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Thompson Adviser Has Criminal Past (here we go)
The Washington Post ^ | Nov 3, 2007 | Matthew Mosk

Posted on 11/03/2007 7:46:24 PM PDT by RDTF

Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson has been crisscrossing the country since early this summer on a private jet lent to him by a businessman and close adviser who has a criminal record for drug dealing.

Thompson selected the businessman, Philip Martin, to raise seed money for his White House bid. Martin is one of four campaign co-chairmen and the head of a group called the "first day founders." Campaign aides jokingly began to refer to Martin, who has been friends with Thompson since the early 1990s, as the head of "Thompson's Airforce."

Thompson's frequent flights aboard Martin's twin-engine Cessna 560 Citation have saved him more than $100,000, because until the law changed in September, campaign-finance rules allowed presidential candidates to reimburse private jet owners for just a fraction of the true cost.

Martin entered a plea of guilty to the sale of 11 pounds of marijuana in 1979; the court withheld judgment pending completion of his probation. He was charged in 1983 with violating his probation and with multiple counts of felony bookmaking, cocaine trafficking and conspiracy. He pleaded no contest to the cocaine-trafficking and conspiracy charges, which stemmed from a plan to sell $30,000 worth of the drug, and was continued on probation.

Thompson's campaign said the candidate was not aware of the multiple criminal cases, for which Martin served no jail time. All are described in public court records.

-snip-

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: fredthompson; philipmartin
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To: Jet Jaguar

I’ll see your BTT and BTT again.....(smile)


101 posted on 11/03/2007 10:11:13 PM PDT by no-to-illegals (God Bless Our Men and Women in Uniform, Our Heroes. And Vote For Mr. Duncan Hunter, America! TLWNW)
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To: dsc
>>>>>I’m reaching a conclusion that he is guilty of associating with Phillip Martin.

Martin has committed no crimes that I know of since he's known Fred. He's paid his debt to society. Something tells me, you're not a FredHead.

102 posted on 11/03/2007 10:12:02 PM PDT by Reagan Man (FUHGETTABOUTIT Rudy....... Conservatives don't vote for liberals!)
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To: Sturm Ruger

“And how does that make him any less “guilty” than the other candidates?”

Do what? That doesn’t even make sense.

“These charges go back to 1979 and 1983, 25 or more years ago. Whatever debt Martin owed to society, he paid a long time ago.”

That is completely irrelevant. No one who was guilty of those crimes should be associating with a candidate for president, whether they were 25 years ago or 2500 years ago.

“In contrast, three of Mitt Romney’s inner circle are under investigation and/or facing current criminal charges:”

That’s what I’m on about. Why is every pubbie candidate buddies with scumbags? I’ll bet you don’t associate with scumbags.

Your litany of pubbie moral crapitude is quite depressing. I had so hoped that Thompson would be clean.

“But none of these Republicans can hold a candle to the King and Queen of sleaze, the Clintons!”

Please, don’t say “hold a candle” and “Clinton” in the same sentence.

“Watch how the drive-by media will try to graft long legs onto this story. Much longer than the ones they gave to Garrity, Fabian and Lichfield, I’ll wager.”

Yes, exactly, and that’s why the Republicans must find and nominate a man who is sufficiently ethical and moral that he has no scumbags in his retinue.


103 posted on 11/03/2007 10:14:12 PM PDT by dsc (There is no safety for honest men except by believing all possible evil of evil men. Edmund Burke)
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To: no-to-illegals

LOL...

Still works for me...


104 posted on 11/03/2007 10:18:22 PM PDT by ejonesie22 (Real voters in real voting booths will elect FDT.)
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To: no-to-illegals

“Does this mean I cannot type LOL anymore? gee ;(”

I wish it did, but the people of the world have been too obdurate to grant me untrammelled authority over everything, as they would if they had a lick of sense.


105 posted on 11/03/2007 10:18:36 PM PDT by dsc (There is no safety for honest men except by believing all possible evil of evil men. Edmund Burke)
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To: dsc

Well then....LOL....I am


106 posted on 11/03/2007 10:19:46 PM PDT by no-to-illegals (God Bless Our Men and Women in Uniform, Our Heroes. And Vote For Mr. Duncan Hunter, America! TLWNW)
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To: ejonesie22

and me....too....


107 posted on 11/03/2007 10:20:52 PM PDT by no-to-illegals (God Bless Our Men and Women in Uniform, Our Heroes. And Vote For Mr. Duncan Hunter, America! TLWNW)
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To: Reagan Man

“Martin has committed no crimes that I know of since he’s known Fred. He’s paid his debt to society.”

That is absolutely, totally, and in all other ways irrelevant. Having paid one’s debt to society does not mean that one didn’t do the crimes in the first place. The point is that Thompson had a close associate who was a known drug dealer and criminal, and that gives the forces of evil a talking point.

“Something tells me, you’re not a FredHead.”

Don’t know what the qualifications are, but I will say that he was my last hope.


108 posted on 11/03/2007 10:24:07 PM PDT by dsc (There is no safety for honest men except by believing all possible evil of evil men. Edmund Burke)
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To: dsc
>>>>>>That is absolutely, totally, and in all other ways irrelevant.

I don't agree. Cool your jets and wait to see what happens. I'm sure Timmy will be asking Fred a few questions concerning this topic tomorrow morning on Meet the Press. Right now, this story doesn't have legs. Stop trying to carry it along.

109 posted on 11/03/2007 10:30:25 PM PDT by Reagan Man (FUHGETTABOUTIT Rudy....... Conservatives don't vote for liberals!)
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To: Reagan Man

“Stop trying to carry it along.”

Thanks for ascribing such puissance to my posts, but nothing I say here is going to have any effect on how this plays out.


110 posted on 11/03/2007 10:34:52 PM PDT by dsc (There is no safety for honest men except by believing all possible evil of evil men. Edmund Burke)
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To: dsc
as I typed earlier, it is no secret who I support but I request and humbly ask you to not believe Fred was your last hope and now disappointment has set in....remember this is a story from a liberal, possibly initiated by a liberal to destroy a Republican Candidate..... An agenda of some sort.... take a deep breath and please do not be offended.... and please take everything I said with a grain of salt and take two aspirin or something for a possible headache....and go to sleep like I am going to do....time and time again everyone should be reminded...The Left Will Not Win (TLWNW) no matter what the left does. Believe my FRiend.
111 posted on 11/03/2007 10:40:21 PM PDT by no-to-illegals (God Bless Our Men and Women in Uniform, Our Heroes. And Vote For Mr. Duncan Hunter, America! TLWNW)
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To: dsc

LOL!


112 posted on 11/03/2007 10:41:50 PM PDT by RDTF ("Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear - not absence of fear". Mark Twain)
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To: dsc

You’re a long time member of this conservative forum and you should know better than to go out of your way to lend more credence to this story, then it deserves.


113 posted on 11/03/2007 10:43:35 PM PDT by Reagan Man (FUHGETTABOUTIT Rudy....... Conservatives don't vote for liberals!)
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To: RDTF

LOL!! I just had to.....


114 posted on 11/03/2007 10:44:14 PM PDT by Shortstop7
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To: RDTF
He was charged in 1983...

Uh, wasn't that like 24 years ago?

(I am all for Fred bashing, but these WaPo charges appear contrived, lame and bogus).

115 posted on 11/03/2007 10:47:32 PM PDT by Plutarch
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To: no-to-illegals

I’ll keep an open mind.


116 posted on 11/03/2007 10:55:12 PM PDT by dsc (There is no safety for honest men except by believing all possible evil of evil men. Edmund Burke)
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To: quantim
They feel that way in Massachusetts about Ted Kennedy too, he murdered an innocent by his own negligence and still cruises away.

Not by his own negligence. Ted Kennedy would not involve any law enforcement or first responders at all, because he was drunk and married and in the wrong place for a senator. It would really hurt his career to be involved, so he sort of "suggested" to his friends that "maybe Mary Jo was alone" or something, then swam to the mainland, changed in his hotel room, made sure to be seen by witnesses, happy, dry, and asking for the time in the hotel. Then he was on the phone all night with his legal team. In the morning he had breakfast with some friends in their room and was happy and carefree.

Mary Jo had enough air to breathe for about 6 or so hours before the oxygen ran out.

It's a lot worse than negligence.

117 posted on 11/03/2007 10:56:19 PM PDT by Yaelle
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To: dsc

and I’ll try not to type that ‘thingy’ ... so much....Have a great evening!


118 posted on 11/03/2007 11:03:04 PM PDT by no-to-illegals (God Bless Our Men and Women in Uniform, Our Heroes. And Vote For Mr. Duncan Hunter, America! TLWNW)
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To: RDTF
The guy's last brush with the law was in 1983. There's absolutely no evidence that he's still doing anything illegal or that he wants to use his association with Fred Thompson to have Mr. Thompson help him with anything illegal or unethical. Mr. Thompson isn't my favorite candidate, but I can't see this story having much influence at this point in the campaign.

Bill

119 posted on 11/03/2007 11:10:33 PM PDT by WFTR (Liberty isn't for cowards)
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To: Lancey Howard

I disagree. It’s a problem if you CANDIDATE pled guilty to cocaine 23 years ago.

But it’s not a problem if a person who has been clean for over 20 years is a CONTRIBUTER to your campaign. We WANT people to reform, to go back to the straight and narrow, and having done so, to participate in democracy.

He shouldn’t be an advisor, but if he’s clean and the money he has earned and is raising is legit, who cares what he did 24 years ago?


120 posted on 11/03/2007 11:22:22 PM PDT by CharlesWayneCT
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