“Neu Pragmatist” wrote: “Fred is the only one who hasn’t had the spotlight yet . When he does , he will weather it as he is the only one who doesn’t have a Liberal past that can be used against him . Rush said it best , Thompson is the only candidate running as a Conservative in this race .”
Senator Thompson had the spotlight the moment he announced. Since then his poll numbers have declined dramatically:
And he actually does have liberal positions in his past. During his 1994 campaign he said, “I’m not willing to support laws that prohibit early-term abortions.” He told Project Vote Smart, “Abortions should be legal in all circumstances as long as the procedure is completed within the first trimester of the pregnancy.” He explicitly refused to support laws prohibiting abortions for convenience:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=P5a_Fpu_8KE
In 1996 he signed a document saying, “I do not believe abortion should be criminalized.” If anyone here can provide me with a more recent quotation that contradicts the above statements, it would be much appreciated.
Senator Thompson supported the expansion of NAFTA and voted Bill Clinton “not guilty” of perjury at the end of the impeachment trial:
http://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1932681/posts
He played a critical role in the passage of McCain-Feingold’s immoral and blatantly unconstitutional restrictions on political free speech, and he opposes a Marriage Protection Amendment to prevent our most liberal states from establishing legal definitions of marriage that vary from the traditional meaning of the word.
I’m probably not going to comment on what Rush said unless it’s quoted directly.
Bump
>>If anyone here can provide me with a more recent quotation that contradicts the above statements, it would be much appreciated.<<
“I think Roe v. Wade was bad law and bad medical science. And the way to address that is through good judges. I don’t think the court ought to wake up one day and make new social policy for the country. It’s contrary to what it’s been for the past 200 years. We have a process in this country to do that. Judges shouldn’t be doing that. That’s what happened in that case. I think it was wrong.”
[Transcript of interview with Chris Wallace, FOX news Sunday with Chris Wallace, FOX News, March 11, 2007.]
“I think the Supreme Court was absolutely right in this abortion decision, the… partial-birth abortion decision. The very idea that we could even have a debate over whether or not that atrocious activity should be allowable is very unfortunate, to say the least.”
[Transcript of interview with Sean Hannity, FOX Hannity and Co, Fox News, May, 4 2007.]
“I am pro-life. I have 100 percent voting record on the pro-life issues that come there. I must say — I’ve told people this before — intellectually, and politically, and from a policy standpoint, I’ve always voted that way ever since I’ve been in the Senate and felt that way.”
[Transcript of interview with Sean Hannity, FOX Hannity and Co, Fox News, May, 4 2007.]
What penalties for a woman who has an abortion has Huckabee advocated?
The pro-abortion activists seem to fear both Huckabee and Thompson, with good reason IMO.
Thompson has changed his mind on abortion, and not anywhere nearly as recently as Romney. However, he wants to overturn Roe v. Wade and let the states decide, while Huck wants a constitutional amendment to protect the unborn. While I think such an amendment would be the right thing to do, I don’t think it will happen soon.
The problem with Roe v. Wade is that it has been in force for so long that some now think it is a constitutional right. And I am afraid a President Huck would similarly play a part in institutionalizing amnesty and illegal immigration forever.
The real concern I have with Thompson is that he does not seem to realize how this country is suffering from Clinton’s and Bush’s trade policies, especially with China.