Political vets predict Romney vs. Clinton

Crain's Detroit Business ^ | June 2, 2007 | staff

[RichInOC]

Anybody who says they know who’s going to be the nominee at this point is...how to put this delicately?...venting his colon.

[Eagles Talon IV]

To good looking?

Ahh, I see, you’re one of those “deep thinkers” who look past a persons physical appearance to...oh wait.

[LongsforReagan]

What has Fred ever done?

[Always Right]

What has Fred ever done?

What do you want him to have done? He hasn't walked on water. He hasn't brought anyone back from the dead. But Fred has as good of a resume as anyone running with the exception of Romney, who seems to be that kid with the perfect resume who has been plotting to be president his entire life.

[TheLion]

Bttt!

[LibertyRocks]

You said, "What has Fred ever done?"...

For your perusal from Sturm Ruger's Fredipedia:
*

Fred Thompson Served on the US-China Economic Review Commission

- U.S. - China Economic and Security Review Commission

http://www.uscc.gov/about/commissioners/thompsonpg.php

*

Fred Thompson is an AEI Scholar specializing in Diplomatic Relations and Foreign Intelligence.

Professional Experience:

United States senator from Tennessee, 1994-2003 (chairman, Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs, 1997-2001)
Member, Tennessee Appellate Court Nominating Commission, 1985-1987
Special counsel, Senate Committee on Intelligence, 1982
Special counsel, Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, 1980-1981
Special counsel to Lamar Alexander, governor of Tennessee, 1980
Minority counsel, Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities ("Watergate Committee”), 1973-1974
Assistant U.S. attorney, 1969-1972
Practiced law, 1967-1969
Feature film and television actor


- American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research

http://www.aei.org/scholars/scholarID.78,filter.all/scholar.asp

*

As Watergate minority counsel, Fred brought forward the fact that Nixon had taped White House discussions.

As an attorney in Tennessee, he sent the Governor to prison on corruption charges.

As Chairman of the Government Affairs committee, he blocked giving North Korea essentially all of our trade secrets.

He helped to bring down a crooked Republican president, he brought down a crooked Democratic Governor, and he exposed impeachable offenses of a Democratic president.

Not bad for someone commonly incorrectly refered to as a "one timer" or "just an actor."

- Comment by Dan to a Hotline story on Fred Thompson, May 11, 2007

http://hotlineblog.nationaljournal.com/archives/2007/05/thompsons_linco.html

*

Fred Thompson is currently the Chairman of the International Security Advisory Board, a high-level panel charged with evaluating long-term threats to U. S. security.

- U.S. Dept. of State, Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security, ISN, ISAB

http://www.state.gov/t/isn/isab/68268.htm

*

Fred Thompson's Senate Committee assignments:

Special Counsel to both the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations under President Reagan

Member of the powerful Senate Committee on Finance, which has jurisdiction over, among other things, international trade.

Member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence

Member of the National Security Working Group, which observes and monitors executive branch negotiations with foreign governments.

Chairman of the Government Affairs Committee 1997-2001

Ranking Republican Minority Member of the Government Affairs Committee 2001-2003

Chairman of the Youth Violence Committee 1995-1997

Chairman of the Senate Government Oversight Committee

Foreign Relations Committee, 1995-96

Member, Judiciary Committee, 1995-98

Member, Constitution, Federalism and Property Rights, 1997-98

Member, Technology, Terrorism and Gov't. Information, 1995-98

Member, Finance Committee, 1999-2002

Finance subcommittees
Member, International Trade, 1999-2002
Member, Taxation and Oversight, 1999-2002
Member, Social Security and Family Policy, 1999-2002
Member, Health Care, 1999-2002


- University of Tennessee Modern Political Archives, Finding Aid for the Fred Thompson Papers, 1993 -2002 (pp. 5-6)

http://mpa.utk.edu/thompson/ThompsonFindingAid.pdf

*

Earned "Restoring the Balance" Award from National Conference of State Legislatures; given annually to national policymakers committed to federalism and its impact on issues involving state legislators

- HSGAC and National Conference of State Legislatures

http://hsgac.senate.gov/030201_thompson_press.htm

*

Sen. Fred Thompson was recognized by Citizens Against Government Waste for his report documenting the federal government's staggering levels of waste, abuse, and mismanagement. Thompson presented the report, which includes his recommendations for addressing those problems, to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Mitch Daniels at a press conference in Washington. Report includes analysis of the four biggest challenges facing the federal government: workforce management, financial management, information technology management, and overlap and duplication. In addition, the report includes an agency-by-agency appendix citing examples of waste, fraud, and abuse. The report also contains a list of the "Top Ten" worst examples of mismanagement in the government. CAGW is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse in government.

- Citizens Against Government Waste press release, June 5, 2001

http://www.cagw.org/site/PageServer?pagename=news_NewsRelease_06052001b

*

Fred Thompson's Interest Group Ratings: National Abortion Reproductive Rights: 0
US Chamber of Commerce: 100%
ACLU: 11%
American Conservative Union: 85%
AFT: perfect 0
League of Private Property Owners: 90%
National Tax Limitation Committee: 97%
National Taxpayers Union: 88%
ADA (liberal): perfect score
Supported Newt’s Contract with America 100% of the time Planned Parenthood 0%
NARAL 0%


- Project VoteSmart, Interest Group Ratings for Fred Thompson

http://vote-smart.org/issue_rating_category.php?can_id=22003

* Just a few of the 90 proposals and inclusions Fred introduced while in the Senate:

Nuclear Proliferation Act
Special Counsel Act
Aviation Security Bill Amendment
FY 1999 Omnibus Appropriations Bill
Regulatory Right-To-Know Act
Homeland Security Workforce Act
Homeland Security Education Act
Thompson amendment to Treasury-Postal Title (Section 646) of the Consolidated Appropriations Bill
Regulatory Improvement Act (S. 981)
Thompson Amendment to the National Homeland Security and Combating Terrorism Act
Thompson Amendment to the National Employee Savings and Trust Equity Act
The Federal Emergency Procurement Flexibility Act
The Federalism Accountability Act
The Government Information Security Reform Act (GISRA)
The Thompson Amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act
The Truth in Regulation Act


United States Senate

http://www.senate.gov/

- Sturm Ruger, draftfredthompson.com, March, 2007 (revised 5/11/07)

[Always Right]

What has Fred ever done?

The point is, I don't care. I care what Fred will do. Can he handle the media? Does he have conservative values? Can he articulate issues and gain support? Look at who Fred will be running against. Obama two year Senator, no major accomplishments. Hillary eight year Senator, no major accomplishments. Unless you count being the wife of the liar in chief as having done something, Freds record is as long as Hillary's.

[cricket]

Your definition of Clinton covers almost all politicians.

I think you are trying to compare turds here. In politics, very often the choice is not between good and bad, the choice is between bad and worse. Clearly, Romney is a politician’s politician and as such is bad, however Clinton is worse. You may be perceived as naive if you hero worship politicians, whether their name is Romney or Clinton.

You are making a huge jump from my not equating the 'badness' of Clinton and 'therefore' Romney by virtue of their own politics. No hero worshipper here; but see no reason whatsoever to lump all politicians; candidates or presidential wannabe's into one large common dirtball.

If you are right in your assumptions of the 'equal playing field' of dirty politics and those who play the game; then why even bother to concern yourself about the 'better' candidate. . .the superior idiology that underscores one's political focus.

By your analysis; or so it would seem; it does not matter whether we have Romney or 'another Carter. . .or a 'John Kerry' or another round of the Clinton's or Mitt Romney or Fred Thompson or even McCain. . . They are tainted. . .self-serving and dishonest; if only be degrees of separation; and our politcal fortunes are dismally cast, no matter who wins.

I don't buy it; and I am not naively looking for perfection of 'the man' or imagining it; and never entertain myself with the folly of the 'perfect candidate'.

But there is certainly a mountain of differences between that which nourishes Bill Clinton; his character; and the legacy he imagines for himself - his myth in the making - and the ideas and motivations that move Mitt Romney; his character; and his potential legacy as President, should he so rise. . .

(. . .and not unlike that which separates ANY Leftist candidate from any Repub; be it Fred, or Rudy or even our insufferable John McCain...)

[conserv8ive1]

100% agree!

[pepsi_junkie]

Rothenberg, who handicapped the GOP race, said “I don’t know what the hell’s happening. Normally, you’d look for the oldest white guy in the race.”

Such keen political insight is hard to find. Perhaps I too can be a political handicapper. My observation is that the democrats typically take the most pompous, unlikable jerk available (Kerry, Gore, Mondale...just skip Clinton). So by that observation, Hillary is a shoe in. And that formula has proven results! Losses! All she needs to do to lock it in is hire Bob Shrum.

[pepsi_junkie]

If Bloomberg launches a Ross Perot style run then Hillary will win.

Perot stole votes from the republican base and swayed moderates who wanted a straight talking, competent outsider who would manage the economy like a business and challenge the status quo in DC. In other words, a fiscally conservative non-politican who appealed to right-leaning voters. He hurt the Republicans. It does not follow that any third party automatically favors dems. Bloomburg is the kind of Republican who can only win in states like New York, New Jersey, etc. A flaming lib RINO. Well, the GOP isnt getting those electoral votes anyway. He'll take dem votes away, not republican.

[LibertyRocks]

“swayed moderates who wanted a straight talking, competent outsider who would manage the economy like a business and challenge the status quo in DC.”

Yep, you hit the nail on the head with that one. I was one of those ‘moderate 20-something swing voters’ back then. I figured that our government was in the business of handling money, so why not get a businessman to make our tax dollars work better for us? (I was also against voting Republican as a direct rebellion against my father so my vote would have gone to Clinton if it wasn’t for Perot, but I’ve grown up since then... (o:).

[freekitty]

You are funny. Ha Ha

[WOSG]

always right: you make a good point. I would rewrite the sentence simply substituting “GOP base” for “the media”... Fred Thompson is in the race, Rothenberg said, “because the GOP BASE needs a new name. He’s a vessel each of them can pour their hopes and dreams into, the Republican Barack Obama.”

Your rewrite makes PERFECT sense! ... You see the Dems want a candidate who was not soiled by compromise on the Iraq war, so they go after the multi-culti neophyte.

The GOP base wants a candidate unsullied by the compromises, big spending and non-conservative compromises. There are so few of them out there.

[WOSG]

Nonsense. The pros are telling you - as bad and as unlikeable as Clinton is, SHE CAN WIN. She did it in New York and can do it again. To pretend she can’t win is utter amateur foolishness.

[AfterManyASummer]

I’d like to see it happen. The cokehead from Chicago is the posterboy for the decadence of the left. He’ll contrast poorly against Mitt Romney.

[IrishBrigade]

as bad and as unlikeable as Clinton is, SHE CAN WIN. She did it in New York and can do it again. To pretend she can’t win is utter amateur foolishness...

...I couldn’t agree with you more...and the funny thing is, she and Obama, the top two, are the worst of their four or five contenders...the best is Richardson, who at least has extensive executive experience (a la Rudy and Romney), but politics is about celebrity and name recognition today, which partially explains the hoopla over Thompson getting into it...though on name recognition, Fred Thompson sounds like a guy who comes to fix your washing machine to the great mass of apolitical voters, whereas Hilary Clinton is immediately recognized...hard to say. Personally, I could pull a lever for Romney, but I think he’d be swamped by Clinton, plus I doubt he’ll be nominated...only Rudy or McCain has the star power to contest Hilary, and McCain is too old...I predict Hilary to win the White House with over 300 electoral votes unless Republicans rally around Rudy...