Edwards beat a Southern Repub Incumbent before

[Lex]

and one with plenty of money and national backing from the Republican party too.

He won his U.S. Senate seat in a NASTY fight against Republican incumbent Lauch Faircloth who was backed by the Jesse Helms-Republican-destroy machine (the cash rich Congressional Club it was known as).

AND they threw the "inexperience" and "trial lawyer" bombs against him. Didn't work. He was smart enough to turn all the arguments back around on them.

Already having the experience beating a southern republican incumbent is nothing to sneeze at, imho.