Vitter weighs in on Edwards hype

Late Friday evening, KATC-TV in Lafayette broadcast an interesting story about former Gov. Edwin Edwards’ ongoing push for a federal pardon, which you can see here. Of particular interest was a letter received by Trina Scott Edwards, who fell in love with the ex-governor while he was serving a sentence in federal prison. It was written by U.S. Sen. David Vitter, a Metairie Republican. In the letter, Vitter wrote that a pardon for the popular Democrat would not be appropriate, “given his convictions related to official duties.” Edwards told the television station he wasn’t surprised by the letter. “It’s not in his nature to be kind to people; they don’t call him ‘Bitter Vitter’ for nothing,” he said. In an interview with Business Report just hours before the story was broadcast, Vitter said it’s not even an issue he’s passionate about, nor is it a cause—or rather, a counter-cause—that he plans to spend time on promoting. “(Edwin Edwards) has been in jail for a while, so I’m not eager to pile it on in any way,” Vitter says. “But I won’t be going around lobbying for a presidential pardon, either.” Vitter also struck a tone similar to that of many editorial writers around the state when it comes to Edwards. “Quite honestly, I think his assertions and the assertions of others are more of a cultural sideshow than a relevant political factor,” Vitter says. In 2001, Edwards was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison and found guilty of racketeering, extortion, money laundering, mail fraud and wire fraud. His son, Stephen, was convicted in the scheme, too, which prosecutors outlined using hours of audio recording, video surveillance, and testimony from several former allies and business acquaintances. Edwards’ appeals in the wake of his guilty verdict failed to gain traction over the years. A federal judge ruled that it all involved Edwards shaking down individuals for hundreds of thousands of dollars each in exchange for riverboat casino licenses. —Jeremy Alford