Edwards faces six felony charges. Authorities say two wealthy political donors provided $1 million to help hide his pregnant mistress during his 2008 run for the White House.

 

They must not only determine whether the candidate knew about the secret payments, which he has denied, but whether he knew he was violating federal law by allowing them.

 

Jurors are reviewing 17 days of testimony and 500 trial exhibits. The 12 jurors and four alternates appeared dazed after hearing an hour of jury instructions, and now they have to navigate a complex web of campaign finance laws.

 

Critics of the laws have long complained there are too many and they are confusing. They say the public would be better off under a system of unlimited spending but real-time online posting of donation information. 

 

Supporters of the laws argue there is too much money in politics and tough, detailed laws are needed unless or until money is severely curtailed from the process.

 

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Additional information from SGRToday.com