Curt Hennig was Mr. Perfect from the WWF.
Posted on 05/07/2007 1:41:41 AM PDT by Doofer
As the collection of announced presidential candidates participate in a campaign-athon that is occasionally so stomach turning that it should be sponsored by Pepto Bismol, actor and former Senator Fred Thompson waits it out – smartly. Should he run, Fred's already earned my vote, and I'll tell you why.
First of all, I have to admit, I'm tired and borderline nauseated by this particular race for the Oval Office that seemingly started during Bush's first term – and I mean George H.W. Bush. Normally I enjoy campaign season, as it's terrific fodder for those of us who like a good Coney Island Circus Sideshow disguised as a Gilligan's Island Circus Sideshow. But, alas, it is possible to have too much fun.
I believe this race for the presidency has finally crossed the line where the campaign is longer than the term in the office that is being sought. Even the producers of Super Bowl pregame shows are calling it overkill.
Fred Thompson, who may well join the fray, deserves our serious attention, at the very least as having the good manners to not want to spend any more time than absolutely necessary exposing us to another political campaign. Brevity is not only the soul of wit, but it's also a trait that tends to be found among the honest, as they don't need all the extra time to keep changing their position.
The potential for a Fred Thompson candidacy is like a tsunami that hasn't reached shore yet. There has been a bit of seismic activity, generating an enormous wall of energy that isn't yet detectable from the surface, but it's there.
Read Thompson's speech to the Lincoln Club annual dinner and tell me he wouldn't excite the Republican base while reeling in many others. Reagan comparisons are overused and often wrongly applied, but in this case the comparisons are very valid.
Here is a brief example from Thompson's speech:
Let's talk about the issues here at home, first. A lot of folks in Washington suffer from a big misconception about our economy. They confuse the well-being of our government with the wealth of our nation. Adam Smith pointed out the same problem in his day, when many governments mixed up how much money the king had with how well-off the country was.
Taxes are necessary. But they don't make the country any better off. At best they simply move money from the private sector to the government. But taxes are also a burden on production, because they discourage people from working, saving, investing, and taking risks. Some economists have calculated that today each additional dollar collected by the government, by raising income-tax rates, makes the private sector as much as two dollars worse off.
To me this means one simple thing: tax rates should be as low as possible. This isn't anything ideological, and it really isn't some great insight. It's common sense arithmetic.
''Common sense arithmetic,'' in a world where all too often 2 + 2 = 1,637, is as refreshing as the first time you open your windows in the springtime. Reagan gave us that feeling, and the potential for a ''morning in America II'' is very real in Thompson.
Thompson believes in low taxes, secure borders, term limits, states rights and, most importantly, in the American people. True, plenty of folks say these things, but as near as I can tell, Fred Thompson is one of the few people with a reasonable chance of winning who isn't merely lip syncing to Reagan's music, but actually singing his own tune.
Also, Fred Thompson has something I prefer in a candidate: a federal record – and I'm talking political and not legal. Candidates can lie, but their voting records can't.
Who will support Fred Thompson? Anybody who enjoys a dose of common sense not wrapped in doublespeak. I believe most Americans will choose a truthful person they might disagree with on a few issues, over a liar who agrees with them on everything time after time. Is that naïve optimism? If it is, it's all the more reason we could use a guy like Fred Thompson to help bring us back around.
For now, the phenomena that could turn into the Fred Thompson candidacy is rumbling along, but still far offshore – a barely detectable ripple on the surface. I believe that if it reaches land, the rest of the candidates will be washed away by a tidal wave named Fred.
I hope most conservatives are more rational than emotional or excitable. Excitement is the stuff of demogogery.
OMG! The Clintons were going to give away ALL our patents to China???? (well, I guess “give” is the wrong word - should be “sell”)? All I knew about was the Loral deal, bad enough but this? They should all be in prison!!! I HATE the Clintons, everything they stand for, all their syncophants - they’d destroy this country for their personal power and glory.
Thanks so much for this REALLY interesting information about Fred. He is a BIG man, Big Fred.
Happy to have you on board. :)
Curt Hennig was Mr. Perfect from the WWF.
Our republican governor is returning the franchise to about a million convicted felons. Guess what that will do to the dem-rep balance in Florida.
Add me to the Fredhead ping list. Thanks.
I got it, too, JB. :)
You’re sounding desperate ClairSolt, a position that is beneath you, IMO.
I believe Thompson will run and will run circles around the current crop of RNC window-dressers. He will appeal not only to the base but a large section of the middle as well.
Mara Liason called this Thompson frenzy looking for the unicorn candidate. I am not desparate. I am impatient with this nonsense.
smack! upside the head. Useful “Fact-Hammer”
Good job
Although not completely driven by DNC talking points, Mara is certainly not conservative and approaches her punditry as such.
I have little doubt she’s as alarmed at the depth of the call for Fred to run as HillaryObamaEdwardsGiulianiMcCainRomney is. Krauthammer who is clearly in Rudy’s camp, probably feels that alarm as well.
Watch for the current groundswell of support to explode into a living breathing growing entity once Fred announces. Then try and call it nonsense.
It’s going to be fun to watch.
you echo my observations precisely
Welcome to the FRed List. :)
This is so 2008. Why isn’t anyone campaigning for 2012 yet - cripes, it’s the middle of ‘07 already.
Fred Thompson 2008 & 2012.
Don’t be surprised, when you get your feelings hurt.
LOL! Well, they’ve been hurt before and I lived to tell about it. But I don’t expect it will happen in this case.
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