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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.”