Elizabeth’s comments in New Hampshire regarding President Bush’s veto, Jason explained to us the danger in having such an outspoken Elizabeth:

Everyone knows Mrs. Edwards is a smart, articulate woman and might make for a very respectable US Senator in her own right. But are they prepared to see her speaking for her husband’s campaign on policy matters?

Perhaps it plays well in a primary battle among Hillary-ized dems, but middle America voters in a general election might not appreciate a 2-for-1 sequel.

Now were this actually something new, maybe then I could see a point in here. But as even Jason conceded in his own post, spouses have often played a prominent role in their significant other’s presidential bid. I think I can say with a degree of certainty that Ann Romney speaking out last week on spending in Washington was not her way of jockeying for a senate bid. Michelle Obama’s prominent role in her husband’s campaign seems to be pretty standard, and let’s not forget the role Judith Giuliani would play in a Rudy White House. Active first ladies aren’t a terribly new thing, either. Of course Hillary is the example that comes to mind, but even Laura Bush has been quite vocal on war policy as of late. Eleanor Roosevelt, perhaps the prototype for the proactive first lady, was very active in drafting literature geared towards women in the ‘32 race.

So what exactly was our fearless leader’s angle here? None of the aforementioned spouses (with the exception of Hillary Clinton of course) have been accused of posturing for future office, so why the focus on Elizabeth Edwards? Well, I believe it comes back to the Right-Wing infatuation with John and Elizabeth Edwards. As I’ve already discussed, there seems to be something about Edwards that really gets the GOP boiling. By playing a game of word association, the link was made between Elizabeth Edwards (a rather likable figure) and Hillary Rodham Clinton (eh…not so much).

Is this the beginning of a fresh tactic against the Edwards family? Stay tuned!