Posted on 07/31/2007 1:53:30 PM PDT by houston1
Fred Thompson is laying on the southern-fried charm. It’s a tire-melting afternoon in June,
and the son of Lawrenceburg, Tennessee, turned two-term United States senator, Law & Order star,
and now almost Republican presidential candidate has just arrived at the Clarion Townhouse hotel in Columbia,
South Carolina, for a state-party fund-raiser.
A crush of reporters has swarmed him, one of whom has just asked if today will be the day Thompson makes things official.
Thompson delivers his honey-smooth reply as if on cue. “I’m just testing the waters, but the water is pretty warm,”
he says as he plows toward the ballroom...
In May 1994, Thompson trailed badly and talked of quitting. Frustrated, he called Knoxville political consultant Tom Ingram...
Although some of his campaign staff protested the move as cheesy, they leased Thompson a red Chevy pickup and he hit the road.
Cooper attempted to paint Thompson as phony, calling him a “Gucci-wearing, Lincoln-driving, Perrier-drinking,
Grey Poupon–spreading millionaire Washington special-interest lobbyist.”
But voters loved the truck. They didn’t seem to mind that the candidate often switched from a sedan to the truck just miles from his appearances.
“We couldn’t believe anyone was buying it,” says Kopp. “We underestimated him.
What we didn’t get is that Fred is the country version of a street kid.
He’s been talking his way out of situations since he was in high school. He’s a charmer. People fall for it.”...
But Thompson’s strongest card, his backers say, is his Hollywood-fueled image of strength.
“People think that with presidential candidates, you need a lot of information about them,” says Tony Fabrizio,
a GOP pollster. “That’s wrong. It’s all about the concept. He has the Schwarzenegger Factor"
(Excerpt) Read more at nymag.com ...
Ah, but that’s the magic of the man...
It’s all an act except when he is acting...
Wouldn’t want you to miss this, from post #50, GoldwaterBooster.
“Both Duncan Hunter and Fred Thompson were at Sean Hannity’s Freedom Concert last Thursday in San Diego.
.
.
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He [Thompson] and Jon Voight (wonderful man!) hung out with the crowd longer than anyone, except Sean.”
Working the crowd longer than anyone, except the event owner, doesn’t appear to me, to be a “lazy” characteristic.
And trisham, I wholeheartedly agree with your comment.
Thank you, athelass, for your post! Wish I could’ve been there, too, I’d have loved to have met and have shaken Fred’s hand.
I can only speak from my personal experience with Fred’s treatment of the constituents.
Ask him why he let Clinton skate on the sale of missile technology to the Red Chinese, our biggest enemy at the time. It was Clinton's most impeachable offense, IMO, and blatant treason on Clinton's part, selling his countries secrets for money. See if Fred can charm his way out of letting that skunk skate on treason.
NO WAY I'll EVER vote for this guy, and I urge everyone to google this issue and see if you don't feel the same way.
And no, before anyone spams my Freeper mail, I don't have an alternative candidate who I'm in favor of. As I've said before, we have to do better than this crop if we don't want Hillary in the saddle.
Incredible indeed.
And his second post in 2 years.
What a ringing endorsement.
Every single person there knew Hunter VERY well.
If Fred could still shine amongst that crowd of Hunter fans, that says a lot.
Thanks for the eloquent comparison.
~ <> ~
Great line!
Feel free to write to someone who believes the "CFR controls" everything or much of anything, but please don't bother me with something so intended.
As for the elitist CFR, again, feel free to post documentation that indicates they are not dominated by Euro-trash, globalist, social engineers, who range in a spectrum from lacking in supporting Israel to being thorough antisemites. And who can be counted on as drowning out the voice of real American free republicanism.
If it's small enough to be concealed it's a "Saturday night special"
If it's too large and powerful to be concealed it's an "assault wepon"
There are only a few exception to this rule. See "pocket rockets"
Fred did an interview with reporters at the South Carolina thing, was asked about being an outsider and he answered straightforwardly that he had never called himself an outsider. He said that you can be critical of Washington when you’re in it and when your out of it. IIRC
So is the CFR our doom or not?
And even if I accept your theory that the CFR is “dominated” by euro trash social engineers, and I grant their is a socialist tint to their “product” academically speaking, would that not leave room for alternate viewpoints among members. Not every CFR member is a globalist pig or an anti Semite.
Fred BUMP!
ATTENTION: FRED THOMPSON IS A RINO!!!!
No outside organization is likely to be the doom of the United States. However, yielding our sovereignty to globalism may well be.
And even if I accept your theory that the CFR is “dominated” by euro trash social engineers, and I grant their is a socialist tint to their “product” academically speaking, would that not leave room for alternate viewpoints among members. Not every CFR member is a globalist pig or an anti Semite.
The question remains of what would motivate an American politician to become a member of this organization, the mindset of which constituents is to be much, much more of an influence upon America than for them to be influenced by America. It may even be said that these elitist organizations exist in order to prevent America from being more influential around the world and instead, to 'bring America in' to global-think, despite it's pesky Declaration and Constitution -- and that "free, sovereign, People" idea.
Being a member of the CFR is hardly a move of American exceptionalism.
When I was in college many moons ago, their publications were the defacto standard in international position papers and business publishing. They drew and still draw from a variety of sources. There is a bias towards Globalist mentality in so much as the bulk of the academic side of the organization leans that way and they in turn are the ones who publish. Plus any modern discussion of foreign policy will immediately involve such entities as the UN, NATO, now the EU, and other international bodies. It is the reality of the world we live in. John Bolton is a prime example. He is a member, but if you examine his body of work, he is not fan of the UN or of Globalism in general, except where expedient in gaining an advantage for the US. However the hand dealt is that many international activities go through said body. Wishing it different will not make it true.
So painting a broad brush over the entire membership is a bit over simplified.
As to exceptionlism, there have been some exceptional Americans who have been members on both sides of the isle. Disagreeing on policy does not diminish true accomplishment.
One last thing, you can relax on the whole Sovereignty issue. We are an entirely different animal than Europe, as evidence by the very existence of this nation of people who left there. Is there a desire to bring in more trade and cooperation in matters of economics and security, yes, but that is good for both sides. The trick is maintaining the balance, and in the end, with conservatives who deal both in the principals we hold dear and the realities of a modern digital world we can work such things to our advantage. Otherwise we are tilting at windmills, because the Jeanie is not going back in the bottle, and the left is ready to make all your nightmares come true.
ATTENTION: THERE IS A SPILL ON POST 75!
That is the sentiment behind which multinational corporations manipulate, in order to do a huge "bring down" in America. When you hear Americans, left, middle, and right, talk about wage earners being becoming poorer, not more empowered, you hear right.
You are conflating many things. Technology and diplomacy have nothing to do with the CFR-joiner's polite knucle-under, one elitist knuckle at a time.
As for our being very different than Europe -- exactly -- despite the dreams of the Bush/Mexico/Canada tryst.
I was a Reagan delegate at the 1980 GOP convention and was a delegate to several state conventions in my home state (Illinois). I admire Fred Thompson and I think he is an authentic conservative and had a good voting record and I wish him well. I did not attack him. I only said that this was the first time I heard him give a formal speech at the ALEC meeting and frankly I was disappointed that he lacked a broader vision and energy. Yes indeed, he stayed a long time in the room at the ALEC meeting working the crowd and they loved it and he stayed for lots of pictures. That is good retail politics that candidates for the state legislature, state offices, Congress, governor, and US Senators do well. Working a rope line is not when people engage in substantive discussions. But again, for President I expect something more.
I don’t know what else was on his schedule that day but with so many likely delegates in that room, it seems like the ALEC meeting with TV coverage and about 1,400 solid conservative party activists and leaders and elected officials there that the event should be the most important event of the day.
It was a good speech on the fundamental principles but I repeat he was not well prepared and he sounded like he had never read the speech before. When you prepare a speech and rehearse it then that is one indication you respect your audience. Thompson is by no means alone in his tendency to take too little time to prepare a formal speech. I like his folksy manner and his charm but I repeat that should not be enough to be taken seriously as a candidate for president without a lot more substance. I always liked him as a senator and I like his acting roles in the movies and on TV. I wish Thompson well, would consider voting for him for the top nomination, and I am not committed to any other presidential candidate.
This was the first time I heard him and I expected a better speech. He did not say anything I disagreed with but I was not the only person in that room that was surprised he was not a better or more polished speaker. I have seen him do much better in short TV clips of unrehearsed remarks when he spoke from the heart. If you like Fred Thompson, you have a good candidate. But if you can influence his senior campaign advisors, they need to know that he is losing points, not gaining them, when he does not do a better job of rehearsing a formal speech. You really only get once chance to make a good first impression and some people are looking at Thompson in a serious way for president for the first time.
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