Nevertheless, my admonition about setting the agenda stands because we are in such deep trouble this cycle.
Posted on 09/09/2007 9:30:32 PM PDT by Fred
I didn't know that Fred Thompson led the Continental Army. I didn't know that he'd been in the military at all. When he was in Valley Forge, did Fred Thompson stay in an old farmhouse or did he stay at the Hilton?
The article isn't a bad article, and Mr. Thompson isn't a bad candidate. I'll vote for him if he's nominated, but he's a long way from meeting the comparisons to either Ronald Reagan or George Washington.
Bill
But anybody who mistakes this nascent campaign for a fluke or a flight of fancy just doesn't understand America as well as Freddie Thompson does. Set Thompson up against the current Republican field and you'll get the idea. There is Willard Mitt Romney, a cyborg-like ex-governor, who is tough to take at face value, if only because he keeps changing his mind so he can say the right thing. There is Rudolph William Louis Giuliani, an odd and commanding New Yorker with a strange accent and a pro-choice record, who doesn't actually spend much time campaigning. There is John Sidney McCain III, a war hero with no money and an immigration problem, who everyone seems to think is yesterday's news. And there is Michael Dale Huckabee, a funny former governor and Baptist preacher, who is still struggling to convince people he can stare down bin Laden.
Add Thompson's 6-foot, 5-inch frame to the mix, and his advantage is clear. He is new to the game, and unlike all these politicians who try so hard, he is just like you. He even says so on the stump. "Let's get right to the chase," he told a crowd in Sioux City on Friday. "The main question that you have a right to know from me is why I'm running for president. And the answer is pretty simple. I'm just like you are."
*snip*
But Thompson may be the first serious presidential candidate in modern memory to make his own lack of ambition such a prominent part of his regular-guy pitch. He credits much of his success to luck and the encouragement of others. It's a strategy that draws on the myth of Cincinnatus, the Roman dictator who gave up power to tend to his farm, only returning years later when the empire needed him to put down a revolt. George Washington cited Cincinnatus after winning the Revolutionary War, when he gave up power and went back to his farm. He later served as president only because the nation needed him, not because he wanted the job. Thompson is making the same sale.
"I'm not here today because I have had a lifelong ambition to hold this office," he said in Cedar Rapids. "And I am not here because I have all the answers to all the problems in this country." In an odd way, this admission made the voters I spoke with like him more. Without exception, they believed politics and politicians had been a failure. They didn't see why America shouldn't just call in a regular guy from the farm. And it didn't matter that in Thompson's case, the farm happened to be a television-acting career in New York City.
The author understands the appeal, but doesn't give Fred credit on being a serious intellect. Still pretty fair, considering the source.
Who came up with this condescending crap? Regardless of his merits as a presidential candidate, Fred Thompson is not like very many people at all, being a former Senator and a Hollywood actor, as he is.
Faux folksiness isn't the ticket, here.
my only point (actually, the only thing i said) revolved around being president of the U.S. when the U.S. was in a state of turmoil. reluctantly taking the reigns of power, and then going back to the farm after your dues have been paid.
that's it. of course i wasn't comparing the two men directly. just the situation and the way fred talks reminds me of the U.S. in Washington's time.
i'm prepared for the flaming. just don't put words in my mouth. i said nothing of military matters.
The thing to consider is how likable these flaming libs found him, even when they know nothing of his intellectual pedigree. I read the Sullivan article you speak of earlier, and it seemed to me like Sullivan didn’t know quite what to make of Fred, like he wanted to like him but couldn’t because Fred’s not a lib.
Nevertheless, my admonition about setting the agenda stands because we are in such deep trouble this cycle.
George Washington was drafted into a reluctant candidacy because his previous actions truly made him "first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen." When he acted the part of a man who didn't want the attention or power and was only responding to a need that only he could fill, he was acting a part that truly fit him.
None of these things is true of Fred Thompson. Nothing in Fred Thompson's career makes him uniquely qualified to bring the country together and preserve the country through difficult times. Some Republicans see him as the party's savior, but right now, there are more who see Rudy Giuliani as that kind of savior. I don't see either one of them as being our best choice next year. Fred Thompson may or may not have a strong desire to be president, but a lack of desire won't make his situation like George Washington's in any way. If George Washington hadn't agreed to be president, the country might not have survived. If Fred Thompson changes his mind again and decides not to be president, the only consequence is that some Freepers will be disappointed.
Fred Thompson doesn't fit the Ronald Reagan mold either. Ronald Reagan never was and never claimed to be the reluctant candidate. He had specific goals that he wanted to accomplish and specific ideas that he wanted to advocate. He needed to be president to do those things, and he directed hard efforts at reaching that office. Ronald Reagan wasn't in love with the power for power's sake. He wasn't trying to be president just to say that he'd been president, but he was never a reluctant candidate.
I can see the picture that you are trying to paint, but that picture simply isn't accurate. I'm not trying to flame you by making this statement. I'm just trying to refute an inaccurate picture that you are trying to paint.
Bill
He worked to put himself through college and law school while raising a family. He put his hand to whatever came along, and became successful. I thought that is part of what being a conservative is all about, using your own talents and through hard work making one’s fortune.
Apparently, “conservatives” are against well-off successful people. Who knew??
Fredipedia: The Definitive Fred Thompson Reference
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What wall did this come off of? I'm not wild about Fred Thompson, but I certainly don't begrudge him his success. He's a superior candidate to Rudy, Romney and McCain, but that isn't saying much.
Who do you see...Mitt, Duncan? Fred is already ahead of Mitt without hardly even trying, and Duncan doesn't have a chance, plus he probably cannot beat the beast even if he did.
So in reality it boils down to Fred or Rudy. Any pubbie who chooses Rudy over Fred because Fred isn't a Reagan or a Washington, or doesn't have executive experience, is not a conservative, not even close. Rudy is as liberal as Hillary, and effectively would be no different as President.
At this point Fred is the only viable choice for a conservative, its that simple. I think Fred will make a great President in his own right and may very well be as equally effective as Washington or Reagan without being their double.
And that my friend, is one of his greatest assets.
This republic needs a leader, like Mr. Thompson, who will hopefully break the mold of the current professional politician. We, the people, need a leader who really feels, just like us and is willing to make the sacrifice to lead us out of the long dark and descending tunnel we have been in for lo so many years now.
Unlike so many of the other candidates supporters, I won't engage in ripping their choices. For this election is so much more important than personalities.
I deeply believe, Mr. Thompson has the stuff to put principle above personality and that is the part of his personality that can lead us (we the people - all Americans) again.
BINGO!! We have a winner! Hear, hear!!
FRED VETS, SIGN UP TODAY AT:
“....if Fred Thompson changes his mind again and decides not to be president, the only consequence is .....”
A Hillary presidency will simply be the end of an America you and I take for granted.....
By the way, I thought I had signed up before on your roll call but didn't see my name, so I did it again.
Thank you for your service.
Greg Adams
Brownsville, TX
On the other Front Line
Could Salon be any more elitist? I know, I know... rhetorical quesation.
well, if you’re done sucking all the fun out of my post...
And here I thought I’d be able to start my day off with a piece of chocolate because yet another article described Fred as “avuncular”.
There is the drink rule for “folksey” and now there is the chocolate rule.
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