The bottom line is that Edwards bought a house in DC in 2002 for $3.8 million, did as Solomon notes "substantial renovations", and then sold it four years later for a half million dollars less than the asking price after the house sat on the market for eighteen months. I'd be surprised if Edwards walked away from the deal with more than a couple of thousand dollars. No big deal, or is it? (Cue ominous music!)
The people Edwards sold the house to are, in fact, under investigation by the SEC. (Cue louder, even more ominous music!!) Even more strange, the buyers, Paul and Terry Klaussen, did as most people do that are buying a house of this size. They formed a limited liability partnership to shield themselves from, well, liability. (Blare the ominous music from every rooftop!!!)
The Klaussens company, dare I say the nefarious Klaussens, is also facing a lawsuit from SEIU. They very same SEIU that Edwards is trying to win support from? Yes, the very same one. Clearly Edwards is spitting the face of all unions with this land for less cash deal. And I love this paragraph from the article. From the Washington Post:
Ellen S. Miller, head of the nonpartisan Sunlight Foundation, which studies public officials' real estate deals, said presidential candidates should go the extra mile by determining who they are doing business with, especially when "a substantial amount of cash is changing hands on the eve of his campaign."
I'm sure that Miller does good work, but this is simply ridiculous. It's not like they offered Edwards $20 million for the house. They bought it below list, after eighteen months on the market. Nobody in their right mind is going to investigate the buyer in that situation, no matter what office they are seeking. The whole article is simply farcical. By the way, it ran on the front page.
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