Edwards Admits to Child with Mistress

Former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards admitted Thursday to fathering a child with his onetime mistress Rielle Hunter. The former North Carolina senator issued a written statement to NBC's Today show declaring, "I am Quinn's father."

Edwards, who ran as a vice-presidential candidate with John Kerry in 2004, initially denied reports that he was the father of Francis Quinn Hunter, who is nearly 2 years old. The National Enquirer revealed his affair with the child's mother during the 2008 presidential campaign while his wife, Elizabeth Edwards, underwent cancer treatment.

According to Politico.com, Edwards consultant Harrison Hickman tried to explain on camera to NBC why the politician at first denied being the father.

"It's a lot more complicated, I think, than most people think," said Hickman. "There are a lot of adults involved, and I think they wanted to handle this the right way for [the Edwardses' children] Jack and Emma Claire and Kate as well as for Quinn."