Posted on 01/18/2008 11:41:41 AM PST by SE Mom
Faced with either Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama as their national opponent, Republicans cannot risk disunity in the fall campaign. Whoever is the Republicans nominate must be able to both unify and energize the core constituencies of their party. When South Carolinians go to the polls tomorrow, their choice is between several men who cannot unify the party and one who probably can.
Fred Thompson’s ability to unify conservatives around their core principles should be much on South Carolinians’ minds. As should the record of the other contenders.
...
Among the serious contenders in South Carolina is Fred Thompson. Is he the unifying force around which conservatives can rally? His record is based more on personal choices than on alliances with liberals. Thompson’s ability to unify Republicans stems from two things. First, his gut-level conservatism. Which leads to the second, trust.
When asked a question, Thompson reacts comfortably without pausing to ponder which focus group will react in which way. He seems comfortable in his own skin. His avuncular style is a bit too folksy at times, but his answers are consistent and – in a way voters will see – principled. Which means people will trust Thompson.
This year the American electorate is more angry and disgruntled than I have seen it in more than four decades of study. Neither the President nor Congress – having failed to win the war, secure our borders or control reckless government spending – have the voters’ trust. The biggest issue this year may not be the war, or taxes, or the economy. Trust could overwhelm them all. And people trust Fred Thompson.
(Excerpt) Read more at humanevents.com ...
It has nothing to do with other candidates being better than Fred. It has everything to do with us being fractured. As many pundits have said, generally speaking — social conservatives line up in camp with Huckabee, fiscal with Romney, and the national security split between McCain and Rudy. There is no one perfect candidate of these, so everyone is overlooking the flaws of their one chosen.
Fred, and Duncan Hunter, are the only consistent conservatives but have lacked the needed traction. I think they are out after this weekend.
And if the fracture wasn’t enough, then you add the infighting between the camps, so hugely evident here on FR, and the fracture becomes a fissure so wide and deep we must question if it can be mended in time for the general election.
I am so angry right now at how my fellow conservatives have slandered my candidate, I seriously must consider not voting for their candidate if he wins. How many Republicans are out there right now feeling that way?
It’s clear that Fred is the candidate Rush wants. He just fearful that the voters will succumb to the media drum beat that says he can’t win.
If we can keep Fred in the race, the tide will turn for him precisely because of the case this article makes.
We need Fred Thompson.
Fred needs to win something before people start calling him the next Ronald Reagan.
Because the Drive bye media won't let you hear a thing he has to say on issues.
I listened to Fred all the time he was in the senate and I knew he was the man back then.Why is it Republican's seem to be a fickle bunch of people?
“Babbin hits the nail on the FRed...”
YES! And Rush read the same article by Babbin and said, and agreed! GO FRED!
The caption on this could also be, “Lookout, America’s Coming Back!”.
how my fellow conservatives have slandered my candidate, I seriously must consider not voting for their candidate if he wins.
I understand exactly what you are saying, although I strongly suspect that we support different candidates, and heres the thing.
We are voting for America, and not against each other.
IF the various conservative segments prefer a Romney, McCain, Guiliani, etc. over Fred (I said IF) then they dont prefer a true 100% conservative.
I personally think Fred would be a better president than any of them, but IF the GOP doesnt choose the 100% conservative then it just isnt as conservative as we would like.
I’m not dissing Fred, I’m just throwing my hands up in the air (so far), also talk of getting mad at other candidates is absurd in the end we choose our president, it’s not inside baseball.
I will vote for any of the above vs. Obama/Clinton/Edwards period.
Agree with just about everything you said about every candidate, but in the end I will vote republican.
I have only one vote and that goes to Fred Thompson and NO ONE else. I used up ALL my benefit of the doubt on W through the last two election cycles. I have NONE left, and do not intend to vote at all if Fred is not the nominee. Sorry if you cannot understand that, even you Rush... Even you.
“As much as they want a true conservative, they arent flocking to the only one in the race.”
I read an article that explained (at least to me) why Fred hasn’t really caught on.
The article said Fred has run an honorable campaign based on ISSUES, not PERSONALITY. i.e. While The Huckster was avoiding the issues and doing stunts like Push Polling, the NUMBERSUSA Amnesty Sham that he signed.
Fred ran an honorable race based on issues, not stunts and tricks.
I would never call him the next Ronald Reagan. Reagan was Reagan and Thompson is Thompson. Thompson espouses the same conservative principals that Reagan did though and that is what we need to keep in mind.
You are dead-on. But add these two caveats.
First, when you say correctly, that the various conservative constituencies apparently do not prefer a true 100% conservative, that is ONLY because they are voting their pet issues over the mantle of purity.
Second, we must say “apparently” because we have to consider the campaigns that Fred and Duncan ran. The campaigns have a say in success and failure. In other words, maybe if Fred had started sooner, got emboldened in debates sooner, etc.
all agreed.
Damn straight! We can do it and only WE. Republicans that want somebody to do it all for them aren’t really Republicans at all, are they?
That is similar to my point. How many out there are like you, but instead support Huckabee, Romney, McCain, or Rudy?
How many McCain voters are upset about the supposed push-polling by friends of Hucakbee, so if he loses they won't vote? How many Huckabee supporters are so hurt by Rush's attacks, if he loses they won't vote? And on and on.
This concerns me. We should be following Reagan's 11th Commandment. We SHOULD be for our own Republican candidate, and NOT against any other Republican candidate. The only ones we should be AGAINST are the Democrats.
I agree.
Fred..is not running for the office- he’s running for America.
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