Fred Thompson Finally Attends a Debate

Fred Thompson managed to beat all expectations during the first debate. Admittedly, the bar was set pretty low, so he exceeded most expectations when he didn’t drool all over him self in a state of stupor during the debate. Other than that, there wasn’t much positive from Fred Thompson during his first debate.

At the beginning of the debate, Fred Thompson demonstrated his impressive ability to talk a lot without really saying anything. When asked why two thirds of Americans are pessimistic about the economy, Thompson rambled “Well, I think there are pockets in this economy that, certainly, they’re having difficulty. I think they’re certainly those in Michigan that are having difficulty. I think you always find that in a vibrant, dynamic economy...” This type of response was typical from Thompson. As if to highlight his slow witted nature, these nonsensical answers were the best that Thompson could come up with even after several moments of serious consideration and intense thought between the time he heard the question and his proffered response.

It would seem that Fred Thompson has staked out his positions on key issues, and he will stick with those positions regardless of reality. For example, when asked about the potential for an economic recession, Thompson responded “I think there is no reason to believe that we’re heading for a recessions. We’re enjoying 22 quarters of successive economic growth.” While his optimism is laudable, it would be nice to know if Thompson is at least cognizant that economic conditions are changing and that there is a legitimate threat of a recession.

To his credit, Thompson did have a couple clever remarks that created a bit of laughter, but overall his performance was lacking. He certainly did not demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of the issues that would be expected from the President of the United States.

In a 2003 interview in the Nashville Bar Journal, Fred Thompson was asked about running for president. He responded, “I was never really willing to pay the price I knew had to be paid. I would really have to strain hard to come up with something I wanted to say ten times a day for the next year of my life when I knew that talking about the really important stuff would not get me anywhere. You have to have a great desire to be president, and I never had the desire to do that.”

It’s too bad Fred Thompson changed his mind between 2003 and 2007.

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