Posted on 06/09/2007 4:10:12 PM PDT by radar101
Will Fred Thompson's voice destroy his chances of becoming President?
While it might seem trivial at this stage, you can't help wondering what the Democrat Party and mainstream press will make of the former Senator's Southern drawl over the next few months. Considering the stereotypes that Democrats and the press have peddled about Republicans in the past, it's very likely that Thompson's style of speaking will be mercilessly attacked on the campaign trail.
You just know the left is horrified by Thompson's Southern accent and background. "Progressives" have been engaged in a decades-long feud with the South, an area of the country they generally view as backward, bigoted, uneducated and uncultured. Like President Bush, Thompson has a personality that irritates the sensibilities of the Northeastern and cultural left.
If past performance is any indication of future actions, then it won't be long before op-ed columnists at the New York Times and Washington Post start writing articles about how Thompson's voice brings to mind the speeches of long-deceased segregationists. The left won't hesitate to suggest that Thompson's tone of voice will appeal to the rednecks and yahoos who allegedly dominate the GOP. The press will scour every Thompson speech to uncover evidence of supposed Southern bias--if you thought the 1980 attempt by the left to depict Ronald Reagan as anti-civil rights was bad, you haven't seen anything yet.
Once Thompson gets into the game, the left and the press will have another opportunity to express regional bigotry. When it comes to the South, the left is hopelessly stuck in the past; "progressives" will never abandon their image of the South as a haven of moonshine, mental mediocrity and minority-bashing. It will be extremely petty for the left and the press to attack Thompson's voice--but after all these years, we should expect the other side to be uncivil.
Except Bush’s accent is completely fake. He grew up mostly in Connecticut and Maine. Listen to his parents. Listen to Jeb. Fred however, is the real deal. I think his voice will be one of his greatest assets.
the left is hopelessly stuck in the past; “progressives” will never abandon their image of the South as a haven of moonshine, mental mediocrity and minority-bashing
Mental mediocrity a la John Edwards?
I am sure the Democrats will have the bull whips a crackin in their radio ads, just like they did against Bush.
“The press will scour every Thompson speech to uncover evidence of supposed Southern bias—if you thought the 1980 attempt by the left to depict Ronald Reagan as anti-civil rights was bad, you haven’t seen anything yet.”
In his recent Virginia speech he cracked a joke by apologizing for playing President Grant in the HBO Wounded Knee film.
I was surprised on one beat on him for that, even though it was obviously a joke.
Given the GOP has denounced conservatives in recent days as yahoos (and worse) and we've survived, dealing with the Left would be a breeze. At least we'd be expecting incoming fire.
*Spell check is my friend....*
EXCELLENT.
This is the second thread I have come across about Freds southern English. Funny, their buddy from Arkansas never got this close scrutiny.
Actually he was born in Connecticut. He grew up in Texas.
There’s nothing wrong with Fred’s voice.
What about Hillary? Every time she raises her voice, it’s like nails on the chalkboard. Of course, the leftist media will never be critical of their fellow leftist Hillary.
Bush is not a fake Southerner...you could not be more wrong about his accent...it is Texas! anyone who has done as much for the south and America to keep it safe deserves our respect!
Decades long? Try centuries long. President Washington alluded to it in his farewell address. 'Progressives' may have gone by different names over the years...Federalists, Whigs, Republicans, even Democrats, but the story is still the same. Now we even 'grow' our own centralized government 'progressives'. And the 'conservatives' cheer....
He speaks exactly like all of my family, including my husband who grew up only a few miles from Midland. I was born nearby and everyone I know from there has the same accent.
I now live in Tennessee, and George is every bit as real as Fred!
Dems never vote for someone with a Southern accent? Right. Ever hear of Bill Clinton? Jimmy Carter? LBJ? John Edwards? The dims also say that we won’t vote for a woman, African Americans, or *gasp* Mormans. Whatever...
Try again, he grew up in Midland. Be careful about how you talk about the ex-Governor, we're kind of touchy about it.
I know everyone is P.O.'ed about the immigration bill, but keep in mind, it didn't pass and once again the left has failed to deliver on a promise. Out of all of this, the person who came out smelling the worse---> John McCain.
Am I the only one who doesn't see Rove's finger prints all over this? BRILLIANT!
I guess when all you're hearing out of the cracker's mouth are lies and socialism, the drawl isn't a problem. Kind of like rape is never a problem if the rapist is in a position to keep abortion legal.
Yeah, people refusing to donate to the GOP and ripping up their voter registration cards is a spectacular result!!
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