Today’s admission, made through an advisor, that John Edwards fathered a child out of wedlock while his wife was battling breast cancer probably didn’t surprise many. I know I wasn’t shocked; although, I was a little stunned that he didn’t make the statement himself. WOW!

Still, out of all the politicians I have interviewed in 15 years, Edwards stands out. And, it’s not for the best reasons.

The first time I interviewed him was in Blacksburg before the Virginia Democratic presidential primary. Edwards was already running far behind the frontrunner, Sen. John Kerry. We met very early on a very cold, icy morning. He did a round of satellite television interviews with stations from the upcoming primary states and we had an exclusive, one-on-one interview with him following that.

I found him to be very cold and unfriendly. There was no banter prior to the interview. In fact he hardly smiled, until the camera came on. Afterward, he was up and moving on with barely a goodbye. I chalked it up to fatigue. He was running himself ragged and our interview was very early in the morning.

The second time I encountered the former North Carolina Senator was three years later. He was laying the foundation to run for president again and stopped by for an event at the Jefferson Center. This time the interview was more of a news conference. TV reporters from the area as well as radio and print reporters were there.

Edwards was late and when he walked into the room he was stone faced with barely a hello for the room. Most politicians I have covered walk into a news conference smiling, if not kidding around with the reporters. It breaks the ice and builds a rapport. But not John Edwards. He only got that big toothy grin when the TV cameras started to roll. This time the interview was taking place around 5pm. So, early morning fatigue wasn’t the excuse.

Let me be clear, not all politicians are warm and friendly like George Allen or Mark Warner or personable like Wes Clark, John McCain, Tim Kaine, Jerry Kilgore and Bob McDonnell. In fact, some are a little stiff. Jim Gilmore, John Kerry, Chuck Robb, Jim Webb and Barack Obama have all been a little stand-offish (at times) during my interviews with them. But, that isn’t necessarily inconsistent with their personalities. I got a sense that what you see is what you get with them, which can actually be refreshing in politics.

John Edwards is a different story. He was cold in person and as warm as the Florida sun when the cameras were on. Given my interactions with him on several occasions, today’s interview by an advisor on behalf of the former senator shouldn’t have surprised me at all.