Posted on 10/19/2007 10:56:38 PM PDT by Doofer
In a speech to 2,000 conservative evangelicals at the Family Research Council's "Values Voters Summit" in Washington, Republican Fred Thompson made some headway with conservative Christians who've been left uninspired during the desultory days of his first month on the presidential campaign trail.
Thompson used personal experience to court them, with references to his own plan to pray and to what he characterized as the life-changing experience of seeing a sonogram of his unborn daughter.
Late in his speech, Thompson said he's been asked what he'd do in his first 100 days as president. His answer, he said, is "I don't really knowit would depend on the circumstances."
"But," he said, "I know what I would do the first hour: Go into the Oval Office, close the door, and pray for the wisdom to do what was right." The crowd was quickly on its feet, warmly applauding; it was his best-received sentiment of the day.
Earlier, when laying out his antiabortion bona fides, Thompson focused, emotionally at times, on his role as a father, including the "ultimate tragedy" of the death of an adult daughter from his first marriage and the "ultimate blessing" of the birth of a child.
Thompson, who has two young children with his second wife, told the audience that his political record and his "head" have always been against abortion, but it took seeing the first sonogram of his now 3-year-old daughter, Hayden, to transform him.
"My heart, he said, "is now fully engaged with my head."
His biggest competition for conservative support, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, was scheduled to address the evangelicals tonight. In prepared remarks, he said that " the family is a vital economic unit, the foundation of our nation. And it is the strength of this nation's families that ultimately determines America's strength in the family of nations." Rudy Giuliani, who is leading national GOP presidential preference polls--and supports legal abortion and opposes a constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriage--was to enter the lion's den Saturday.
All the GOP candidates accepted invitations to speak to the evangelicals. The results of a straw poll of attendees and online voters will be announced Saturday.
I’m here at the Washington Briefing this morning and was here yesterday. If there’s not a live thread, I’ll start one.
Thompson impressed me. I heard that he should be more fiery, more like Tancredo. Again, I don’t think this is the year for fire from the mouth of the Presidential candidate. This year, we need what the Senator offered: sincerity in a promise to pray for wisdom and to know what to do.
Guiliani is about to appear.
Actually, I think I’ll post at http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1913717/posts
GOP Presidential Candidates Woo “Value Voters.”
Liar.
I think you got him with that one! These idiots can read but think we can’t.
There is a major effort afoot to knock FDT off.
I don’t think it will work.
Senator Thompson did a great job of describing his beliefs yesterday.
All that I’ve ever heard him say is that he’s against the criminalization and jailing of girls and their families, maybet their doctors. I’m not quite sure why he’s so focused on the criminal penalties in that old 1994 speech. But it was not
pro-choice.” I’ve never heard anything that makes me believe that he’s pro-abortion or accepting.
Sorry, but Fred just doesn’t live up to the hype. I keep hearing all these great things about him from the Fredheads, but then when I see him in a debate or at a campaign stop — he’s uninspiring, slow-witted, and not a very good public speaker.
Fred is great only in theory. Seeing him in practice can be a cold dash of water.
I respect your opinion, but the polls disagree with you.
What a racist poll !! /s
You need to post that on the Romney thread, it will drive certain people bonkers.
“during the desultory days of his first month on the presidential campaign trail.”
So desultory that now Fred is knocking on the number one position.
“It is OK for Fred to have changed his mind about abortion three years ago, but not Mitt?”
1) Fred voted anti abortion his whole Senate career, so your statement is false.
2) Mitt was a freaking Bishop and still couldn’t figure it out? Give me a break!
So he doesn't answer the question and finishes up with a cheap 'pop'. Yeah, Fred's real Presidential. If by Presidential you mean not having a plan laid out, evading most questions with simple platitudes that don't mean anything, and saying just enough to get applause in front of the audience.
Considering the last three goobers that have held that office, he'll fit right in...
[There is a major effort afoot to knock FDT off.
I dont think it will work.]
Yes. Obviously everyone expects heated debate for candidates. But there is a Mormon contingent that some of us warned about who support Mitt as a fulfillment of prophecy (as though he were God material). For that contingent, it is absolutely impossible to provide any negative facts about Romney that aren’t immediately spun to the contrary. Any positive facts about Fred, who will likely destroy Mitt in the nomination process, must not only be denied but crushed.
The reason this will get so nasty is because it is no longer political but goes to the heart of an effort to proselytize for Mormon beliefs. While many have been quick to deride “anti-Mormon” bigotry, we are about to see the opposite, “pro-Mormon” bigotry.
What most are unaware of though is that the Mormon church is an expert at the task of culling dissenters from its midst, a technique that will now creep into the political arena. One Freeper/Mormon has admitted to having been in 36 excommunications of fellow Mormons, imagine now those techniques applied to the presidential campaign.
You keep saying that, it is not true.
This is what he said:
“Thompson, who has two young children with his second wife, told the audience that his political record and his “head” have always been against abortion, but it took seeing the first sonogram of his now 3-year-old daughter, Hayden, to transform him.
‘My heart, he said, “is now fully engaged with my head.’”
His political record and his head have ALWAYS been against abortion. That is not what you said. What he said does not equate to changing his mind.
Michael A. Velli wrote: “...when I see him in a debate or at a campaign stop hes... slow-witted.”
Yeah, Fred was so ‘slow-witted’ in the last debate that he made Mitt look like the canned goods that he is:
“Mr Romney: ‘This is like an episode of Law & Order. It has a huge cast, it goes on forever and Fred Thompson turns up at the end,’ he said.
“But quick as a flash, Mr Thompson fired back: ‘And I thought I was the best actor on the stage.’”
“In almost every debate, Mr Romney has managed to deliver a carefully scripted line that is picked up the next day in the media. But this time around, it served to highlight his perceived weakness that he is a concoction of prepared lines, focus-tested policies and carefully researched responses in search of a truly passionate advocate.”
And yeah, Fred was so ‘slow-witted’ in the last debate that he bitch-slapped chris Matthews and left the tweety bird speechless:
Before the debate, Mike Allen at The Politico believes that Chris Matthews would be lying in wait to find a “gotcha” moment for Thompson. Sure enough, Tweety asked Fred, “Who is the leader of Canada?” “Harper,” said Thompson, “Prime Minister Harper.”
That’s not “slow-witted.
the there was Fred’s bitch-slapping of Tweety: “Matthews grew so frustrated that he openly critiqued one of Thompson’s answers for being too detailed, which prompted a scolding from Thompson.”
Nope, nothing slow-witted about that.
You’re blowing it out your butt.
Not only that, but it seems like he’s trying to deny that he was ever pro-choice, just like Mitt tried to do.
He doesn't ansxwer the question because he's not Psycic, nor stupid like Nancy Pelosi's first 100 day prediction. Does he have a DNC congress or RNC? Are we at war with Iran? What are on Mitts and Julies first 100 day plans?
And this is supposed to change my mind about the guy? LOL.
Maybe because Fred, when given the opportunity, has always voted against abortion?. Meanwhile Mitt, while posessing the power of the Line Item Veto; failed to veto the relevent passages of his "Romneycare" bill which provided for taxpayer funded abortion on demand and also included a seat for Planned Parenthood on the board of Governors in 2005?
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