In the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, Sen. John Edwards (N.C.) has folded his cards and rightly put aside his poker face. After watching Sen. John Kerry (Mass.) triumphantly win nine of the 10 Super Tuesday contests, and more than 49 percent of the delegates awarded thus far, Edwards did the right thing Wednesday by dropping out. His decision is one that will strengthen Kerry’s chances of removing President George W. Bush from the White House. By stepping aside and offering Sen. John Kerry his support, Edwards has done the right thing for both himself and the country.

At one point, the Democratic Party was split 11 different ways, making it difficult to provide a solid opponent for Bush. Had Edwards continued his run, he would have only split the party even further. Edwards was using public money to fund his campaign and a continued losing campaign would be a waste of both time and money. By stepping aside, Edwards rightly allowed the spotlight to shine on the true contender in the race – Kerry. Now Kerry can focus his attention directly at Bush instead at a fellow Democrat.

Although the large number of candidates split the party in the beginning, it also strengthened Kerry as a candidate. From the start, Kerry was accused of being a wishy-washy candidate, and the other candidates forced him to define himself and ready himself for fall’s inevitable battles. Kerry was forced to take a stance on issues and he was forced to separate himself from the rest of the pack – which is the main reason he is the one left standing. Bush is launching his television campaign today and he will be focusing on Kerry. Edwards’ decision to step down has allowed Kerry to refocus his attention.

Many Democrats may have wanted Edwards to stay in the race and provide an alternative to Kerry, but they will still get to make their voices heard because his name will remain on the ballot. Howard Dean proved that pulling out of the race does not mean the public forgot about him – he defeated Kerry in Vermont without even continuing his campaign.

Edwards has fallen in line with the rest of the Democratic candidates by stepping aside and supporting a frontrunner that can beat Bush.