It's going to be:
vs. 
Fred needs a decisive win in South Carolina, and Mitt needs one in Michigan
Posted on 01/11/2008 10:22:57 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — John and Ann Berenberk dutifully watched the umpteenth Republican presidential debate on television on Thursday night and had an epiphany. It was about the candidate they had previously referred to as the tall, silent one. Fred D. Thompson.
The last of the candidates to enter the race, Mr. Thompson, 65, a former Tennessee senator, has so far seemed to distinguish himself mainly by a laconic style that has made him_almost invisible beside the others on the stage in past debates, the Berenberks said.
“But then last night — we hadn’t even been thinking about him — all of a sudden it was clear he was the one,” said Mr. Berenberk, a retired teacher. “The bluntness, the forcefulness. He was really impressive.”
Whether this was a new Fred Thompson, or just a sign of mirage-inducing campaign fatigue among voters, many people attending Mr. Thompson’s campaign rallies here on the day after_the_debate reported having similar revelations.
Mr. Thompson, who remarked Friday that he had “always been laid back — laid back when I became a U.S. prosecutor at 28, laid back when I became staff counsel to the Watergate committee at 30, laid back when I ran and won election twice to the United States Senate” — was clearly more_combative on Thursday night than he had been in past debates.
He attacked former Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani of New York, accusing him of stealing his tax plan, tagged Senator John McCain of Arizona as soft on illegal immigration and jabbed repeatedly at former Gov. Mike Huckabee of Arkansas for taking what he called “liberal” positions.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Bump for Fred.
He swayed me. I just wish he would have got in sooner. Show everyone you want it Fred
vs. Any signs of movement in the polls?
The New York Times are quite pleased that Fred mentioned them in the debate.
Well, well. From the NYT. This is getting good.
fRed Dawn: Wednesday, 5 November 2008!
We just hope that the tide is turning for Fred and it will get him over the top in SC and the next states in the south.
Yep. Your photos indicate how the race is breaking— Fred & Mitt versus Nuts & Goober.
Yes. The poll numbers have been..constipated..for far too long. It's high time for a...poll movement :-)
Does this mean Fred is now the media’s favorite GOP man?
lol....just jerking yer chain....everyone thinks some lib organ says something nice about a GOP guy and it’s some darth vader plot to help Hillary or Hussien
Ew... :(
What’s especially impressive about this is that Thompson went into that debate being sidelined. They put him on the end (just as they had other, unfortunately sidelined candidates such as Tanc and Hunter). They didn’t ask him questions and tried to keep him to 30 seconds when everyone else got a minute and a half.
Thompson seized control and has now become *the* story coming out of this debate, even in the lib media. That’s an amazing accomplishment in itself — keep it up, Sen. Thompson!
Romney needs to figure out how to take down McCain, instead of the whinging from some of his supporters that Thompson is supposed to somehow take down both Huck *and* McCain. Step it up, Romney! Keep it up, Thompson!
Strength of character is not something that can be injected into a candidate. It is something that when it there it is so natural that it is recognized in an instant by those who appreciate the qualities of great leadership.
The New York times I’m sure is no fan of Fred but I’m sure it is too tempting for them. They know what will sell papers and Fred winning SC will sell millions of them. Then of course they will try to deconstruct him. All I can say to that is let them try.
re the nyt: I'm not sure "combative" is the sort of adjective that is associated with objective reporting; but hey, in these nuanced times, wtfk?
I suspect this kind of article means that the Times has some preliminary polling data showing Thompson leading in SC or neck and neck with the front runner.
It’s not?
...
=o/
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.