Reply #39: He would have seen through the lies had he read the full intelligence [View All]

[maximusveritas]

He was on the Intelligence Committee and had full access to the NIE, but didn't bother looking at it. Senator Graham did and he said that's why he voted against the IWR.

And then Edwards stubbornly defended his vote throughout the 2004 election because he knew Howard Dean had already occupied the anti-war vote and he wouldn't be able to outflank him on that issue. He discouraged Kerry from changing his position on the grounds that it would make them look weak. After losing in 2004 and preparing to run in 2008, Edwards knew he would have to move to Hillary's left, so he decided to apologize for his war vote. For all this to work he would need to use all his skills to convince voters he was sincere and then hope they were gullible enough to fall for it.
His plan almost worked. Unfortunately, Obama got in the race.

That's the simplest explanation: basic political maneuvering. To believe he suddenly had an epiphany 3 years after the vote, while undergoing tremendous pressure to change before then, requires quite a leap of faith.