Posted on 09/25/2007 1:39:27 AM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Has Fred Thompson's entry into the presidential race got you wondering what a Thompson administration might look like? From a federal management perspective, it's an interesting question. Thompson would come into the job with a relatively large amount of experience in overseeing government operations, since he chaired the committee formerly known as Senate Governmental Affairs.
In an Aug. 2001 column in Government Executive, Paul Light, now a New York University professor and then a vice president at the Brookings Institution, took a look at Thompson's tenure, taking note of his presidential prospects. At that point, the senator was weighing whether to run for another Senate term (he ultimately decided not to). Thompson, Light wrote, "will have to wait for 2008 to mount his own run for the presidency. Had Gore won the 2000 election, Republicans already would be coalescing around Thompson as a front-runner for 2004. He has all the populist credentials of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., without the temper and quirkiness."
Then actor-turned-legislator, Light also noted, has "done his share to make the federal government work. He has been a tireless watchdog of agency mismanagement, but has avoided the gimmickry that has characterized so much Republican rhetoric on fraud, waste and abuse." His report on federal management, Government at the Brink (Volume 1 and Volume 2), Light wrote, "did more than just inventory the problems .... It also provided an easily accessible analysis of causes and solutions, most notably the projected retirement of between a third and a half of the federal workforce."
So what's Thompson saying today? Here are the bullet points from his campaign Web site on the subject of "Government Effectiveness":
I am committed to: * Attracting and rewarding the best Americans to serve in government and ensuring they have the authority and resources needed to get the job done.
* Fixing government accounting so tax dollars are properly spent and the American people know exactly what they are being spent on.
* Improving government performance by making agencies accountable for accomplishing their missions on time and within budget.
* Ensuring information technology systems are secure and that they give our government the capacity and effectiveness to get the job done.
He certainly seems like the real deal in a field of either poseurs or unelectables.
Kind of like Lincoln wanting to know what type of whiskey Grant drank at Shiloh so that he could send some to all of his generals. ;)
What a lovely Hagiography. The only thing they missed is that he talked when in the womb.
He’s no RINO, no doubt, but can he really play in the big leagues? Can he undo the unbelievable amount of damage that has been done? And, of course, can he conquer the ice queen? My jury is still out on Thompson.
Best get you a verdict and get on board the Fred Express before he leaves a trail of cattle cars in his dust.
Fred is our ONLY hope for getting back in control of the government. This is going to be the most contentious year in politics since Watergate with lies and mud slinging from the dems. There is going to be an all out assault from the MSM in lock step with the “move-on.org croud” with their darling Hillary. I think this is our last chance to save this country from defeating ourselves on every front.
I think you're right. The country is so sick of Bush and the war that the tide is in the dems' favor. The novelty of HRC or Obama is enough for some people to vote for either.
What could change this almost-inevitable situation is that HRC is, well, she's HRC. If she can get enough people to think "A return to the golden times that were the Clinton years!" enough morons will buy it to put her in office. If she keeps up with the useless healthcare proposals that no one likes, and keeps putting herself on the tube, people MAY smarten up.
Giuliani seems to appeal to enough moderates and libs to get him some votes, but not enough to outweigh the conservatives he'll lose; ditto McCain. Romney simply isn't anything new--he's George W. Bush with whiter teeth. The rest of the Republican field simply isn't going anywhere, except for Thompson, who's got one major thing in common with RWR--he's a conservative non-conservatives don't see as some kind of religious wacko.
Been thinking this the last few elections only to have my hopes stomped on.
I know the old couplet about hope springs eternal etc...but eternity is getting closer for me all the time. These old bones would love to enjoy, one more time, the pride in America last seen under Reagan.
Don't know if Fred can pull it off but he's the only one out there that seems to be trying (don't Duncan me!)
Fred has GOT to pull it off! We have to get control again or say goodbye to the freedoms our fathers fought for. These people running our government are completely opposite in their views to the basic principles outlined in our constitution, which I do NOT believe is a “living” document.
“This is going to be the most contentious year in politics since Watergate with lies and mud slinging from the dems.”
2004 was no piker for mudslinging either. Can’t get much worse than a network anchor trying to personally swing the presidential election with a faked 35 year old memo.
And if that dumba$$ Burkett in Texas would’ve had the sense to simply go find a 60s/70s era typewriter to type the memo with, the scam would likely have worked and the election stolen.
It’ll be quite interesting to see what the DemonRats try this time.
The MSM is gearing up for an all out war on whomever the Republicans nominate with NO HOLDS BARRED. Lies are OK as long as they are “fake but accurate”.
While Fred Thompson was at Senate Government Affairs, the Fedgov went from one-year-money on most appropriations to two-year-money, with staggered end dates. This change saves the Fedgov a tremendous amount of money by eliminating much of the panic spending that used to occur at the end of the Fiscal Year. Now expiring money can be used to forward fund the next year’s expenses instead of having to be thrown out the door or sent back to the Treasury.
I don’t know how much Fred Thompson had to do with this change, but it was a commonsense measure that is very much in keeping with his style.
If Hillary is elected, in addition to whatever damage she can wreak herself, she will have 4 years to finish filling DC with Clintonites, who will continue her work after she’s gone (just as their moles have been working the last 7 years).
It boggles the mind that somebody could be so stupid to attempt to forge an early 70s document on a word processor and not even bother to change the font to Courier 10. We cannot always count on them being so stupid.
BUMP!! Well said.
Uh, EKF is a German citizen, or should I say "European citizen"?
“...(don’t Duncan me).”
I’m really tempted to use that for a tag line.
IB4TG
Let’s see . . . . Ponder Fred as prez or the Bitch as prez. . . . .. mummmm, which to choose. Okay, hands down, I’d rather ponder Fred as prez.
It's not just tenure, it's what he did while he was there.
Fredipedia: The Definitive Fred Thompson Reference
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At least you're being fair and open-minded.
</sarcasm>
True.
They would have us believe an oak tree is a tumbleweed.
Very well said.
On a scale of one to five...
One=julieannie
Two=Ron Paul
Three=Mittocrat
Four=Duncan Hunter
Five=FRed Thompson
I give you a FRed! LOL
I have never stolen a graphic....from you.
But, that one is now in my My Pics/Politics/FRed folder! :)
Thank you.
I don’t mind at all if people steal them for use elsewhere, but if they are used a lot on FR, then I have to make more to keep them fresh.
It is a nice one, isn’t it?
:)
FRED VETS, SIGN UP TODAY AT:
"Bump for President Thompson"
HMMMM....FRederalism or Hillary-Care....I’ll take FRED!!!
To that end, I question the character of these...gentlemen who dare attempt to smear the good name of Sam Grant. It has been an honor to call him a friend, and I hope that I can continue to do so when this unpleasantness has ended.
Yours respectfully,
Thomas Jackson, Lieutenant General, Confederate States Army
I'd like you to elaborate on exactly what kind of damage Fred Thompson will need to "undo".
It’s nice to see that he’s committed to all the right things. Now I’d like an idea on how he plans to accomplish it.
I read a hilarious Fred Thompson “Fact” over at IMAO.us
“Fred Thompson is not your ‘bro’ and he is going to taze you.”
ping for reading later
Thank You, Very much Suuur...Your Cantor is much appreciated.
SITG
I’m really tempted to use that for a tag line.
Take it, I've got spares.
Let's start with "Big Government Conservatism" and continue along with a GOP with a moral standing equivalent to the "distinguished gentleman" from the other party and then move to the fact that our "permanent majority" is looking at less permanent and a lot more like a minority and perhaps finish with a removal of the "Good Job Brownie" cronyism and get back to the party of compentent, lean government. Oh yeah, and lastly perhaps repeal that tax hike on Americans abroad that W. and GOP controlled Congress thought was such a good idea the SOBs.
Did you miss these things Rip van Winkel?
Fred Thompson had quite a lot to do with the biennial budget. Fred was not only chairman of Governmental Affairs, but he was also a member of the Senate finance Committee. He teamed up with Budget Committee Chairman Pete Domenici (R-NM) to push for the biennial budget.
“We create a lot of expensive agencies and programs, and then we pretty much turn our backs on them while they run for years and years,” Thompson said. “A biennial budget would give us time to delve into what’s working and what’s not...”
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