For the past few days, the world of politics and the world of tabloid gossip have been intertwined on in the news because of the publication of the book Game Change, written by journalists Mark Halperin and John Heilman. It’s a behind-the-scenes account of every major primary and presidential campaign from the 2007-08 political season. Over the weekend, most people were discussing the revelations that Sen. Harry Reid was (and could still be) the kind of man who casually remarks things like “Barack Obama is a light skinned African-American with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one.” There are lots of political bombshells and juicy gossip, and if you’d like to know more, I suggest you simply tune in to CNN, MSNBC or Fox, because they’re all doing wall-to-wall coverage.

What I didn’t hear this weekend, and only began hearing this morning, was the new information about former Senator John Edwards, his wife Elizabeth and his mistress and baby-mama Rielle Hunter. There are new details about that scandal, and since we’ve been covering every sordid detail that comes out of the Enquirer, I thought we’d bring some more information:

Cancer-ridden Elizabeth Edwards ripped open her shirt screaming “Look at me!” at a terrified John Edwards after his affair with Rielle Hunter was first exposed by The ENQUIRER, a new book reveals.

Game Change [sic] an inside account of the 2008 Presidential Race by John Heilman and Mark Halperin reveals shocking new details about the John Edwards cheating scandal.

In the book, Edwards is described as an out-of-control narcissistic who became an egomaniac after meeting future mistress Rielle Hunter. His affair with Hunter, who told people she was a “witch”, was an open secret among his chief advisers — three who quit early in the campaign.

John Edwards is described as delusional while the public image of “saintly Elisabeth’s public persona” is shattered. Openly battling with John in front of aides, she belittled her “intellectually inferior” hubby in front of campaign workers.

Insiders describe her as “an abusive, intrusive, paranoid condescending crazy woman,” according to the book.

When The ENQUIRER first revealed the affair, John and Elizabeth fought violently in the parking lot of an airport terminal.

“Elizabeth was sobbing, out of control, incoherent. As their aides tried to avert their eyes, she tore off her blouse exposing herself. ‘Look at ME!’ she wailed at John and then staggered, nearly falling to the ground,” the authors recount.

In the wake of Edwards dismissal of The ENQUIRER’s investigation as “tabloid trash” it was only after The ENQUIRER’s world exclusive “spy photo” appeared in print and online of the disgraced candidate holding his love child by Hunter that Edwards admitted the affair, denying paternity, on national TV.

“Confronted then with the ENQUIRER photo of her husband cuddling Hunter’s baby, she insisted to (an aide) that she still believed he was not the father.”

‘I have to believe it,’ Elizabeth said. ‘Because if I don’t, it means I’m married to a monster.'”

With former loyalist and pretend daddy Andrew Young’s insider tell-all of the affair and the cover-up to be published next month AND the ongoing federal probe into Edwards’ use of political campaign funds to engineer payoffs to his mistress, for John Edwards the worst is YET to come.

[From The National Enquirer]

The Enquirer also got a scoop that was picked up by other media outlets: that Elizabeth was planning on meeting Frances, the daughter of John Edwards and Rielle Hunter. The Enquirer’s sources claimed: “Elizabeth feels that above all else, John and Rielle need to put their differences aside… As much as she hates that John has a second family, 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. She’s also going to meet Rielle’s little girl face to face over the next few weeks.” The sources also claim that Elizabeth has a “soft spot” for Frances and that “Despite her anger at Rielle, who she’s painted as a stalker and a homewrecker, Elizabeth knows Frances didn’t bring any of this about…Elizabeth sometimes breaks down in tears when she talks about Frances. Once she said, ‘She needs a daddy.’”

With the mainstream media still picking up stories that the Enquirer broke – not just in regards to the Edwards’ family, but also the Tiger Woods drama – you’ve got to wonder if the Enquirer might be getting some love sent their way. On that note, it seems that some political blogger (Emily Miller of Politics Daily.com) thinks that the Enquirer should get a Pulitzer for breaking the John Edwards story. Hmm…