I am sure that many FDT fans will applaud Fred for sticking it to the Washington Press corp. Maybe then he shouldn't have scheduled the Q&A in the first place, because now it looks like he is ducking after recent bad reviews because he expects more of the same.
The advantages of Thompson's campaign include his solid conservative principles, charisma, and folksy charm. These are all qualities that should shine forth in media exposure (and despite the media's attempts to make him look bad). If Thompson's campaign doesn't think that he can come out a winner with national media exposure, then the basis for the campaign is undermined from the start. How is FDT to make progress without the ability to positively connect in venues such as TV interviews? His stump speech? Maybe FDT will show them in the upcoming debate.
Good for Fred Thompson!!!
Take the press down a peg at a time!
It can be done if we - Republicans/Conservatives - stick together and not eat our own!!!!!!!
BFD!
On the other hand, if this were just another press availability, it would be...just another press availability.
Instead, it's a "What's he doing?" story that actually draws attention to the candidate.
All in all, a win.
Gee, could you possibly have another candidate you like better than Fred? I do believe the article explains why he cancelled the press questioning. There is no mystery there and I really doubt Fred is afraid of the press. Nice try, but no soap, Fred is still my candidate of choice. Anything, and I mean anything, that comes from the slimes about Fred is suspect.
“Todd Harris, a campaign spokesman, said Mr. Thompson’s speaking engagement ran later than expected and “it came to a decision between doing a media availability or spending time with the Virginia delegation,’’ adding, “We opted to spend time with the delegates as opposed to the Washington press corps.””
You even admit that this is a suspect posting by you, there isn’t anything to work with here.
We don’t know what happened or why, we don’t know squat.
What is there to talk about? This one is not one of your better postings.
You pretended that this was an excerpt, giving the impression that it is a longer article, it isn’t, you posted all of it.
That may be why your commentary on it is longer than the short blog itself.
“(and despite the media’s attempts to make him look bad)”
Unfortunately FT is doing a good job of that himself as of late. Schaivo, Soviet Union, oil in FL, etc.
They did change the time of his speech and it was later than originally planned. Which I don’t think was the candidate’s doing. I was trying to watch it on C-span and someone else was speaking at the time he was scheduled.
He has had plenty of press availabilities on the road, even having reporters ride with him on the bus. The Politico article about the 12th commandment had that writer travelling with Fred in a vehicle. I think that shows plenty of willingness to meet with the press. The delegates are more important in the long run than anyone else, they cast votes.
Some of the people who follow him on the road are national press corps.
Fred should be his own man. He knows the Press are going to try to destroy him. He shouldn’t rush to a public beating. He will address the Press soon enough. Putting the people first is a much better tactic. I do think he will have to eventually cast caution into the wind and just get out there and fight with the barbarians.
FDT’s strategy is a mystery. Uncoventional is one word but incompetence is my concern.
FWIW O’Reilly was slamming FDT the other night. Apparently O’Reilly’s staff is unable to contact FDT’s campaign in a timely manner. They are unable to reach FDT’s staff for routine responses to the events of the day. I’m sure the Fred heads will call O’Reilly a commie symp cross dressing Rudy butt boy. Regardless FDT’s campaign is not inspiring confidence.
I am currently in a holding pattern with all the candidates. If you could take the best part of Fred, Rudy, and Mitt, and put them into one package, you would have a great candidate. You have to wait until we get closer to election day, when the pressure is really on. Like in sports, real diamonds shine from heat and pressure.
I get the feeling that, for now, Thompson helps himself more with one-on-ones with delegates who will help determine his fate in the primaries than with the Washington media asking him how he feels about Rush Limbaugh and James Dobson while they try to play “gotcha” games with him. If he had to do one or the other, this was the smart call.
For now, I’d take him at his word that he ran behind schedule and felt shaking hands with delegates helped his campaign more than playing word games with the media. There will be plenty of time for the press to give their anal exam in the coming months.
And exactly wheb has Hillary made herself available to the press to answer questions? Where is the article about her not speaking at a press conference to aswer unscripted questions.
LOL Throwing Rush Limbaugh under the bus is really paying off!
I am praying that, if Fred Thompson becomes our president, he will begin rotating the media field involved in his press conferences. That is, to rotate in more conservative journalists, and rotate some of the old standard ones out. I’m not talking about banishment, but about rotation, unless he wants to build a much larger press conference room, and triple the time he spends answering questions.
Yea, yea, I’ve been told how the White House Press Corps work and how they are set up. But I keep asking where this is enshrined in law, and of course it is not.
I hope a President Thompson will make the announcement that the White House Press Corps have got to include a much better representation of conservative reporters, or else he will begin a rotation system based on a list developed by an independent source.
It is time that, while we honor the freedom of the press, the “press” itself must also allow more freedom in the WHPC — allow a wider field of journalists.
The First Amendment guarantees freedom of the press, but, in my opinion, does not mandate that anyone have to work for them by bending over (in either direction) to dump news stories on them. A rotation system allowing a much wider range of journalists in the WHPC should enhance freedom of the press, not hinder it.
Screw the media.
I think it is smart of Fred not to bother with the MSM much. Especially THIS early in the campaign.
I don’t blame him.
If the other Republican candidates had a 1/1,000,000 ball between them they would all withdraw fom the debate that chris matthews is supposed to moderate.
But I suppose a better question to ask would be, “Why did they agree to matthws in the first place?”
LLS
BTW, Plutarch, are you have NYT stock? I'm sure that your cruising for trash day after day is raising them a pretty advertising penny. Just wondering.