Cindy McCain, wife of Vietnam veteran and former POW Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), co-hosted the event with the USO. When I asked her why she supported this movie so strongly, she said: "I met Jake when my son was in Iraq the first time. As a mom, I had no idea what he was doing, and I saw the movie and I could understand."

McCain also said she's a "blue star mom," and the film helps the public understand what it's like "to be a mom with a son deployed."

Mrs. McCain introduced her husband, who told the crowd, "It is my wish that every American family would have the opportunity to see this film."

The film's message is not anti-war, which some speculated was the reason Rademacher initially could not find any Hollywood bigwigs to finance it. Eventually, actor Gary Sinese and producer Norman Powell signed on. Looking at Jake Rademacher, Cindy McCain said, "Now we have someone in Hollywood who gets it." In remarks after the screening, Rademacher said that the film's success -- "In four weeks' release, it's already outsold all the other war docs from the last four years" -- is a way to "change Hollywood, to wake them up to the type of movies you want to see."

The Rademachers have served seven tours in Afghanistan and Iraq, General Casey told the audience. "That's a huge sacrifice and commitment for one family to make," he said. "And I just found out tonight that the youngest daughter, Hanna, has just enlisted in the Army and reports for basic training in April."

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The infamous "Obama Girl" whose viral video "Crush on Obama" made her an Internet sensation during the 2008 presidential campaign says she no longer has a passionate crush on President Obama. Known to the world as "Obama Girl," Amber Lee Ettinger said in an interview on Fox News about Obama's first year as president: "Broken promises. People like -- talk is cheap; actions speak louder than words."


Explaining to Fox's Sean Hannity the analogy between her crush on Obama and real life romance, she explained that "even with a relationship, you know, once people - your boyfriend, girlfriend doesn't do what they say they're going to do, you kick them to the curb."

Like most crushes, "Obama Girl" realized that the reality of the man fell short of her fantasy. "I just don't have that big crush like I used to," she said, though conceding she's not given up entirely on her guy, grading him a B minus on a scale of A-F.

During the 2008 presidential campaign, the "Crush on Obama" video -- which was not connected to the candidate or his campaign -- gave a boost to the sexy, youth-oriented allure of Obama. "Obama Girl" became infamous for singing about her crush wearing, alternately, a tight tank top with Obama's face on it, a pink bikini and hot pants with "Obama" printed across the rear. To date, the video on YouTube has over 16 million hits.


The song lyrics include: "You're into border security. Let's break this border between you and me. Universal health care reform. It makes me warm. You tell the truth unlike the right. You can love but you can fight. You can Barack me tonight. I've got a crush on Obama."

"Obama Girl" has learned, real life (or in her case, real/imaginary political life) intruded on the fantasy. "If I had this crush on him the same way as I did in the beginning, I'd be the fool. You know, it's like a relationship. When you get into a relationship with somebody they're all great and perfect, they say all the right things," she said on Fox. "And then once you're in the relationship it's like, OK, they're not that perfect."

But, "Obama Girl" concedes, her infatuation with a presidential candidate and ensuing reality check could have been a lot worse: "Well, at least I wouldn't be the 'Edwards Girl', right?"

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John Edwards' former staffer Andrew Young supposedly has a sex tape made by Edwards and Rielle Hunter, according to Gawker.

Let's face it, Young has lied before: He previously claimed paternity of Edwards' daughter with Hunter, and if we believe him now, was willing to drive his own life over a cliff to cover up for his boss. But he now insists that he became disillusioned when he discovered the sex tape in 2007...in his friend Hunter's home. (Gee, was it hidden on the coffee table, along with an open box of chocolates?) Doubtless the motivation of a book contract had nothing to do with Young's disillusionment...but he's threatening to reveal more gory details of Edwards and Hunter's affair in his new book, The Politician, which will be released February 2. Oh, and those who do not want to hear another word about the contents of the (purported?) sex tape should NOT tune in for his interview Friday on ABC's 20/20.

Hunter was paid by the Edwards presidential campaign to make videos of the candidate, but no one suspected she was making one of them having sex. The tape reportedly shows Hunter "behind the camera at first" and then the two of them engaging in "several sex acts." The New York Daily News reported last June that Young's book proposal mentioned a sex tape, as did the National Enquirer in July.

One of Gawker's sources said Young saw the sex tape as "kind of the last straw for people who had sacrificed savings and jobs to lie for John."

Wearing a blue t-shirt , with his hair blowing in the wind, Edwards told CBS: "We're going to do a variety of things. We're gonna get our intelligence, make sure we know where the medicine needs to go, which facilities can do the most good, where our other supplies - generators, food, water, water puriiers -- where they can go and be distributed in the best way."

Barry Levine, editor of the National Enquirer, is nominating his reporters for a Pulitzer Prize for their work in uncovering the John Edwards affair.

Levine told me that Edwards' admission Thursday that he fathered a daughter with a campaign videographer during his 2008 presidential run made him decide to submit nomination forms for his reporters in two categories: for distinguished investigative reporting by a team, presented in a series of articles, and for a distinguished example of reporting on national affairs.

Two weeks ago, I called for the National Enquirer to get the prestigious journalism award because its reporters broke the story that has led to a grand jury investigation of Edwards' use of campaign funds and the political downfall of a two-time Democratic presidential candidate. At the time, Levine told me that, "Our Enquirer reporters do deserve to be nominated for a Pulitzer, but you know the mainstream media would rather see the Earth explode first!"

Now that the Enquirer's two-year reporting that Edwards had an out-of-wedlock child with Rielle Hunter has been validated by him, the paper published this reaction: "John Edwards finally admitted his paternity of his love child to the world today in his 2nd "confession" in a complete vindication of the Enquirer's exhaustive investigation." The child, Quinn Hunter, is 23 months old.

The former Democratic senator from North Carolina and his wife Elizabeth Edwards had repeatedly denied that he is the father of Hunter's child. Edwards' former aide Andrew Young initially claimed paternity, but is now recanting that claim in a new book, which he will preview on ABC's 20/20 on Friday.

Pulitzer Prizes are given each year "for outstanding journalism" to newspapers and eligible news sites (not magazines or TV). Editors submit nominations on behalf of their reporters. There are 14 categories for Pulitzers and each has its own jury of "distinguished journalists" who determine the winner. The Pulitzer juries value work "characterized by a high quality of writing and original reporting."

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Republican South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford was on the floor of the House of Representatives Thursday talking to GOP congressmen. As a former member of Congress, Sanford is allowed to visit the chamber at will.

Among others, Sanford chatted with Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) and Rep. Bill Young (R-Fla.). Sanford has not been seen publicly in Washington, D.C., since the news broke last summer that he lied about his whereabouts to his staff while taking a secret trip to Argentina to meet his lover, Maria Belen Chapur. Sanford's estranged wife, Jenny Sanford, has written a book about her marriage which is being released in February.

Spotted by CNN on his way into the House chamber, Sanford said: "I was going to catch up with some friends on the House floor."

Sanford, who gave his final State of the State speech Wednesday in South Carolina, did not say publicly why he is in Washington, D.C.

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President George H. W. Bush went to his favorite barbecue place in Houston on Tuesday for a last meal before the restaurant is turned into a -- sniff -- bank.

Bush, 85, was caught by a local cameraman at Otto's Barbecue ordering his usual -- beef ribs, sausage links, beef and a side of beans - on the day before the location closes.

"We've been coming here for many years, [since] 1959 I think," Bush told KHOU-TV. "And we knew Otto, and we knew his widow and just think the world of the people. And they put on a good barbecue . . . I'll miss them. Our family will miss them."

Otto's Barbecue, founded by Otto and Annie Sofka in 1950, has several other locations and remains a family-run business. Bush has been eating his beef ribs for decades at the Memorial Drive location, which is closing Wednesday to be replaced by a Chase Bank.

Celebrities who have made pit stops at Otto's while in Houston run the gamut from performer Liberace to boxer George Foreman. Other Otto's diners have included actor/director Ron Howard, singer Willie Nelson, actor/comedian Jerry Lewis and the late country singer Waylon Jennings.

Bush told KHOU that he wasn't even hungry, but he came just to get a last meal before his 50-year barbecue joint was closed forever. Pass the moist wipes . . .

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Haitian-American singer Wyclef Jean held a press conference in New York on Monday to defend against accusations that he has profited from his charity Yele Haiti.

Since the massive earthquake that struck Haiti last Tuesday, Jean has called on the public to text "YELE" to 501501 to donate $5 to the Yele Haiti Earthquake Fund, which has raised over $2 million in just days, according to the Associated Press.

"Yele's books are open and transparent. We have been given a clean bill of health by an external auditor every year since we started," Jean told reporters.

He denied all accusations that he personally benefited from Yele Haiti, and pointed out that he gave $1 million of his own money to the charity.

He referred all further questions on finances to the Hugh Locke, the president of the foundation, saying, "My people are dying and I have to go back to the ground in a few days for a mission relief."

This was the second time in three days Jean has defended the charity. He posted a video on YouTube on Saturday saying he had just returned from Haiti to face an "attack on my integrity and my foundation Yele Haiti." In a rambling explanation, he said Yele Haiti is an NGO he set up to address his native country's needs. He ended the video with another appeal for $5 donations in response for the "state of emergency" in Haiti and expressing gratitude for global aid to the country. Click play below to watch the video:


Celebrities -- who seem to rally on behalf of other celebrities' charities -- have posted and tweeted to donate to Jean's foundation. I wrote about celebrity donations to Haiti last Thursday, and it struck me as odd that Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt -- who have visited Haiti with Wyclef Jean and put out an initial statement supporting him -- later announced their $1 million donation was made to Doctors Without Borders. I read through the couple's two statements many times to make sure I understood correctly that they support Jean's charity -- and yet they weren't putting their money into it. Hmm.

By the end of last week, The Smoking Gun released IRS forms filed by Yele Haiti that seem to show the nonprofit used donations to pay "the performer and his business partner at least $410,000 for rent, production services, and Jean's appearance at a benefit concert." The foundation has filed tax returns for only three of the 12 years it has been active, and filed those forms only this past August.

Jean has not addressed specific financial questions in his recent statements, but defended himself by saying: "Accusations have been made about me and about Yele. I'm not at all sad by this because my daddy told me the day would always come where you would always be challenged by doing good work."

I think Jean is sincere in his love of his homeland, and the many years dedicated to helping the poverty-stricken Haitians proves his heart is in the right place. But questions remain: Is his charity truly delivering relief and aid to the needy with minimum overhead in administrative and other expenses incurred by Jean and his staff?

And are donations to other charitable organizations in Haiti -- Partners in Health and Doctors Without Borders, among the many -- more efficiently used to benefit the people? From the evidence I've seen, that would seem to be the case.

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Many of us watched the Golden Globes Sunday night expecting to see Hollywood's typical and inappropriately maudlin reaction to the tragedy in Haiti. But if we were looking for material to mock the stars, whose glittery lives are largely untouched by the nightmare, we were disappointed.

Instead, I was pleasantly surprised and impressed that the NBC production team and the celebrities showed respect and restraint, and, when appropriate, an appeal for fans to send money to well-run charitable organizations for relief efforts in Haiti.

These awards shows have become an odd showcase for celebrities to attempt to show they are knowledgeable about current events, which mostly they are not. But the celebrities at the Golden Globes made speeches about their TV and movie shows and did not attempt to make political statements.

When the first celebrities hit the red carpet sporting unexplained red-ribbon pins on their haute couture gowns and tuxedos, I anticipated crocodile tears and pseudo-drama about the earthquake victims. Instead, the pins went largely unmentioned by those wearing them. When Morgan Freeman was asked directly what the red pins meant, he said they were to "honor" the people of Haiti -- not the best answer. NBC should have provided stars with a few talking points about the charitable organizations behind the red ribbons.

Later during the broadcast, the NBC producers get credit for scripting the show to solemnly but simply explain the pins to viewers. Several times during the show, actors briefly announced the pins were reminders of Haiti and suggested viewers go to the the NBC Web site for a list of well-run charitable organizations seeking donations.

Meryl Streep, who can seem self-absorbed as she wins award after award, year after year, made the most beautiful, humble, self-aware speech of the night when she won best actress for "Julie and Julia." "I come to Golden Globes weekend and I am conflicted how to have my happy movie self in the face of everything I'm aware of in the real world, and that's when I have my mother's voice coming to me: 'Partners in Health, shoot some money to Partners In Health, and be damn grateful you have the dollars to help.'"

Streep's reference to her donation to Partners in Health, an organization with very low overhead that has been active in the local communities in Haiti for many years, showed she cared enough to research where to send her money. She also avoided emoting about suffering that doesn't touch her directly - admirable for an actress -- and avoided a direct appeal for fans to send donations, a sign she is sensitive to the fact she is much richer than most watching the show.

The stars seemed more upset about moving Conan O'Brien's comedy show to a later time slot to make room for Jay Leno to return to 11:35 p.m. Repeatedly on the red carpet and from the stage, stars took pot shots at NBC over the late-night drama, which seemed like a rude dinner guest mocking the host for overcooking the steak. The celebs should have realized that NBC was handling the awards show during a humanitarian crisis with aplomb and kept their opinions of the victimization of multi-millionaire Conan O'Brien to themselves.

These awards shows - Oscars, Emmys, Golden Globes, Grammys -- have turned into open forums for out-of-touch Hollywood types to speak about political and humanitarian issues. Thankfully, in recent years the excess of multi-colored ribbons on lapels has died down, since no one seems to know which color represents which group anymore - and the symbolism does very little to actually benefit the charity.

The Emmy awards were rescheduled after 9/11, as they should have been, but NBC was correct to air the Golden Globes awards as scheduled, with respect and helpful information for viewers about how to send donations.

Let's hope that celebs at George Clooney's telethon on Friday - "Hope for Haiti" - show the same awareness that in truth, they can't appreciate the depth of the Haitian people's pain and suffering.

Young D.C. professionals mixed and mingled Thursday night at a fundraiser for restoration of the National Mall, the beloved heart of the nation's capitol. The cocktail benefit was for the Trust for the National Mall, a nonprofit partner of the National Park Service dedicated to restoring the Mall, which has become rundown due to lack of funding and 30 years of neglect.

"This is America's front yard," exclaimed John "Chip" Akridge, the chairman of the Trust for the National Mall and of Akridge commercial real estate. "Our goal is to make the Mall the best damn park in the world."

Speaking to the packed crowd of attractive young professionals at a lounge on K Street, Akridge said that he had seen Interior Secretary Ken Salazar earlier in the day and gave him one of the organization's lapel pins. "We are your partner," Akridge reported Salazar saying to him. "I will take that pin and I will wear it."

Salazar delivered nearly $55 million for repairs to the Mall from President Obama's economic stimulus package last year. These funds, though, are inadequate to make up for the $350 million lost over the years in deferred maintenance. On top of that amount, the Trust estimates that another $150 million is needed for improvements to visitor facilities, for a total fundraising goal of $500 million.

The National Mall was part of Pierre L'Enfant's 1791 design for Washington. He envisioned an open public space where people could celebrate America's heroes. Over the years, the 700-acre expanse in the center of D.C. has added monuments to Presidents Lincoln, Jefferson and Washington, as well as memorials to veterans of the Korean, Vietnam and Second World Wars.

However, the Mall is currently in a dire state. It draws 25 million visitors each year, and many of them comment on such major concerns as the sinking Jefferson Memorial seawall, the brown and barren footpaths, and the stagnant pools of water (or sometimes just empty pools).

Other leaders of the group at the event included Kristen Pollin and Dave Pollin, co-chairs of the May 2010 fundraiser "Ball on the Mall"; L'Enfant Society co-chairs Cameron Gilreath of Time Warner and George Chopivsky of Simpson Housing; and Mexican Ambassador Arturo Sarukhan, the honorary chair of the Diplomatic Committee.

Since being established in November 2007, the Trust for the National Mall has raised over $5 million for the National Park Service. The L'Enfant Society was established a year ago by the board of the Trust for the National Mall in order to engage young professionals in fundraising and awareness of the National Mall and has raised $300,000 so far.

"I go running on the Mall on weekends, as many of you do," Chopivksy said. "There is no reason it can't be a world-class park."

I too go running on the Mall and would love to see clean water and grassy paths again in this iconic American park.

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Celebrity stylist Erwin Gomez (pictured, at right) will be testifying before a federal grand jury Tuesday morning, apparently in an investigation related to now-infamous White House state dinner crashers Michaele and Tareq Salahi.

Both Gomez and "hair artist" Peggy Ioakim received subpoenas Friday to testify. The CEO of the Erwin Gomez Salon and Spa, James Packard-Gomez (also pictured), says that Ioakim has been called to testify at 11:30 a.m. and Gomez at 12:30 p.m. at the federal courthouse at Third Street and Constitution Avenue.

The salon is being represented by the law firm Tobin, O'Connor and Ewing, which Packard-Gomez says "offered pro-bono legal defense in order to explain how things work" to the hair and makeup artists.

Michaele Salahi spent seven hours at the Erwin Gomez Salon on Nov. 24, the day of President Obama's first White House state dinner, held for the prime minister of India. The Salahis attended the event, even though, according to the Secret Service, they were not invited. (The presence of a third allegedly uninvited guest, Carlos Allen, also came to light recently.)

Packard-Gomez says that their lawyers told him that the subpoena is most likely related to the Salahis. According to Politico, the subpoena says the grand jury is investigating a possible violation of 18 USC 1001, a federal statute that covers lying to a government official. The Washington Post has reported that a federal grand jury was convened to investigate the Salahi matter.

During the 2008 presidential campaign, the paper was literally on Edwards' heels, reporting as early as late 2007 that Edwards was having an affair and his mistress was pregnant. Edwards only defense was to call the Enquirer "tabloid trash," which was enough to stop mainstream media outlets from further investigating the photo-documented reports.

Riveting new details of the widespread knowledge within the Edwards' campaign staff of his affair with Hunter emerged Saturday in a book excerpt published in New York magazine. The authors of Game Change, John Heilemann and Mark Halperin, provide new jaw-dropping details of John and Elizabeth Edwards openly fighting over his affair in front of his staffers - at one point she rips open her shirt to show him the scars from breast cancer surgeries. Also, the book reports that at least three staffers quit the campaign over Edwards' affair with Rielle Hunter.

The new details in this book provide further evidence that the mainstream reporters on the campaign trail with Edwards could have uncovered the adultery and possibly out-of-wedlock child if they had pushed the outraged former staff members for answers. Despite the legwork reporting done by the National Enquirer, there's little evidence that any of the reporters covering the Edwards campaign were interested in ascertaining if the accusations were true.

The Enquirer scooped the old-guard media for the better part of a year -- even after it broke a blockbuster political story that should have piqued the curiosity of working journos at any big-time news organization. A couple of nagging questions present themselves: Would the reporters "on the bus" have pressed the staff for what they really knew of the rumored affair if the reporting had come from a mainstream media outlet? Even more troubling: Would a leading Republican presidential candidate have similarly escaped the media's scrutiny?

To recap: In an intermittent barrage of exposés, The Enquirer asserted that Edwards, the two time Democratic presidential candidate and former senator from North Carolina, committed adultery on his cancer-stricken wife, Elizabeth; that he fathered a child with his mistress, Rielle Hunter; that Edwards' long time aide Andrew Young falsely claimed -- and later recanted -- paternity; and that payments from campaign contributors close to Edwards were made to Hunter so she would go into hiding with the child.

As a result of the stories, Edwards (eventually) admitted to cheating on Elizabeth -- though he was quick to note that "it happened during a period after she was in remission from cancer." He reportedly is facing a possible paternity suit by Hunter and a federal grand jury probe into his use of campaign funds. (Edwards has denied paying anyone hush money.)

The Enquirer first reported on the affair in October 2007 and developed new details for months afterward amid a heated presidential campaign. Initially, Edwards was dismissive, saying, "The story is false. It's completely untrue, ridiculous." Now we know that as he was denying the stories, Hunter was already pregnant.

The Enquirer's executive editor, Barry Levine, says he is unaware of anyone else in the media seriously investigating the story until after the Enquirer spotted Edwards "with his mistress and love child in a hotel in Beverly Hills, and then we published a photo of him with the baby, finally leading him to confirm the affair to ABC." Even then, while admitting the affair, Edwards insisted that he was not -- and could not -- be the baby's father. "Not true. Published in a supermarket tabloid," he said on camera -- as if somehow the venue where the accusation first appeared made its veracity an impossibility.

Edwards' motivations to dissemble are obvious, but what is the excuse of the mainstream media -- especially when campaign funds are alleged to be involved? In 2009, the Enquirer beat other media outlets not only on the fallout of the affair on Edwards' family, but also on the grand jury investigation of campaign funds. And in this later aspect, it appears that the Enquirer's reporters and photographers uncovered the stories the old-fashioned way, by putting the time and manpower into an investigation.

Perhaps there's some good news buried in this sordid tale -- an example to be followed: The TV networks and many print outlets have dismantled or cut back their investigative teams, while the Enquirer continues to incur the expense of putting reporters on months-long stakeouts and paying them to literally knock on doors in search of sources. They do this, apparently, because they think that scoops still sell newspapers. And they have earned, at least in this instance, the right to crow: "I'm most proud our reporting of John Edwards was deemed by the federal government to be worthy of a grand jury investigation for possible misappropriation of campaign funds," Levine told me.

The National Enquirer Style of Journalism

Critics of the tabloid often dismiss it for its two-headed-dog stories, Loch Ness monster sightings, and tall tales of UFOs and alien abductions. The problem with that line of disparagement is that such fare hasn't been a staple of the Enquirer for 3½ decades. (This was a headline in the May 8, 2004 edition of the Enquirer: "Did You Witness Norwood UFO?" But that was the Cincinnati Enquirer, a mainstream daily owned by Gannett Newspapers.)

That same spring of 2004, esteemed media critic Jack Shafer of Slate wrote a piece headlined, "I Believe the National Enquirer: Why Don't You?" His peg was a Pew poll showing that most people believed almost nothing of what they read in the Enquirer -- in sharp contrast to the Gannett-owned USA Today. Shafer suggested that this faith in the traditional paper may have been unwarranted, asserting that had if USA Today fabulist Jack Kelley had tried to put his made-up dispatches past the editors at the National Enquirer, he would have been found out much earlier.

In 2008, amid the Edwards soap opera, Shafer weighed in on the subject again, this time taking the mainstream media to task for the double standard of ignoring Edwards while being in hot pursuit of Sen. Larry Craig's embarrassing escapade in a Minneapolis airport men's room.

For his part, Barry Levine is not surprised. He has a unique take on the herd mentality of modern journalism. "No one wants to be first, but everyone wants in after the heavy lifting has been done by us," he says. "We care less about the pack mentality -- we want to break those stories." But this is only part of the reason the Enquirer is shunned. A big part of the squeamishness is that the tabloid pays sources for information, engaging in what critics call "checkbook journalism." It is a practice shunned by mainstream media because, for one thing, it gives witnesses and sources an obvious incentive to make things up. This happened, in fact, to the Enquirer itself during the coverage of the Elizabeth Smart kidnapping case in Utah.

In that instance, its paid informants concocted a story that members of the Smart family were involved in a "gay-sex ring," implying that this was somehow related to the 14-year-old girl's disappearance. The story was false, and the Enquirer later paid the Smarts an undisclosed amount in a settlement. (In an interesting twist, however, two of the sources for that bogus story were mainstream reporters covering the case for a Salt Lake City newspaper. Both reporters were paid $10,000 -- and were subsequently fired.)

Levine makes no apologies for paying for information, saying the Enquirer no longer pays a source until and unless the tip checks out to be true. "Paying for information is no different than what the police or other law enforcement do, because if the tip pans out and can be substantiated, then paying for information doesn't taint the process," Levine asserts. "It just gives us a head start." Enquirer reporters still have to run down the leads with "standard shoe-leather journalism," he insists, "literally going door-to-door trying to find a source who will give more details."

Mrs. Salahi's hair is a topic of talk because another Georgetown stylist, Christophe Jouenne, sued her for payment of $4,000 to cover the cost of blonde hair extensions she received at the salon, according to a report about the couple in the Washington Post. The paper reports that the hair stylist "had human hair over-nighted to his Georgetown salon and worked from 7 p.m. until midnight on her now-famous locks."

The Salahis have denied fault in lawsuits against them.

Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, under federal indictment for corruption, is one of the stars of the next season of the NBC reality show, "Celebrity Apprentice." The show is hosted and produced by Donald Trump and will premier on March 14.

Blagojevich was removed from office a year ago after being indicted and impeached.

Elizabeth Edwards seemingly has had a change of heart about the reported illegitimate daughter of her husband John Edwards and mistress Rielle Hunter. According to a new story in the National Enquirer, Elizabeth Edwards wants to personally meet the 22-month old Frances Quinn Hunter and is encouraging her husband to meet Hunter's demands for child support of almost $18,000 a month.

The Enquirer reports that Elizabeth Edwards is motivated by her belief that the child should have a relationship with her father, as well as her desire to avoid a public fight over child support payments.

Although Elizabeth is still angry about Hunter, "she can't stand the idea of Rielle going public with 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," a source told the Enquirer.

Elizabeth is "going to meet Rielle's little girl face to face over the next few weeks," according to the Enquirer's source.

The about-face of Elizabeth Edwards comes after interviews during her book tour in which she said she did not know the girl's paternity and would never say the name of her husband's mistress.

In August, when Edwards reportedly bought Hunter a house near his family's $2.6 million waterfront mansion in North Carolina, Elizabeth was supposedly so infuriated, she started packing a suitcase and threatening to leave him.

By December, the Enquirer reported that Edwards refused to let Hunter move in to the house in North Carolina after they fought over child support payments.

John Edwards, the two-time Democratic presidential candidate and former senator from North Carolina, admitted to having affair with Hunter, with the caveat that "it happened during a period after [Elizabeth] was in remission from cancer."

He has not, however, publicly admitted he is the father of Hunter's child. Edwards was reportedly preparing to release a statement admitting paternity, but pulled back when child support negotiations with Hunter broke down after she demanded more money in the settlement.

The possibility of a public court hearing comes after private financial negotiations between Hunter and Edwards reportedly broke down when she demanded an annual $214,920 in child support.

Legal documents obtained by Radaronline.com appear to be communications between Hunter and her attorney Frank Louis in preparation for bringing the child support dispute before the Superior Court of New Jersey, where Hunter currently lives.

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