Who Said Freddy's Dead? (Hope for Fredheads?)

Real Clear Politics ^ | January 24, 2008 | Kevin Stark

[Scarchin]

snip -

If McCain loses in Florida, the Republicans may well be headed to a deadlocked race and convention. And history teaches us that the likeliest candidate to emerge in that scenario is someone like Warren G. Harding: the prototypical, less-than-stellar candidate to which conventions turn when the going gets rough.

This year's Harding? Believe it or not (are you sitting down?), despite the fact that he's withdrawn from the race, is Fred Thompson.

[trisham]

I thought I’s throw something out to the glum Fredheads

*****************

Heh. We may be glum, but we're not insane.

[rightwingintelligentsia]

Help me out here.

I was a Fred supporter who was very disappointed when he dropped out. But what are people who are wishing for a brokered convention expecting to happen if we have one?

Do they think that Fred will magically reappear after having been out of 80% of the primary contests, and win out over the candidates who have been spending mega bucks and battling each other for months? Do you think they will give up their delegates or that their delegates will switch that easily?

Or as some people are hoping, a candidate who never campaigned at all will come out of nowhere to sweep the nomination? I honestly don’t know how these things work.

[seekthetruth]

I will be voting for Mitt Romney next Tuesday because he is the next best choice. I do hope that all Florida FredHeads will vote for Romney to insure that McCain’s campaign is over on January 30th! McCain must be stopped! He would bring an end to the Republican party and the conservative cause! FredHeads who stay home or vote for Fred will only help McCain win in Florida. Fred has not endorsed, but if he were to endorse someone I believe he would endorse Mitt Romney. Fred would not want his supporters to cast a vote that accomplishes nothing except to hurt the conservative cause!

[Scarchin]

I'm reading Presidential Courage right now. Love it. It's hard to say. History has a way of "thrusting greatness" upon these men - or proving that they lack it.

[Scarchin]

You need to read the article re: Harding.

[PubliusMM]

At this juncture, it looks like Romney/Thompson would be about the closesst we can get to a real conservative ticket, although I’m not impressed with Romney’s legislative history and his (shifting) beliefs. Fred might just be the moderating influence that makes this guy acceptable.

Giuliani appears to be sinking fast.
The Huckster is flat out a shyster, except for his support for the FT.
And, McLame ought to be seeking the DhimmiRat nod rather than the GOP, IMO.
Ron Paul? Puhleeze; MoonBat Central’s Court Jester? Can’t do it...

Ya know...just once more, before I pass through that thin, gossamer veil, I’d like to enter a voting booth and vote FOR someone rather than against EVERYONE ELSE...

[rhombus]

And Presidents oftentimes surprise and sometimes disappoint their most ardent supporter.

[Scarchin]

Regardless - I don’t think we’ve heard the last of Fred in this race.

I think he’ll be quiet for a while for a very human reason - his sick mom.

[kevkrom]

It's possible, but unlikely. Odds are, there will be a de facto nominee by Feb 5. If there isn't, and it goes to the convention without a clear winner, there's still likely going to be a deal between two of the top contenders to combine delegates for a ticket with the two of them.

If all that fails to pass, then Thompson's actual results (best results -- 2nd: Wyoming, 3rd: Iowa, South Carolina) will be looked at as negatives.

The only thing he's got going for him is that he is widely considered to be the "second choice" for most voters, and that he appeals to all sections of the base (but not as strongly as each sections "first choice"). But an awful lot has to happen 9or not happen) for that to even be a factor.

[Just mythoughts]

Oh I think most of the fredheads are joining up on the ‘straight talk’ express bus. The fear of that giant slayer Hillary has most of them spooked.

Funny thing about all the paralyzing fear of Hillary, what, any, part of, legislation did this woman get legislated since 2000???

But there seems to be acceptance and willingness to vote for the one singular person who made it his life’s work to punish conservatives for rejecting him.

Oh and lest some of you think I am promoting Hillary, NO I am not, I not voting for her best friend in Congress, she would not be where she is without her best friend.

[johnny7]

Fred's dead baby... Fred's dead.”

[wolfcreek]

“Vote for Romney to insure that McCain’s campaign is over on January 30th!”

I agree. This should be the focus. No More McCain!

[seekthetruth]

“Oh I think most of the fredheads are joining up on the ‘straight talk’ express bus. The fear of that giant slayer Hillary has most of them spooked.”

Just because the MSM polls show that McCain could beat Hillary certainly does not make it true! I hope folks will remember that the MSM would LOVE for McCain,Huckabee or Guiliani to be our nominee! They would then come out with tons of bad press on to insure a Hillary win. McCain is now the one the MSM is pushing and pushing as they see a chance he could win in Florida. McCain must be stopped here in Florida, and I hope the Florida FredHeads realize that the best choice now is Mitt Romney.

[reagan_fanatic]

I doubt it. I’m not sure Fred’s heart is in it anymore.

[TLI]

Interesting read and it does have merit. There are some new wrinkles that will probably not allow this to occur. Back in 1920 there was not a totally unified liberal-almost-communist media and the concept of united States Nationalism was promoted, NOT “globalizzum.” And mind you “globalize” is nothing but code for communism.

Fred is STRONG on federalism/nationalism and the same controlling interests that run the communist media (MSM) do not want Fred. Fred’s pulling out of the race was put on ailing mother (I hear she was getting better before he left), no money (he was pulling in close to a million a week), loosing the race ( he was just at the doorstep of the South) which is strange, he was consistently beating Ron and Rooty, two “heavies.” The list goes on… but the upshot is the media badmouthed and belittled his successes, blacked him out in general and chanted propaganda from the Hucksters campaign like it was “news.”

Fred was run off by the communist MSM just like Tancredo and Hunter. Doesn’t anyone think it odd that the only three REAL republican contenders all got the same treatment, resulting in their being tossed down the black hole of non-reporting, yet flip-flopping RINO’s with documented track records of hanging out with CCID’s (Communist Calling Itself Democrat) are championed as “conservatives?” Mitt, Huck, Rooty and Juan are all excellent candidates for the democrats as they supported amnesty and their history indicates they supported gun control and abortion. What the hell kind of conservative is that?

The communist media kind, my friends.

And that is why we will not see Fred come back, that is why Fred Dalton Thompson was in fact the last real American Presidential Candidate.

Good Luck friends.

[mad_as_he$$]

The libs would shred Newt in 24 hours. He has so much negative baggage he can not even get it to the curb.

[Pravious]

No.

I was all for Fred... but there’s 0% chance a loser is going to be picked as the candidate in a brokered convention. Nor would I want him to be - if the guy didn’t have what it takes to get the nomination (and he didn’t), he most certainly doesn’t have what it takes to win the Presidency.

[Just mythoughts]

There is NO evidence, NONE whatsoever that McCain is against anything Hillary. Well now he did mention something about her trying to memorialize ‘Woodstock’ in opposition to what he was doing during those days.

All legislative accomplishments by McCain were about punishing, getting even with, or taking advantage of someone else because he could and they were not in opposition to anything Hillary.

[GraniteStateConservative]

Any scenario except a Rudy win in FL, means that McCain wins NY and NJ, which are winner take all. That allows he and Romney to be the two remaining candidates and one of them will end up with a majority of delegates.

[ReignOfError]

A good analog is the 1860 Republican convention, when Seward and Chase were the frontrunners; those two camps had so much animosity that the only possible winner could be a compromise third candidate, and that candidate turned out to be Abraham Lincoln.

If this year’s convention comes down between, say, McCain and Romney, neither with a majority, that might open the door for a compromise candidate, and Thompson could get the call.

But I find that wildly unlikely. No one in the GOP wants a brokered convention — the party will suffer, and will likely lose, if it doesn’t have a candidate before Labor Day. If there’s no clear candidate by, let’s say, Easter, I’d expect a lot of wheeling and dealing to close the deal ASAP. Promise the other candidates cabinet posts, ambassadorships, anything shy of giving them Alaska, and line up a majority before the opening gavel.