Marathon Pundit: Bob Dole, John Edwards, two 28,000 sq. ft. buildings

Time for a little detour from western Kansas over to the state's liberal center, Lawrence.

On the last day of my Kansas trip last month, I visited the University of Kansas where the Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics is located. Dole of course was a Republican politician who was one of the country's greatest public servants: War hero, Senate leader, and presidential candidate.

The institute officially non-partisan, and one of its goals is to foster inter-party cooperation among politicians. It's housed in the above $28,000 sq. ft. building, which opened in 2003.

Bob is married to North Carolina Senator Elizabeth Dole. Which brings us to the Tar Heel State.

Democratic politician John Edwards, a one-term Democratic senator and former trial lawyer from the same state, recently built a 28,200 sq. ft. home there. Pictured on the right, in a photograph courtesy of Don Carrington of the Carolina Journal, is Edwards' sprawling homestead.

Although he's likely deny it, to some extent the 28,000 Dole Institute celebrates Bob Dole's long career of public service.

Edwards 28,000 sq. ft. home, on the other hand, is a monument to himself.

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