Fred Thompson and the Centrist Coalition

Washington - The stalemate between the White House and Congress over a balanced budget deal has prompted some moderate Republicans and Democrats in the Senate to begin crafting a bipartisan budget plan.

The group of senators, known as the Centrist Coalition, is headed by Sens. John Chafee (R-R.I) and John Breaux (D-La.). Sen. Max Cleland (D- Ga.), replacing former Sen. Sam Nunn, is the newest Democratic member of the 22-member group, evenly split between Republicans and Democrats.

The group met behind closed doors Thursday for their second meeting of the 105th Congress to begin discussing alternatives to President Clinton's five-year proposal to balance the budget.

Clinton is proposing $100 billion in spending reductions in Medicare - $20 billion less than Republicans want - and $98 billion worth of tax cuts, at least $40 billion less than what Republicans want.

"It's going to be difficult to get a budget agreement that all Republicans can support and all Democrats can support. I think that's not possible," Breaux said. "Therefore, it's essential that you have a group of moderates in the middle trying to come up with something.

"I would like to think that there is a need for a centrist approach to the budget and that our group can provide that leadership,'' he said.

The group's goals will be to produce a balanced budget that stays in balance beyond 2002, lowers entitlement spending and reduces the index used to provide cost of living adjustments to Social Security and pensions, Chafee said.

The group will be cool to tax cuts, he said, noting, "There are precious few tax cuts that don't make our budget deficit solution more difficult."

Cleland, who campaigned on a pledge to be the "sensible center" in the Senate, said the group's moderate approach appealed to him.

"This is kind of like a third force here," Cleland said. "There are no heroes, no finger pointing, just focusing on getting the job done and getting the best budget that's reasonable."

Chafee and Breaux originally got together in 1993 to fashion a bipartisan alternative to Clinton 's health care initiative.

During the 104th Congress, the group became more organized and proposed a bipartisan budget agreement that would split the difference between Democratic and Republican proposals, offering fewer tax cuts than Republican leaders wanted and more entitlement spending cuts than Democratic leaders wanted.

The plan attracted 46 votes, short of the majority needed, but more than twice the number the group could safely count on with its 22 members.

The coalition lost several Republican members due to retirement last year, including Sens. William Cohen, Nancy Kassebaum and Hank Brown.

Freshman Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.), Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Fred Thompson (R-Tenn.) and Sen. Connie Mack (R-Fla.) attended the coalition's first meeting and are considering joining, Chafee said.

"It's really a wonderful group," Chafee said. "And I think everyone who was a part of it thought it was one of the high points of their service here."

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Seizing a rare moment in Senate history, senators from both parties who consider themselves centrists are uniting to help Congress and the White House find common ground on education, taxes and other fundamental issues.

About one-third of the Senate, which is evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats, showed up Wednesday for a brief organizational meeting of the Senate Centrist Coalition. Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss., and Democratic leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota , acknowledging their potential influence, appeared before the group to give their blessing to the endeavor.

Solutions to many issues of the day ``are going to defy partisan politics,'' Lott said. ``Different times and different situations call for different approaches.''

The Senate has 50 Republicans and 50 Democrats, which prompted Lott and Daschle to forge a unique power-sharing relationship. President Bush also emphasized in his first days in office that he needs Democratic support to carry out his agenda.

Bush met Democratic congressional leaders Wednesday at the White House to discuss budget matters, education, election reform and other issues. There were no negotiations of their differences, but Bush said that meeting with members of Congress was a habit he intended to keep. He said it is time ``to get together and get things done.''

Sens. John Breaux, D-La., and Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, leaders of the centrist coalition, said they plan to meet once a week to draw up policy recommendations and offer their ideas to committee chairmen and other Senate leaders.

Snowe said they might, for example, come up with a compromise solution on school vouchers to children attending failing public schools, a key part of Bush's education package but strongly opposed by most Democrats. ``We may be a catalyst for that middle ground on that issue,'' she said.

Breaux said he thinks Lott and Daschle ``both realized that unless ther e is some bipartisan recommendations, nothing will get done in this Congress.''

Among the Republicans aligned with the coalition are Education Committee Chairman Jim Jeffords of Vermont , Commerce Committee Chairman John McCain of Arizona , Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Fred Thompson of Tennessee , Armed Services Committee Chairman John Warner of Virginia and Budget Committee Chairman Pete Domenici of New Mexico .

Democrats included former vice presidential nominee Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut , Dianne Feinstein of California , Bob Torricelli of New Jersey and six Democratic freshmen.

Daschle acknowledged that it's now popular to be considered a centrist in this age of political parity, joking, ``There was a meeting called of the fringe element and no one showed up.''

Weak try, pissant:

...Fred Thompson is a Barry Goldwater movement conservative. After reading Barry Goldwater’s “Conscience of a Conservative” in 1963, he promptly became the first Republican in his family.

- California Conservative, June 26, 2007

http://www.californiaconservative.org/liberals/state-of-the-art

Bill Kirkland, a university friend who studied law with Thompson, recalled... “He was a very conservative Republican even then. He was a huge supporter of Barry Goldwater in the 1964 presidential election.”

- Sarah Baxter, Times Online, April 15, 2007

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article1654837.ece

A preliminary look at his record suggests that while he is not quite the second coming of Barry Goldwater or Ronald Reagan, he may be much better on most issues than the alternatives.

During his eight years in the Senate, Thompson had a solid record as a fiscal conservative. The National Taxpayers Union gives him the third highest marks of any candidate (trailing only Paul and Rep. Tom Tancredo)...

He has been a consistent supporter of entitlement reform, voting to means-test Medicare and supporting personal accounts for Social Security.

His record on free trade is solid. In the past he has been supportive of comprehensive immigration reform, but has been critical of the current bill, shifting toward a “control the borders first” position...

On federalism, there may be no better candidate. His Senate record is replete with examples of his being the lone opponent of legislation that he thought undercut federalist principles. He took this position even on legislation that was otherwise supported by conservatives...

Given the fact that McCain, Romney, and Giuliani are clearly big-government conservatives, Thompson has an opportunity to seize the small-government mantle.

Michael D. Tanner, Is Fred Thompson a Small-Government Conservative?, CATO-at-Liberty.org, May 31, 2007

http://www.cato-at-liberty.org/2007/05/31/is-fred-thompson-a-small-government-conservative

In 2000, Thompson got a 92 percent favorable rating from the American Conservative Union and a zero from the liberal Americans for Democratic Action.

- Mike Allen, The Politico, March 12, 2007

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0307/3074.html

Tom Griscom, editor and publisher of the Chattanooga (Tenn.) Times-Free Press... told me: ““Look, a lot of people call him a centrist because his introduction to politics was via Howard Baker. He’s actually a lot more conservative than people realize...” With a lifetime rating of 86% from the American Conservative Union over his eight years in the Senate (1994-2002), Thompson’s record in the Senate, with few exceptions, was rather solidly conservative. His breaks from the right were almost all related to campaign finance reform issues and to tort reform.

- John Gizzi, Right Angle blog on HumanEvents.com, March 14, 2007

http://www.humanevents.com/rightangle/index.php?id=21482&title=tennessee_s_griscom_says_thompson_s_4_to

“I like Fred Thompson. He was a capable senator. He is a good communicator. I disagree with him on some things, but in our ratings — I don’t have the exact number in front of me, but I think during his career in the Senate he was in the mid to upper ‘80s, which we consider solidly conservative.”

- CBS interview with American Conservative Union Leader David Keene, April 20, 2007

http://www.conservative.org/pressroom/thisweek/070420cbs.htm

While he was never a leading social conservative voice in the Senate, Thompson’s voting record during his eight years in Washington should be acceptable to anyone to the ideological right. Thompson was rated highly by conservative groups during his time in office, and surely won loyalty from conservatives when he squired Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts around Capitol Hill during his 2005 confirmation process.

- Chris Cillizza, washingtonpost.com’s Politics Blog, March 19, 2007

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/thefix/2007/03/the_case_for_fred_thompson.html

A political analyst and former Democrat insider says actor and former Tennessee senator Fred Thompson is a solid conservative who would be a formidable candidate for president in 2008, should he choose to run.

Political analyst Keith Thompson says his namesake reminds him of Ronald Reagan. “He has a solid conservative voting record on issues of life, on issues of international security and national defense, the terrorism issue, the war,” says the analyst, concluding with the observation: “I don’t know of an issue that he has fallen short of in the broadly defined sort of ‘Reaganesque’ conservative mantle.”

- Chad Groening, AgapePress?, March 20, 2007

http://www.gopusa.com/news/2007/march/0320_fred_thompson.shtml

Thompson may very well be the only true Conservative candidate if he chooses to run for the Presidency. The former Senator is pro-life, anti-gun control, pro-traditional marriage (between a man and woman), against activist judges, does not condone “special” rights for certain groups, such as gay rights, and is a firm believer in State’s rights.

- Liberally Conservative blog, March 11, 2007

http://www.liberallyconservative.com/?p=1744

Fred Thompson is the very candidate for whom the Conservative Movement has been searching. No other candidate projects the charisma and charm, as well as the name recognition and conservative credentials to which Fred Thompson can lay claim. Like President Reagan in 1980, Fred Thompson is the true conservative leader that can take the Party forward in the 21st Century.

- Dave Hinz, The Hinz Report, March 6, 2007

http://www.hinzsightreport.com/dave/dave-030607-1.html

No my friends, the man who you should start supporting now, as in today, is a man of character, a man of true Conservative values...

That man, my fellow Conservatives, is Tennessee’s Fred Thompson!

- Doug Hagin, The New Media Journal, March 23, 2007

http://therant.us/staff/hagin/03232007.htm

Fred Thompson vs. the current crop of Republican candidates is like the children’s story where the three little bears find one bed too soft, one too hard, (and) unlike the current front runners Fred is “Just Right” to most conservatives on the issues. More so than any other candidate, and with the integrity of principled conviction on those issues.

I asked a very liberal acquaintance of mine recently that is an insider with Democrat Gov. Christine Gregoire of Washington that I have friendly political discussions with for his response to 3 words: *Fred Dalton Thompson* ....a serious look formed instantly on his face and he said: “I like Fred, he would be a serious candidate for you guys, I might even have to vote for him because he is one of the most genuine and real politicians I have ever seen. I have a lot of respect for him and he would make a good President.” I was dumbfounded because we had talked about other candidates before and I am convinced of his sincerity.

- Michael R. Bednarz, BednarzBlogSpot, March 18, 2007

http://bednarzblogsphere.blogspot.com/2007/03/fred-dalton-thompson-for-president-08_18.html

While Thompson wasn’t America’s greatest senator, his career is strong enough and independent enough that nobody could call him a Bush lacky but it would be hard for conservatives to dismiss him as a “RINO.” He seems just enough to the right to bring in the right wing, and just enough to the center to bring in centrists, especially as the Democrat Party continues to be bullied and drag left by the MoveOn? crowd.

- Posted by Chris on Mason Conservative, March 09, 2007

http://masonconservative.typepad.com/the_mason_conservative/2007/03/fred_thompson_f.html

Reagan was most conservative in the arena of national security and firm foreign policy. Reagan understood that America was the only nation in the world with the power and moral authority to defend freedom and liberty around the globe, in defense of freedom and liberty here. Reagan commanded respect across the political aisle at home and abroad and remains one of the most loved US Presidents in US history even today.

But he was somewhat liberal on social issues. Or, like Thompson, he was at least an anti-federalist who sought to return private assets and personal liberty to the states and the people at every chance. He was “compassionately conservative” so-to-speak, though not nearly as compassionate towards modern secular socialist principles as either Bush administration since.

Thompson might indeed be more ideologically similar to Reagan than either Bush. He too is very strong on national sovereignty and security, with firm views regarding Americas role in the world and the need for strong national defense and foreign policy initiatives. But he is not a believer in any world order under UN control and one must wonder about both Bush Presidents in this regard.

He clearly understands what’s at stake in the current international war against terrorism networks with world-wide reach and he seems to be much more willing than Bush to call a spade and spade when addressing the current crop of anti-American leftists working to undermine American interests in congress right now.

Combined with the fact that Thompson is a great communicator, unlike Bush, these are very valid reasons for the current excitement surrounding the prospects of a Fred Thompson candidacy.

- J.B.Williams, MichNews.com, Mar 19, 2007

http://www.michnews.com/artman/publish/article_16175.shtml

Is Fred Thompson a conservative? Human Events’ John Gizzi put that question to Tom Griscom, publisher of the Chattanooga Times-Free Press and a longtime friend of Thompson.

“When I asked him whether Thompson is a conservative, Griscom told me: ‘Look, a lot of people call him a centrist because his introduction to politics was via Howard Baker. He’s actually a lot more conservative than people realize. Fred’s not an extremist - he’d never be part of the religious right, but he’s certainly more conservative than Howard Baker.’”

Gizzi notes that Thompson has a lifetime rating of 86% from the American Conservative Union over his eight years in the Senate (1994-2002) and says “Thompson’s record in the Senate, with few exceptions, was rather solidly conservative.” The exceptions were almost all related to campaign finance reform issues and to tort reform.

- Bill Hobbs, Elephant Biz, March 16, 2007

http://www.elephantbiz.com/2007/03/is_fred_thompson_a_conservativ.html

Got any more little pissant straw men for me to burn? LOL!

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