Free Republic

As has been reported elsewhere today, Fred Thompson's mother is gravely ill right now. Our prayers ought to be with Sen. Thompson, his mother, his wife, and their family. This must be a very difficult time for them. All of this political stuff is of only secondary importance right now. That said, here is what I would do, politically, if I were Thompson: I would just lay low. Just wait. See what happens in Louisiana's caucuses tomorrow. See what happens in Florida next week. See who drops out of the race at some point. And then consider reviving my campaign,...

Fred Thompson or Ron Paul? Like Perry and some others, I would rather see a big government Democrat elected than a big government Republican. At least that would bring back some opposition. Republicans in Congress have a much better record of reining in the Democrats' presidents than their own. And as I explain later, I think that one of these two is the only Republican candidate capable of winning the national election. Ron Paul answering the What programs? question by naming three cabinet level departments ... Wow. Good answer. If there was no rest-of-the-world, he would possibly have my vote....

Days left until the Jan. 19 S.C. Republican presidential primary: 46 Days left until the Jan. 26 S.C. Democratic presidential primary: 53 Days left to register to vote: 17 CAMPAIGN TRAIL When and where presidential candidates are appearing in South Carolina 12:15 p.m. today: Former U.S. Sen. Fred Thompson will have a meet-and-greet at Wade’s Southern Cooking at 100 N. Pine St. in Spartanburg. 2 p.m.: Thompson will visit Blue Ridge Shooting Sport Store at 3559 Ballenger Road in Greer. 6 p.m.: Thompson will visit Market Square Deli at 2029 Wade Hampton Blvd. in Greenville. 8:45 a.m. Wednesday: Thompson will...

By now I'm sure the majority of you are aware of who most of the 2008 presidential candidates are. I'm also sure that by now you may be just a little bit sick and tired of the rhetoric that some of these folks are spewing forth. Not a day goes by that we aren't bombarded with the media's biased reports of certain candidates, whether good or bad. If you are one of the people who are undecided but want to really learn about a particular candidate, I would invite you to take a look at former Sen. Fred Thompson. When...

FLIP FLOP ALERT! FLIP FLOP ALERT! CALLING ROMNEY OPPO TEAM! Earlier today, we linked coverage of The Huckster on Fox News, where he couldn't have been clearer that he opposes a state-by-state solution to abortion. This is to differentiate himself from Fred Thompson, who's taken that approach and thus, in effect, would permit abortion to remain legal in at least some states, regardless of how the Bush court might rule someday on Roe v. Wade. Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee rejects letting states decide whether to allow abortions, claiming the right to life is a moral issue not subject to...

In September, I posted another vanity (linked below) in which I observed that the historical trends in this election favored Fred Thompson. Since then, his RCP average has dropped from about 22% to 16-17%. In the more volatile Rasmussen daily tracking poll, he has also dropped to 16%, about a 10 point drop from his post announcement high. In light of the above poll numbers, is it time for me to issue a mea culpa? No. This is not at all inconsistent with the hypothesis of my previous post. Neither of the successful insurgent candidates in modern times, Reagan or...

Fred Thompson took his acid bath this morning on Meet the Press. Measured by the traditional standards of Sunday morning political theater, it was an uneven performance. Fred did well on international affairs and "stumbled" on domestic policy. His answer on abortion in particular will come as an uncomfortable revelation to some of his more conservative supporters. I have a team of Jesuits attempting to unravel the yarn-balled logic of Fred's rambling answer, but it appears to boil down to this: "I'm 100 percent pro-life and have voted 100 percent pro-life. I hope one day Roe will be overturned and...

Senator Fred Thompson appeared for the hour on "Meet the Press" with Tim Russert and it was evident that this is a more comfortable milieu for him then the debate format at this point in the campaign. He talked easily and comfortably about issues of foreign policy such as Pakistan and Iran - and displayed a staunch defense of federalism with some positions that may not please some of the members of the base. Thompson certainly came across as authentic - and his grasp of foreign policy issues gives lie to the contention that those with executive experience have a...

Those expecting to see a train wreck this morning when Fred Thompson appeared on "Meet the Press" must have come away disappointed. Though Tim Russert was his usual aggressive self, Thompson held his own and committed no gaffes of the sort that have plagued his campaign for the past two months. Yet that Thompson's performance on "Meet" — much like his debate debut last month — was one in which merely getting through without making any major errors is seen as tantamount to success says much about the diminished expectations for the candidate once seen as the cure to GOP...

That Southern charm may soften the appearance of the actor-senator’s hardened conservative views. Last month brough the moment in the presidential campaign I’d been dreading. The popular conservative from my home state, fellow Tennessean Fred Thompson, entered the Republican primary. The pundits and “insiders” have dismissed the actor and former senator even before he declared his candidacy on late-night TV. Some claim he’s a Hollywood lightweight, but I’ve heard that before (Ronald Reagan). Some dismiss him as a Southern simpleton, but I’ve heard that before (George W. Bush). And I’ve even heard some claim he has a wealth of sexual...

Human Events’ presidential preference poll of American conservatives found that former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson leads the competition for conservative support with 23% of the participants selecting him over the other candidates. Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee tied for second with 19%, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney came in third at 13% and Arizona Sen. John McCain -- in what is probably a direct result of his stance on amnesty for illegal aliens -- came in dead last at 2.1%. The poll, conducted by e-mail between October 24-29, was sent to approximately 32,000...

Thompson’s Plan to Fight Illegal Immigration From Thompson campaign: Thompson Announces Plan to Secure Border, Enforce Existing Immigration Laws Senator Fred Thompson today unveiled a comprehensive border security and immigration enforcement proposal that would make America safer by increasing security at our nation’s borders, enforcing our country’s existing laws to reduce the incentive for illegal immigration and streamlining the legal immigration process. “A country that cannot secure its borders will not remain a sovereign nation and you cannot have national security without border security,” said Thompson. “It’s not only necessary for any meaningful immigration reform, but border security plays a...

At Friends of Fred Thompson our mission is to explain how great a leader and future President Fred will be. We believe to take the measure of a man you must understand his principles. What will be the standards he applies as issues come before him? Fred Thompson has clear principles he has honed through his years of public service. We now have those principles on the Fred08.com website. Here are a few: Individual Liberty. As Jefferson spelled out in the Declaration of Independence, our basic rights come from God, not from government, and that among these inalienable rights is...

Though America got where it is today by following a pattern of freedom and prosperity followed, Americans at a present political crossroads may be in danger of choosing instead a path that leads to inevitable demise, said Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson Monday in Marshalltown. Thompson, however, advocated adhering to the country’s foundational principles and doing what is right. “How often, when you do the right thing, it turns out to be good politics too?” he said to a full room at the Tremont on Main. At the core of his campaign, Thompson said he stands behind a federalism based...

A well-known evangelical leader is encouraging conservative Christians to give presidential hopeful Fred Thompson and all other candidates a fair chance not long after another prominent conservative leader criticized the former senator for being too weak on key issues. Although he doesn’t endorse Thompson, former Republican presidential candidate Gary Bauer contends that conservative Christians should seriously consider him if they want to avoid a “nightmare scenario” where they are forced to choose between two pro-abortion, pro-gay rights candidates – Hillary Clinton and Rudy Giuliani. “He (Thompson)’s obviously against same-sex marriage. He doesn’t support quite the same constitutional amendment that some...

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...

There have been so many dismissive or blistering articles about Fred Thompson in recent months, I half expected last weekend to see Larry, Curly or Moe lead a bumbling three-day bus tour through Florida. George Will likens the former Tennessee senator to overhyped New Coke; Robert Novak suggests the late-announcing candidate may have crashed and burned before takeoff; Dick Morris declares him clearly over his head on the campaign trail. These guys need get out of the Beltway for a few days and see what's happening on the ground in places like Florida. They're underestimating hunger among Republicans for an...

MR. OCTOBER Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich is examining whether or not to enter a "testing the waters" campaign phase beginning the first week of October. According to Gingrich associates, he is mulling an announcement tour that would include appearances on one major Sunday morning show next weekend, along with several Fox News shows on Monday, as well as an appearance on Dr. James Dobson's radio show. "It's not a coincidence that you saw Dr. Dobson attacking Fred Thompson when he did," says a former associate of Dobson's. "There's a strategy here, and it's about clearing the way...

Rich Galen is a veteran of Republican campaigns, former press secretary to Dan Quayle and Newt Gingrich, Internet-based political commentator and (lately) senior adviser to former U.S. Sen. Fred Thompson, the lawyer-actor who recently declared his candidacy for president. He spoke to the Austin American-Statesman last week during Thompson's Austin stop, which included a visit to a Dell Inc. manufacturing plant in Round Rock and a fundraiser at the Driskill Hotel. The conversation started with the conventional wisdom that Thompson may have entered the Republican fray too late compared to others who have been stumping for months. Austin American-Statesman: As...

There's no need to ask Tim Phillips, president of Americans for Prosperity, why his agency created the Defending the American Dream Summit. U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. -- who actually could be president one day -- can tell you. At the NASDAQ stock market last week, Mr. Obama said the "'what's-good-enough-for-me-is-good-enough' mentality has crept into parts of the business world, while working men and women toil longer hours and still struggle to pay for health care, tuition and taxes," according to The Associated Press. "If we are honest, I think we must admit that those who have benefited from the...