If campaigns were decided on the issues and records, this race would be between Thompson and Duncan Hunter right now.
The fact of the matter is that campaigning is a part of the race, whether it is right or wrong. Not all of us vet the candidates as we should and there are too many people who vote for the best campaigner (hence why we got stuck with Spitzer in a landslide up here in ‘06).
Hunter’s problem is that he’s had to run a Presidential campaign with a congressional campaign’s budget and its corresponding name recognition.
Thompson has been surrounding himself with some suspect people (Howard Baker, Spencer Abraham, etc.) and I think it has hurt him.
jmyrlefuller wrote: “Thompson has been surrounding himself with some suspect people (Howard Baker, Spencer Abraham, etc.)...”
He’s also surrounded himself with solid conservatives (McClintock, Beers, King, Salier, Collier, Maj. Gen. Livingston, etc.).