John Edwards & Cross Country

Heading into the Potomac primaries, Obama and Clinton are in a tight race to gain the party's nomination for President. Both have secured over a thousand delegates and are virtually tied while other contenders have dropped out of the race, including John Edwards. Yet, oddly enough, Edwards will be the key to breaking the deadlock.

His situation reminds me of an experience I had running cross country my freshman year in college. I was the fifth best runner on the team. In the race that would determine whether or not we would go to nationals, I felt my role was inconsequential, since the top runners on the team would surely hold our fate. Coming down the stretch, battling to pass one more runner, my teammates cheered like mad. It turned out that I needed to beat one more runner for us to get to nationals, and I was the team's final scorer. I passed the guy, and we qualified for nationals by one point. Although I received the credit, I learned the value of a team that day, and that you don't have to be in the lead to be a leader.

John Edwards no doubt hoped to be his party's nominee, much like I aspired to be our team's top runner. Now, he's the presumptive vice presidential pick whose coveted endorsement will tip the balance, bringing with it a host of delegates earned before he left the race. With Bill Clinton supporting his wife, and Edwards expected to endorse either Obama or Hillary, Al Gore is left as the party's elder statesman, likely not to endorse either candidate before the convention. Therefore, Edwards' endorsement is the prize that will determine who gets the nomination. He won't have won the race, but he's the key to getting his team to the White House.