John Edwards

The former aide who helped John Edwards cover up his affair and love child with Rielle Hunter is dismissing his former boss' long-overdue confession yesterday as mere "empty words" that are nothing more than a desperate PR campaign.

Andrew Young is lashing out at the two-time presidential candidate in an exclusive interview with ABC News hours after the former Senator released a statement Thursday admitting he is the father of mistress Rielle's two-year-old daughter.

"I think those were words, empty words," Young said. "If that is what he wanted to say, he should have said it two years ago. I think it's just a PR campaign."

Edwards' confession comes two weeks before a book by Young, called The Politician, will be released - and will detail his account of the Edwards sex scandal.

Family friend and lawyer Harrison Hickman responded that Edwards waited to admit paternity until arrangements for child support were finalized. Puh. Lease.

Young claims Edwards proposed an elaborate cover-up - faking a paternity test - in a failed attempt to conceal that he fathered a baby with Rielle Hunter.

It was Young, of course, who initially tried to protect his boss' reputation and political career by publicly stating that he was the father of Hunter's infant.

Rielle Hunter did not dispute this, and the story died down ... until Edwards was busted visiting her in an L.A. hotel. Then the heat was on him tenfold.

"The senator made the full pitch," Young said. "Not just for me. I mean he didn't just have to convince me that I was going to take paternity."

"He also had to convince Rielle to publicly claim I was the father."

Young said Edwards asked him to steal one of his daughter's soiled diapers in a strategy to confirm he was the dad, then get a doctor to fake DNA results.

The aide ignored the request, but says it speaks volumes about the man Edwards is, and the lengths to which he would go to perpetuate his double life.

Rielle Hunter with John Edwards' love child, Frances Quinn.

Edwards admitted matter-of-factly in his Thursday statement that "I am Quinn's father" and said it was "wrong" to ever deny he was the father of the infant.

Landing in Haiti to work on earthquake relief with actor Sean Penn, Edwards told reporters, "I've said what I have to say for now. I'm here to help people."

As for scorned wife Elizabeth, she did not answer questions about their marital status and would not speculate on where she and John will go in the future.

"If somebody has a crystal ball, they can let me know," said Edwards, who is still fighting cancer. "My marriage shouldn't be on anybody's radar except mine."

This morning, former presidential candidate John Edwards finally admitted that he fathered a love child during an affair with his mistress, Rielle Hunter.

After years of denials, he admitted today that he is the father of the almost two-year-old girl. "I am Quinn's father," John said in an obvious statement.

"It was wrong for me ever to deny she was my daughter ... I will do everything in my power to provide her with the love and support she deserves."

Such a sincere apology from an upstanding guy. Yeah, right.

The former U.S. Senator from North Carolina had an affair with campaign videographer Rielle Hunter, who later give birth to Frances Quinn, in 2007.

He denied the affair took place until he was busted visiting her in mid-2008, then confessed the affair but still denied that he could be Quinn's dad.

No doubt John would've preferred to keep lying about that, too, were it not for former aide Andrew Young and the release of his new tell-all book.

Young originally claimed he was the father of Hunter's baby, taking the fall for Edwards. But when investigators began probing John's finances, well ...

Dude sold Edwards out. Which he had coming at least. Then he wrote a book. In an exclusive interview on 20/20, he previews it with a bombshell.

Young alleges that Edwards asked him to arrange a fake paternity test: "Get a doctor to fake the DNA results," Young said Edwards told him.

"And he proceeded to ask me ... to steal a diaper from the baby so he could secretly do a DNA test to find out if this [was] indeed his child."

Can you imagine if this guy had been elected President?

John Edwards has finally admitted what we have suspected for years - that he is indeed the father of a two-year-old daughter with his mistress, Rielle Hunter.

The former U.S. Senator and Democratic presidential candidate said today in a statement that he’s taking responsibility for the child, Frances Quinn Hunter:

“I am Quinn’s father. I will do everything in my power to provide her with the love and support she deserves. I have been able to spend time with her and trust that future efforts to show her the love and affection she deserves can be done privately."

"It was wrong for me ever to deny she was my daughter and hopefully one day, when she understands, she will forgive me. [I've] been providing financial support for Quinn and have reached an agreement with her mother to continue providing support."

"I understand that to all those I have disappointed and hurt, these words will never be enough, but I am truly sorry.”

Edwards is not speaking publicly on the subject, in part because of an ongoing federal investigation into whether campaign money was used to try to cover up the affair.

He has denied wrongdoing, but then again, he also denied the affair with Rielle Hunter, and fathering the child with Rielle Hunter, so who knows with this guy!

Edwards' attorneys say he's been seeing Quinn and providing financial support for about a year, and just signed a new child support agreement with Rielle.

A spokesperson for John's cancer-stricken wife, Elizabeth Edwards, says she learned last year that Quinn is John's child. Yet this is the first formal admission.

John Edwards’ personal and political troubles began after the National Enquirer began reporting in late 2007 about his affair with Hunter, which he denied.

In 2008, after his failed presidential bid, Edwards was caught visiting Hunter in a hotel and eventually confirmed to ABC News that he had an affair with her.

Still, he vehemently denied on the air that he was the father of her child. Dude lies a lot and will only come clean when his hand has been forced, basically.

Today's admission comes on the heels of the political expose Game Change by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin, which sent shock waves around D.C.

A portion of the book about the 2008 election, which ran in New York Magazine, dealt with details of Edwards’ affair and his relationship with Elizabeth.

The admission also comes in advance of a tell-all book by Andrew Young, a former Edwards aide who originally claimed to be the father of Hunter’s child.

Basically, he would have kept on denying it if he had any choice, and had no interest in actually coming clean for morality's sake. Pretty typical, John.

The 2008 U.S. presidential election is over and done with, but a new book called Game Change by New York Magazine's John Heilemann and Time's Mark Halperin has stirred up a lot of interesting gossip about the most recent White House race.

While not providing that much truly new or startling, the book has offered tremendous fodder for national political conversation. Some of the broached topics:

• That Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) referred to Barack Obama as “light-skinned” and having "no Negro dialect unless he wanted to.”
• That the affair between John Edwards and Rielle Hunter, his campaign videographer, was known about and kept quiet by three of his aides early.
• That John Edwards is a delusional egomaniac whose aides called his wife Elizabeth "an abusive, intrusive, paranoid, condescending crazy woman."

• That former President Bill Clinton was involved in an affair in 2006 that many thought would derail Hillary Clinton's 2008 run for the presidency. The woman is not named in the book, but it wouldn't be Bill's first cheating rumor.
• That Clinton offended Ted Kennedy deeply while trying to win his endorsement for his wife's campaign by saying the following about then-candidate Obama: "A few years ago, this guy would have been getting us coffee."

• That John McCain's vetting of Sarah Palin was so woefully inadequate that no one from his campaign even interviewed her husband or opponents.
• That Sarah Palin believed Saddam Hussein to be behind the attacks on 9/11, and did not understand that North and South Korea were separate.
• That Palin is a mentally unstable person prone to wild mood swings, and was hopelessly lost in a "catatonic stupor" at one point in the campaign.

True? We may never know. But we certainly can debate - and agree that Edwards and Palin create the most entertaining reading material.

John Edwards is on the verge of divorcing wife Elizabeth and trawling for other women, according to reports. Inclined not to believe that? We don't blame you.

However, when the Enquirer reported that John was having an affair with Rielle Hunter and got her pregnant in 2007-2008, that seemed ridiculously absurd.

We know how that turned out.

The same celebrity gossip tabloid that outed his previous affair and sank Edwards' career now reports that he has embarked on a "sex-and-booze bender."

While still publicly not admitting paternity of (or financially supporting) his love child - who turns two in February - the disgraced politician is on the prowl!

Before booting her shameless husband from their home after Christmas, Elizabeth Edwards screamed at John that she was "finally signing" divorce papers.

Edwards fled to the couple's vacation home near Wilmington, N.C., where he drank and attempted to get in the sack with Stephanie Breshears, an attractive bartender.

Stephanie says that Edwards tried to get her to go back to his house for sex "for four consecutive nights" after meeting her at the Kornerstone Bistro, where she works.

"I think he's absolute scum," Stephanie said. "He was definitely looking to pick up women when he came in here - and he wanted me to go back to his house with."

"He said he'd been thinking about me since he and his wife were in last summer. He said I had run through his mind 'time and time' again. He said I was 'attractive.'

"He asked what I was doing after work and I told him I had plans with friends. But he told me he was staying on Figure Eight Island, and that I should join him."

Incredibly, minutes after giving Stephanie his phone number, Edwards started flirting with another woman. "He told her he was 'separated, soon to be divorced.'"

Elizabeth Edwards wants cheating husband John to support his love child with Rielle Hunter, and even wants to meet the little girl personally, sources say.

Surprisingly, Elizabeth wants John to fully support the baby and even wants to meet John and Rielle's love child in person, The National Enquirer says.

While she's heartbroken over John Edwards' “second family,” Elizabeth is determined that the former presidential candidate avoid an ugly court battle.

“Elizabeth feels that above all else, John and Rielle need to put their differences aside,” a close source told The Enquirer. "This is very difficult for her."

“As much as she hates that John has a second family, she can't stand the idea of Rielle Hunter going public with all of their dirty laundry in court."

"She instructed John to have his lawyers call Rielle's people and say they're giving her what she wants. She's also going to meet Rielle's little girl.”

THIS IS AWKWARD: If Elizabeth Edwards meets Rielle Hunter and her daughter, that could lead to a lot of tense conversation. And hopefully a reality show on MTV.

Rielle is reportedly seeking $17,000 a month in child support from John, who she has never formally acknowledged is the father of her daughter.

John has admitted sleeping with Rielle but denies he is the father of Frances, who will turn 2 on February 27. But come on, most people think he is.

Elizabeth is apparently one of them.

“Despite her anger at Rielle, who she calls a stalker and a home wrecker, Elizabeth knows Frances didn't bring any of this about,” said a source.

“Elizabeth sometimes breaks down in tears when she talks about Frances. Once she said, ‘She needs a daddy. All children need their father.'”

Even if their father is a guy who knocked up some weird videographer while his wife battled breast cancer and he was running for president?

Maybe single motherhood is best sometimes.

Rielle Hunter wants John Edwards to pay a lot of money to help support the child the two-time presidential candidate has never admitted he fathered.

How long before he's finally forced to come clean?

The National Enquirer makes up a lot of crap, but not regarding Edwards. They exposed the scandal in 2008, and appear to have proof this time too.

New documents prove beyond any doubt that John Edwards knocked up Rielle Hunter, with whom he had an affair as wife Elizabeth battled cancer.

Rielle is seeking more than $17,000 per month from the former U.S. Senator, who was forced into admitting the affair in the summer of last year.

Rielle Hunter and Frances Quinn are always on John's mind.

He still to this day hasn't admitted getting her pregnant, but his former aide and "fixer," Andrew Young, rolled over on him and all but confirmed it.

Court files from earlier this year (the case has still not been resolved) are pretty much the nail in the coffin, as Edwards is named in the litigation.

Child support documents show John has a house for Rielle and their daughter, Francis Quinn, but is battling over monthly child support payments.

Her attorney also sent her a “Family Part Case Information Statement,” which spells out Rielle Hunter is the plaintiff and Edwards the defendant.

Follow the jump to see said court document ...

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The fact that John Edwards cheated on wife, and almost definitely fathered a son with Rielle Hunter, would be reason enough for Elizabeth Edwards to leave her husband.

But the scorned better half of the former Presidential candidate has stood by her man... until now, sources indicate.

The National Enquirer, which actually broke the Hunter affair last year, claims Edwards cheated on his wife with multiple women; and Elizabeth - who is battling Stage 4 breast cancer - has had enough.

"Elizabeth had always sworn she wouldn't divorce John," an insider told the tabloid. "But every person has a breaking point, and Elizabeth's friends believe she's reached hers.. [she] made it clear to John that she will take him for everything he's got. She will divorce him and claim their $53 million fortune."

This isn't the first time a separation between the previously adored couple has been reported. In August, magazines actually claimed John was moving in with Rielle, an allegation that seems outlandish, even for this depressing, sordid story.

As for what has truly set Elizabeth off, friends claim she's read portions of the tell-all by Andrew Young - the campaign aide that Edwards allegedly paid off to claim paternity of Hunter's child - and was sickened by what she learned.

"Elizabeth was read portions of Young's book proposal, and she flipped out," said the source. "What really pushed her over the edge is Young's allegation that John had other affairs with women on the campaign trail."

This insider says Elizabeth is prepared to expose all of her husband's secrets in court. Stay tuned. This story is far from over.

By now we all know the facts. Former presidential candidate John Edwards was caught two-timing his wife of 30 years, Elizabeth, with Rielle Hunter.

There are rumors he also fathered the daughter of the weird videographer. He has adamantly denied this up until now, but his word means nothing.

Given that he's a proven liar, and every piece of circumstantial aligns perfectly, the assumption is that Edwards is the father of Frances Quinn Hunter.

But is an official admission of paternity finally imminent?

According to the New York Times, the disgraced former U.S. Senator from North Carolina may be on the verge of acknowledging what we all know.

Not because he's a good guy or anything - he's effectively being forced to. His former aide Andrew Young, who first claimed to have knocked up Rielle Hunter to cover his boss' a$$, is preparing to publish a book filled with revelations.

Young, who once signed an affidavit stating Frances was his daughter, only to later rescind the claim, testified before a grand jury investigating the use of Edwards' campaign funds. It is theorized that he came clean under oath.

John and Elizabeth Edwards remain married, although how close they are these days is debatable. Among the bombshells reported by the Times:

• Andrew Young says Edwards pleaded with him to claim paternity of Rielle Hunter's daughter in an attempt to "make the scandal go away."
• Edwards told Rielle he would marry her after Elizabeth died at a rooftop ceremony at an NYC hotel with the Dave Matthews Band performing.
• Young claims that he set up meetings between Hunter and Edwards over the course of a year so they could keep their relationship a secret.
• That Hunter's daughter's middle name, Quinn (similar to the Latin prefix for five) was chosen because the girl is John Edwards' fifth child.

So when's he going to admit it, if at all? Wade Smith, a Raleigh lawyer who represents Edwards, issued a statement about the paternity rumors:

"There may be a statement on that subject at some point, but there is no timetable and we will see how we feel about it as events unfold."

Elizabeth Edwards said on CNN this summer that she hoped any DNA test and results would be private, "for the sake of this child ... in a quiet way."

The former John Edwards aide who claimed it was he, not the former U.S. Senator and presidential hopeful, who knocked up Rielle Hunter in 2007, now says in a book proposal obtained by the New York Times that Edwards is the father.

Andrew Young says he and Edwards worked with his campaign finance chairman to hide that secret, and he helped facilitate the affair between John and Rielle.

According to the newspaper, Young wrote that Edwards told Hunter they would get married after Edwards' wife, who has terminal breast cancer, passed away.

Edwards told Hunter that the ceremony would be held on a rooftop in New York and the Dave Matthews Band would make an appearance, the Times said.

Because Dave Matthews has nothing better to do than to play a wedding for a disgraced politician marrying his baby mama after his first wife just died.

Rielle with John Edwards' daughter (come on, you know it is) Frances Quinn.

In May, federal investigators began looking into how John Edwards used campaign funds, which he may have used as hush money to buy off Rielle Hunter.

Edwards adamantly denied last summer that he had fathered a child with Hunter, though he initially denied the affair just as adamantly until he was busted.

Edwards says the affair with Hunter ended in 2006. Andrew Young said in 2007 he was the child's father. Hunter said at the time that Young was the father.

The birth certificate does not list a father's name.

In 2006, Edwards' political action committee paid Hunter's video production firm $100,000 for work. She filmed four web videos for his campaign website.

Then the committee paid another $14,086 on April 1, 2007. Edwards has said the latter payment wa for 100 hours of unused videotape Rielle Hunter shot.

Not only did John Edwards have a mistress, he may have paid her off.

The same day, the Edwards presidential campaign had injected $14,034.61 into the PAC for a "furniture purchase," according to federal election records.

Andrew Young, who fell off the face of the earth after admitting paternity, is thought to be rolling over on Edwards after being forced to testify under oath.

He recently signed a book deal with St. Martin's Press. There was a confidentiality agreement, and how the Times obtained the proposal is unknown.