Edwards called 'master manipulator,' as trial's first witness details donor meeting The key witness against John Edwards testified Monday that a wealthy donor promised to do "everything I can" to elect Edwards president, as prosecutors kicked off the first day of his trial on allegations he used campaign donations to cover up his affair with Rielle Hunter. Edwards, one of the nation's most accomplished politicians before his 2008 fall from grace, faces a lengthy prison sentence if convicted. It is still not clear whether the former trial lawyer will take the stand in his own defense. Government attorneys argued Monday at a federal courthouse in North Carolina that Edwards, the former senator and failed Democratic presidential candidate, knew two wealthy contributors had provided the nearly $1 million to hide his pregnant mistress. They described Edwards as a "master manipulator" and said the donations were tantamount to "campaign contributions" intended to preserve Edwards' "family man" image during his 2008 campaign. Andrew Young, a former campaign worker who testified in exchange for immunity, told the court about a meeting he attended with one of the two wealthy Edwards supporters, Rachel "Bunny" Mellon. "I'm going to do everything I can to help you become president of the United States," Mellon told Edwards, according to Young. But the defense argued the donations were merely "private money" intended to protect Edwards' family from embarrassment. Edwards' lawyers told jurors most of the money, which was handled by former campaign staffer Andrew Young, went toward building Young's new house in Chapel Hill, N.C. The day of opening arguments comes more than four years after Edwards ended his Democratic presidential bid and went on to watch his reputation crumble under the weight of the emerging scandal. He has gone from battling reporters to battling prosecutors who seized upon the scheme as an alleged campaign finance breach. While the lurid details of his affair dominated the headlines going into the summer of 2008, the focus of the trial is the money trail. At issue is whether the $1 million in donations was intended to help his campaign or whether it was merely intended to prevent his wife and children from finding out about the affair. That could make the difference in whether the jury determines the money was an illegal campaign contribution, as prosecutors argue, or whether the money represented some very generous personal gifts. Young, who was granted immunity in exchange for his testimony, is expected to take the witness stand Monday afternoon. The defense hopes to discredit Young's testimony as the prosecution's key witness. The case will also examine whether Edwards even knew about the payments, which were made on his behalf by his national campaign finance chairman, the late Texas lawyer Fred Baron, and Mellon, a now-101-year-old heiress and socialite. Much of the money at issue was funneled to Young, the former campaign aide once so close to Edwards that Andrews initially claimed paternity of his boss's illegitimate child.