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Marc Ambinder declares Fred the winner: On points, Fred Thompson won the debate. Every answer was thoughtful and well-crafted; his tone matched the tone of the question; he wisely refrained from interjecting in the back and forth squabbling. He very deftly reminded viewers that he served on key Senate national security panels and is bringing his experience to bear. Even his insults were subtly and gently constructed In some ways, Thompson did McCain’s bidding. You skeptical readers can tell me that if Thompson had finished a solid fourth in Iowa, I might not be writing about Thompson at all, that...

Here is an outstanding piece about Fred Thompson and his ability to connect with people, focusing on his recent campaign swing through Florida. The writer does a good job of conveying Fred's ability to connect on an emotional level to the crowds that come to see him. While the beltway pundits are saying Fred is "boring", the people who actually see and hear Fred are telling a different story. He is coming across as real, genuine, and conservative. That is a winning combination. I have bolded some key statements in the portion of the article posted below. The Dr. Phil...

Very seldom will I venture a prediction on a major race like president, especially over a year out and with each party having 10 candidates openly vying for their nomination. In addition, it is the most open presidential race in my lifetime. It has been 80 years since a president was not seeking reelection and a sitting vice-president was not seeking to move up. The race is truly wide open. I am going out on a limb and predicting that Fred Thompson will be chosen as the republican nominee for president at their convention this time next year and that...

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Republican Fred Thompson says the terrorist threat from Islamic radicals is going to pose danger to the United States for a long time. He says "We have got to be more united and more committed than ever before." The former Tennessee senator and actor known for his role on NBC's "Law & Order" spoke last night at the Midwest Republican Leadership Conference in Indianapolis. Before his speech, he said he's in a sound position to make a run for the Republican presidential nomination, even though he hasn't declared his candidacy and others in the crowded field announced months ago. Thompson...

http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070826/LOCAL19/708260382 Cannot be posted on FR due to copyright limitations...

When Fred Thompson makes his long-delayed entrance into the Republican presidential race, he will not tiptoe quietly. Instead, he will try to shake up the establishment candidates of both parties by depicting a nation in peril from fiscal and security threats — and prescribing tough cures he says others shrink from offering. In a two-hour conversation over coffee at a restaurant near his Virginia headquarters, the former senator from Tennessee said that when he joins the battle next month, he "will take some risks that others are not willing to take, in terms of forcing a dialogue on our entitlement...

WASHINGTON - Although he frequently makes a point of finding something charitable to say about his opponents’ arguments, Sen. Barack Obama almost always ends up voting liberal. “The arguments of liberals are more often grounded in reason and fact,” the Illinois Democrat wrote in “The Audacity of Hope,” a memoir published last year. “Much of what I absorbed from the sixties was filtered through my mother, who to the end of her life would proudly proclaim herself an unreconstructed liberal.” Obama has a 95 percent liberal rating from Americans for Democratic Reform, a liberal advocacy group that ranks all members...

Emperor Nero fiddled while Rome burned, according to tales of ancient history. So did Katie Couric, sort of. She played badminton in New York while other news anchors were in Baghdad to cover the opening day of Saddam Hussein's trial. Couric was recently plucked from NBC's Today show to read the evening news on competing CBS. I wish her good luck; she's certainly going to need it. Couric's new job probably saves NBC the possibility of letting her go when her contract expires next month; 15 years is a longtime for a TV personality to stay in one place. CBS...

Back in 2000, whenever you turned on your TV, you almost couldn't escape the word. Gravitas. It was everywhere. Did Bush have enough of it? Did Gore? What about Ted Koppel's hairpiece? Charmingly clichéd: CBS's John Roberts and NBC's Nora O'Donnell This year, the cliché-of-the-moment seems to be the term "charm offensive." Someone on the "CBS Evening News" has used the words every single day this week. The biggest offender has been John Roberts, CBS's White House correspondent who used the phrase three of the past four days. Dan Rather picked up the slack Tuesday. CBS hasn't been alone in...

Listening to Limbaugh and the replay of liberal press people 4 years ago accusing Bush of needing Cheney for "gravitas", now suddenly Bush has "hubris"

Rumsfeld Discusses Iraq, Afghanistan on Radio Show By Jim GaramoneAmerican Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Oct. 27, 2004 -- While there are hurdles to overcome, the people of Iraq are better off than they were under Saddam Hussein, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said during a radio interview Oct. 26. Rumsfeld said the bottom line in Iraq is that 25 million people have been liberated from an oppressive dictator. "The schools are open. The hospitals are open. The clinics are open. They have an economy that's growing at a good clip," he told a Cincinnati radio station. Rumsfeld reminded listeners...

Imagine the weight of a nagging suspicion that what held your world together, a constant and consistent presence you had come to understand and rely on, wasn't what it seemed. That's how scientists feel when they ponder gravity these days.

GIRL MIDI CAN BE FOUND HERE - http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Palladium/7842/rubbsoul.htm He arrived at the debate on his new yellow skateboard And he met a great vice president You could tell that he spent many minutes on his flossing After he had used his Pepsodent The Breck Girl...Breck Girl There's no gravitas existing...he's in too deep water Yes, he was in way over his head When it finished he was let out and they really hurried It was late, he had to go to bed The Breck Girl...Breck Girl He's the kind of girl who thinks that spitballs are good weapons...just like Kerry...

Ford Foundation Honors Cheney, Rumsfeld at Anniversary Dinner By Kathleen T. RhemAmerican Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Aug. 10, 2004 – Former President Gerald R. Ford chose an occasion commemorating his presidency to honor two men who served him in the White House and continue to serve their country today. At an Aug. 9 dinner marking the 30th anniversary of Ford taking office, the Gerald R. Ford Foundation presented the Gerald R. Ford Medal for Distinguished Public Service to Vice President Richard B. Cheney and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld. Rumsfeld was called from his position as NATO ambassador to...

Turning 35 entails a new level of responsibility: I am now eligible to command this nation You hear a lot of talk about all of the angst and emotional turmoil that come along with turning 30 or 40 -- why, I even heard Larry King whine for a whole hour on CNN a few months back about what a drag it was to turn 70 -- but the most traumatic (and, sadly, overlooked) birthday of them all really has to be 35. Reaching one score and 15 years packs a wallop like no other age, and no less an authority...

Lyn Nofziger, a White House aide under Ronald Reagan, is a Washington political consultant. Four years ago, when Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush selected Richard Cheney as his running mate, the word among political pundits was Cheney brought much-needed gravitas to the ticket. From the dictionary, where most people had to go because they'd never heard the word, the world learned gravitas means seriousness of purpose. A person with real gravitas is a mental heavyweight. Bush was seen by his critics to lack gravitas and Cheney assertedly balanced the Republican ticket by bringing gravitas to it. Yesterday Massachusetts Sen....

Rumsfeld Praises Iraqi Security Forces, Says to Expect Ups and Downs By Donna MilesAmerican Forces Press ServiceWASHINGTON, May 11, 2004 — Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld praised the progress being made in training the new Iraqi security forces for their critical role in their country's future, but warned naysayers that it's unrealistic to expect too much too quickly. Rumsfeld told service members, DoD civilians and government contractors at a Pentagon town hall meeting today that they're likely to hear "mixed" reviews of Iraq's security forces in the weeks ahead. This, he said, is because they've been recruited quickly, have...

Indeed, the Republican Attack Machine is now such an entrenched part of the political landscape that it no longer seems remarkable - until you stop and think about the corrosive effect it has on our political discourse. - Dan Kennedy- March 11, 2004- The Boston Phoenix "We have no illusions about the Republican attack machine and what our opponents have done in the past, and what they may try to do in the future. But I know that together, we are equal to this task. I am a fighter, …" - John F. Kerry- Super Tuesday II- Washington Times Lockhart...

Vice president visits base in Ohio by Brett Turner88th Air Base Wing Public Affairs 3/26/2004 - WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio (AFPN) -- Vice President Dick Cheney expressed his appreciation for the Airmen and community here during a visit March 26. A throng of enthusiastic people from the base community waved flags and cheered loudly for the vice president during a ceremony. Gen. Greg Martin, commander of Air Force Materiel Command, introduced Vice President Cheney, who wore a brown leather flight jacket. "I never got that response when I was secretary of defense," the vice president said jokingly in his opening remarks. "I'm...