Elizabeth Edwards Opens Up to Oprah

In her first interview since her husband's admitted infidelity, Elizabeth Edwards says their relationship is "month by month"

By Josh Grossberg May 05, 2009 6:00 PMTags
Elizabeth Edwards, Oprah Winfrey, John EdwardsHarpo Productions, Inc./All Rights Reserved/Photographer: George Burns

Love. Cancer. Infidelity. Power. It's some kind of story. And it's playing out on The Oprah Winfrey Show.

In her first sit-down since last year's revelations that her husband, former presidential candidate and U.S. Senator John Edwards, carried on an extramarital affair, Elizabeth Edwards is out to prove resilience isn't just the title of her new book. It's been her life.

Winfrey joined the Edwards missus at their North Carolina home for an episode set to air this Thursday. The two discussed the state of the Edwards's marriage, her thoughts about his mistress, ongoing questions about whether he may have fathered a baby out of wedlock and her struggles with terminal cancer.

"Is it a day-by-day thing?" Winfrey asked about the couple's marriage, to which Edwards replied, "Neither one of of us is out the door, so I guess it's day by day, but maybe it's month by month."

Oprah also asked if they're still living together, to which Edwards replied they were.

"Are you still in love with him?" asked Oprah.

"You know, that's a complicated question," Edwards replied.

John Edwards publicly acknowledged in October 2007 that he had an affair with campaign staffer Rielle Hunter during his second bid for the presidency. Hunter gave birth to a daughter in February 2008 and claimed the child was fathered by another campaign worker, but she did not list the father's name on the birth certificate, prompting speculation that Edwards may be the real dad. Edwards, who also appeared during part of the Oprah taping, has denied paternity and offered to take a DNA test.

Asked by Winfrey about whether she believed her husband had fathered Hunter's child, Elizabeth Edwards appeared diffident.

"I've seen a picture of the baby. I have no idea. It doesn't look my children, but I don't have any idea," she said.

In a separate interview to appear in O, The Oprah Magazine, Edwards commented on the affair. "We're basically old-fashioned people. So this was a pretty big leap for him. Maybe it's being so different is what was attractive."

As for her battle with cancer and confronting her own mortality, Edwards said she doesn't feel fear but expressed hope that one day she and her family might be reunited again.

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