Mr. Thompson's inertia has meant his campaign is no longer in control
of its destiny. His best shot now is that Mr. Huckabee and Mr. Romney
go nuclear, leaving him with a ticket out of Iowa and some hope.
Posted on 11/29/2007 10:49:07 PM PST by Zakeet
On Fox News this Sunday, Fred Thompson laid out the most creative tax proposal yet in the race for president. It should have been an important moment, the point at which GOP aspirants finally dug into a core issue and went a few rounds over marginal rates and corporate levies.
Instead, nothing. The Thompson plan inspired little fanfare, less press and didn't even merit time during this week's GOP debate. The black hole says everything about the mess that is the Thompson campaign, and just as much about today's intellectually bereft Republican primary campaign.
The standard rap on the former Tennessee senator is that he's lazy. This is meant to explain why--despite movie-star status, Southern conservative credentials, and Beltway experience--his campaign has been as fizzy as day-old cherry Coke. The reality is more complex--and more concerning for Mr. Thompson's presidential prospects.
The Watergate attorney has made himself into this election's Don Quixote, the impractical idealist tilting at "the system." Even as he announced his run on the Jay Leno show in September, Mr. Thompson quipped he "wasn't in the room when they made the rules" that resulted in today's sped up, big-money, 24-hour-news-byte primary. He has refused to play nice--declaring late and declining to join rivals in the media hoopla and nonstop campaign. It has proven a case study in the folly of trying to single-handedly buck modern politics.
(Excerpt) Read more at opinionjournal.com ...
Mr. Thompson's inertia has meant his campaign is no longer in control
of its destiny. His best shot now is that Mr. Huckabee and Mr. Romney
go nuclear, leaving him with a ticket out of Iowa and some hope.
Open borders WSJ.........nothing to see here.
Ping
Sounds good to me , as it appears that the Republicans are hellbent on repeatedly attending MSM sponsored gayfest debates .
Let Mr. Perfect and the Huckster destroy each other !
Go Fred !
That’s the problem with substance. How do you cut through the circus and hype and reach people?
Ironically, people bitch about the 3 ring circus the race has become, but then bitch because Fred isn’t lively enough. Damned if you do...
My guess is, Kimberley Strassel won’t be voting for Fred.
Something tells me, Kimberley`s first choice is Rooty.
Exactly . I’ll take Fred’s approach , as I have a feeling it will pay off in the end .
Hey Kimberly,
Despite your best efforts, the efforts of the MSM, even the efforts of FoxNews, Fred will be the next President of the US!
In their put-downs of Fred, they also put down us. I’m getting a little sick of people trying to say that conservative values are not what the country needs...just a good business sense. Character and family values are still important...and I hope, to a majority of people!
They all seem to have bought into the hype that only Rudi G. can beat Hillary(!) in 2008. My personal feeling is that any one of the top GOP candidates can keep her very ample backside out of the WH.
Fredheads act like people don’t support Fred because he’s such a conservative.
I don’t think that’s it.
People don’t support Fred because he’s got no energy.
He’s got great ideas. Yes. But you have to have a leader to get behind those ideas and drive them and turn them into reality.
Fred just doesn’t show that he’s up to it.
After he laid out his tax plan on Sunday t.v., he took three days off of campaigning until the debate Wednesday night.
If he really wanted the job of POTUS, he would be out there constantly telling everyone his message and building a real ground force to spread to his message.
Fred’s message IS NOT the problem. Fred is the problem.
I’m sorry, folks. I know you love this guy, but he’s just not ready for prime time.
He’d be great in a cabinet position, though.
Pretty much my sentiment. I support Thompson, but there are ups and downs. I’m not incapable of admitting them where I see them. But as this hit piece comes from the open border lobbys printing press I feel no need to indulge them by debating the piece.
I guess that being the case I should avoid posting, but as they feel the need to take endless shots at conservatives/LEGAL Americans I feel the need to take endless shots at their world without borders dementia.
“Hey, get your ideas, right here. Only a mega-buck....”
The problem with Fred’s campaign is the senior management - the so-called “pros”. They got off to a bad start with Fred’s poorly-produced official announcement video, and it has gone downhill from there.
They spend all their time attacking the other candidates, and too little time showing Fred’s own leadership qualities and promoting his stand on the issues in a positive way that will win voters.
They’ve done a lousy job in negotiating the details of the debates. For example, the lighting on Fred in last night’s CNN debate was awful, and made him look older than his normal appearance. The staff should have demanded footlights on the stage. Sorry folks, appearance counts with the voters - especially when the candidate has experienced a serious illness in the past.
Fred needs a big shake-up in his campaign staff, pronto.
Fred is bad! He wants border enforcement!
Ms. Strassel might very well be a past or prospective abortion consumer.
I don’t “love” any of the candidates running. If I was to stretch myself to feel affection towards any of them, it’s probably Duncan.
they are politicians. I’m a constituent. I’m over hero worship.
I’m also over ooh and awwing over great presentation. All I want from a candidate is to practice the conservatism he or she preaches in office. the only one in double digits with rhetoric and importantly the record to match the conservative rhetoric is thompson. So he gets my support.
This is why he’s in double digits showing people DO support him.
your attitude towards those of us supporting him is amusing in its condecending form but, really, Fred not getting the nomination wouldn’t distress me. The liberal that would be sure to get it if he didn’t is what would distress me. And in that instance, forget my support. It won’t be forthcoming. I’ve grown to detest D.C. and i am not going through the motions of a campaign on behalf of a Liberal.
As to your theory he doesn’t have enough passion? Whatever. Clinton had passion, if that’s what you guys want then stop whining when these “passionate” politicans get into office and then screw us over. If what you want is conservative policy put in action, stop fussing about what’s unimportant and start focusing on the policy proposals he’s put forward. One or the other but stop rying to have it both ways by saying you want conservative policies and then spitting the candidate that offers them out the side of your mouth.
B U M P
“The open borders lobby cries out for attention:
Fred is bad! He wants border enforcement!”
Exactly!
“Ms. Strassel might very well be a past or prospective abortion consumer”
I wouldn’t bet against it.
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