Fred Dalton Thompson managed to get many conservatives salivating back in the beginning of April 2007 when he announced there was a 50-50 chance that he would run for president. Admittedly, I was one of the masses excited about the prospect. However, after this announcement, Thompson did essentially nothing to promote his candidacy for about 5 months. Meanwhile, the other candidates were out working hard to educate potential voters about their positions. I can think of only 2 reasons for the absence of Thompson during this time period.
1. Fred Thompson is lazy. If this is the reason, there could be 3 causes. First, it may be that Thompson does not have the stamina to endure a long campaign. Second, Thompson may have been so confident in his nomination that he did not feel it worth his effort to campaign for an extended period of time. Third, Thompson may have been wishy-washy about running at all, in which case his indecision indicates a lack of effort on his part to assimilate the information necessary to make what is likely the most important decision of his life in a timely manner. At any rate, the presidency merits more than a half-hearted effort, and a lazy, indecisive campaigner will have no chance against either Clinton or Obama in a presidential race.
2. Fred Thompson knew his campaign couldn't withstand scrutiny during a long campaign. While Thompson was enjoying life doing nothing more stressful than the occasional cameo on Paul Harvey’s News and Comment, the rest of Republican field has been subjected to intense scrutiny by the media and public. In particular, Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani have been under a microscope as their every action and statement has been evaluated, and their leadership records as governor and mayor have been questioned. Fred Thompson had a particularly non-distinguished record as a senator, and he isn’t known for his wit, intellect, or innovative ideas. Consequently, Thompson may have realized that the longer he is in the spotlight, the more people would recognize his lack of experience and ability. If this is the case, Thompson wisely chose to limit the amount of time that the public would have to get to know him before the Republican primary. Unfortunately for Thompson, the presidential race will be much less forgiving than the Republican primary.
Since Thompson is either lazy or can’t withstand scrutiny (or both), I certainly will not vote for Thompson in the Republican primary. I would also encourage anyone who is not looking forward to another Clinton presidency to support a more viable Republican candidate. While I may not be particularly enamored with Mitt Romney, Rudy Guiliani, Mike Huckabee, John McCain, or other Republican candidates, at least I have had the opportunity to listen to them establish their positions on variety of issues and engage in debates. Additionally, while I may not agree with them on many issues, I am fully confident that any one of them would be better than another President Clinton. They have also demonstrated that they will put forth the effort necessary to run a strong presidential campaign against the Democratic nominee. Conversely, Fred Thompson has done nothing to engender confidence in his ability to be president nor in his ability to run an effective presidential campaign.
Now that Fred Thompson has finally entered the Republican primary, it is evident that he is woefully unprepared for the challenge. Following are a few examples:
1. Fred Thompson was asked by a reporter, “What’s harder, playing the president or being the president?” After thinking hard for a moment, Fred Thompson replied, “Well, neither of ‘em are that hard.” With a reply like that, it’s tough to believe that Fred Thompson adequately understands the responsibilities and demands of the presidential office.
2. When Fred Thompson was asked about Louisiana’s “Jena Six” protest, his response was, “I don’t know anything about it.” Given the extensive media coverage of this incident, he may very well be the only person in the United States who hadn’t heard about it. It is a bit disconcerting that someone running for president would be so out of touch with what is happening in the country he wants to govern.
3. While campaigning, Fred Thompson has made it clear that he does not understand local issues. While in Michigan, he was asked what he would do for the state, but he replied that he didn’t have any specific plans for Michigan. When questioned by reporters in Florida, he admitted he didn’t know much about the issues of hurricane property insurance or drilling in the Everglades, both of which are huge issues for the state. Fred Thompson is going to have a tough time in a presidential race convincing people that they will benefit from his presidency if he is not aware of local issues that are most important to them.
The Republicans may not have the perfect candidate, but they sure have a lot of options better than Fred Thompson. And if the Republicans want to have a chance in the 2008 presidential election, they’ll have to do a lot better than Fred Thompson.
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6 comments:
Right on! I can't believe Thompson's in the top-tier, he hasn't done a single thing to deserve so much support. The democrats would be thrilled to face him in the presidential election.
The tortoise and the hare. A man of few words. Quality instead of quantity which is going on with the other candidates. Hillary started way before protocol dates and since then she's been screaming like a banshee. Who wants to hear that laugh and screeching and babble. Like I said: Quality not quantity. The office of president would be conducted well by Fred. Can't predict what you're going to do until the situation presents itself.
At least with the tortoise and the hare, they were both in the race from the beginning, not just sitting on the sidelines for most of the race. Won't argue with you about Thompson and Hillary though. Just about anyone would be better than her. Other Republicans would be better than Thompson.
Thompson turns me off completely. I think hes a big dummy that has no knowledge about whats going on in this country. If he knew zip about the Jena 6, what the hell is he doing in the lineup for President?
Hes also married to a pole dancer and shes no trophy wife to be sure. He also has Non-hodgkins lymphoma thats in remission right now, but if it goes full blown,you don't live very long.
Sorry folks, but I'll make you a promise: Fred's name is the only Presidential vote I'm going to cast next November. So think about that before you sacrifice conservatism for electability. Rudy McRomney is a vote for socialism continued and I'm not doing it, ever again. I will not ever again vote for a socialist simply because he's "my" socialist. I don't believe Rudy, we already have McClown's demonstrated disdain for the Constitution, Paul is a nutcase, and the rest can't win (this time) anyway so all I can do is HOPE that Fred is what I think he is, because nobody else comes close.
So think about that before you elect Rudy. I and most conservatives will stay home or vote for Hillary to beat your loser.
There should be a minimum IQ limit for this post. Anyone who tries to lump 3 very different individuals (Giuliani, McCain, and Romney) into one composite entity or who would prefer to vote for Hillary rather than any Republican candidate other than Thompson obviously would not meet the minimum IQ limit and should not be allowed to post.
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