Despite a disappointing finish, Thompson doesn't bow out

Chicago Tribune ^ | Jan. 19, 2008 | William Douglas

[FocusNexus]

Former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson didn't drop out of the Republican presidential field after his disappointing finish in Saturday's South Carolina primary -- but he sounded close to it.

About an hour after the polls closed, Thompson addressed a ballroom in a college student union, an event that featured as many students enjoying free beer as it did hardcore Thompson supporters. He delivered a lengthy soliloquy, speaking in the past tense about "clear conservatism," the cornerstone of his campaign.

"My friends, we will always be bound by a close bond because we have traveled a very special road together for a very special purpose," Thompson told the crowd. "It's never even been about me, it's never been about you. It's been about our country."

Thompson's campaign declined to say whether the speech was a concession, a swan song, a stump speech to signal that he's fighting on, or what. Campaign spokesmen wouldn't say what the former Tennessee senator's next move is.

"The campaign is still a campaign until it's not the campaign," said Rich Galen, a Thompson campaign senior adviser. "There's no hurry to make a decision, other than your deadline. I don't have anything to add -- not tonight."

Thompson conceded earlier Saturday that he needed a win in South Carolina to keep his presidential campaign alive.

[lentulusgracchus]

The sun seems to be setting on conservatism.

No, the Bush family is.

On conservatism's face.

So's the MSM.

[upsdriver]

I think the conservative movement is in a valley right now. The principles of conservatism are timeless and superior. The movement needs new leaders, especially someone to come forth and explain conservativism in a way that is understandable to the average person.

I don’t think we help the cause by sending one of these Republican candidates to the White House. It will only delay the inevitable. We need a knockdown, drag out fight for the soul of the party and the sooner the better. As a boomer, I hope that we start to see new leaders pop up from the younger generations. We need new blood and fresh ideas. And folks who don’t have so damn many skeletons in their closet. We are a country of 300 million people. Surely there must be someone with the talent and will step forward.

[Slip18]

I absolutely love your profile page! God bless you!

[Slip18]

"Susan Estrich is talking McCain up right not..what does that tell you?"

A lot. McCain is a RINO from the tips of his toes to the top of his head.

[lentulusgracchus]

I won’t support him, but McCain will be the one. Big Name War Hero, Big Government, Mainstream Beltway Republican RINO and it’s his “Turn.”

Hard to fault your analysis, Jim, but I think if Fred hangs in long enough, I'll be happy enough to vote for him here in Texas. Even if he drops out formally, if his name is still on the ballot, I'll be happy to cast that vote.

Rush keeps telling us, during general election campaigns, that the primary campaign is the place to make your stand for a conservative. I'll eat broken glass before I vote for either McCain, given his positions, or Mitt Romney, given his background and that dog's breakfast of a "defense of marriage" he gave us while governor of Massachusetts. That was a major, galaxy-class failure to lead on a major social issue. Some "Western conservative" he.

East Coast Republicrats play to lose. Or more to the point, they cash in our social issues for votes on tax breaks. That's why the MSM bullsteerers love them so. Remember that touching little scene when old Bob Michel retired from the House of Representatives? The 'Rats let him hold the Speaker's gavel for a couple of minutes the day he said goodbye. Awwww. OK, now give us the gavel back, Bob. And thanks for playing.

[lentulusgracchus]

McCain is a RINO from the tips of his toes to the top of his head.

It's worse than that. He and Orrin Hatch of Utah both used to be solid Western Conservatives with ACU scores in the 80's, back about 1992. But as soon as they got bitten by the presidential bug, their ACU scores rolled off and both of them started palling around with Teddy Kennedy.

Bad news. Good men corrupted by D.C. schmoozers.

[Slip18]

Nicely put, Jim!

Just hope his mom is okay.

[lentulusgracchus]

Huck, Mitt, Rudy and even Ron Paul have been working hard doing the work out of the public view for years.

There was a time when American voters used to know to shun personalities like that like the plague.

Even as late as the 1860 campaign season, Lincoln found it politically necessary to stay home in Springfield rather than go to the Republican convention in Chicago until he was summoned to accept the nomination. It was expected by a wiser American electorate, that quality candidates didn't spend years lusting after offices and chasing them around with their tongues hanging out.

The Sufis have a saying about that, that the last man you want to hire to be a teacher is the one who wants the job in the worst possible way. Americans in the Founders' generation and the Federal period knew that, too.

[lentulusgracchus]

McCain, on the other hand, would auger in and the Republican party would be holding the bag.

Funny you should mention that.

I read on a financial-advice site that the reason GOP presidential contenders' overall contributions are lagging is that the big money has already ceded the election to Hildebeast. They figure the roof's coming in, in 2009, and she might as well be standing there to take the blame, anyway.

Problem with that analysis is, the economy and markets might not last until 2009, and anyway the MSM will be pumping pro-Clinton propaganda 24/7/365 again if she gets in, and they'll make sure the blame slides off her onto others.

And then she'll turn around and use the economic problems to try to turn the country into a bigger version of East Germany.

But it looks, from that POV that I was reading, like the big yachts set sail next Christmas week, complete with capital flight and the whole nine yards.

Have you read about all the big condo projects going up around the Caribbean? Supposedly to receive expat Americans and their capital? That's the "story" I keep running into.

[Slip18]

Yes, she is, and deservedly so.

"In April 2006, she was appointed Treasurer of Virginia Republican Senator George Allen's re-election committee. She is now involved in the presidential campaign of Fred Thompson."

~Wikipedia~

[counterpunch]

Fred needs to fight on all the way to the convention. He can succeed at the GOP convention where Ronald Reagan failed in 1976.
Fred’s fight will be on the convention floor, for leadership and party unity.

Fred has an important job to do still. He must keep the nomination far out of reach of Mike Huckabee. And he must bring the party together as the consensus conservative choice when no candidate comes up with enough delegates to win the nomination.

Keep on fighting Fred!

[Slip18]

Oh, Jim, noooooo. My very first protest in my life was the Daschle-McCain Summit at McCain’s Compound in 2001. His neighbors wanted pictures of us and our signage. They disliked him, too. Who knows if they were libs or conservatives. He wasn’t a nice neighbor.

[Slip18]

Pray and pray heartily that Fred’s mom is okay.

Good woman you are.

[Paladin2]

The hope would be that Mitt can be pinned down to be constrained to appoint conservative SCOTUS and lower level judges.

[wny]

whats the delegate count anyway?
McDem won SC and NH
Mitt took WY, Mich and NV
Huckajerk took Iowa
Fred hasn’t finished 1st anywhere, but he must have some delegates, no?

[streetpreacher]

He should stay in until the convention. Should Hillary win, Fred could spend the next four years developing his candidacy and organization for 2012.

[devere]

“Fred Thompson did when he crapped on Dr. James Dobson”

You’ve got it backwards.

The Ayatollah Dobson crapped on Fred, when he announced that Fred is not a Christian.

http://www.usnews.com/usnews/news/articles/070328/28dobson.htm

Bigots like Dobson want to elect a Protestant Pope, not a President. What their bigotry will get them is either McCain, Romney, Clinton, or Obama. That’s all that’s left!

[Teacher317]

Sorry, I see no reason to venture out to cast a vote of approval for a blatant flopping liberal like Romney. I’ve had my fill of the “votes to avoid the opponent” elections.

As FReepers have chanted for the last several cycles, the Primaries are where you push for the right candidate. Well, looks like the Reaganesque-small-government-conservative guys (Hunter and Fred) are about done, and thus, so am I. See you next cycle.

The GOP can go hang. They no longer represent my ideals, and I refuse to support someone just because they don’t have a D by their name.

[ImpBill]

Thank you.

[2nd amendment mama]

Okay folks - take a look at the results from the 5 primaries/caucuses that have been held so far. In 4 out of the 5, Fred has been ahead of Guiliani and I don't hear the MSM calling for Rudy to quit.

We need to stop the "loser" mentality and get behind Fred. We need to contact the MSM (including Fox) and let them know that we consider Fred to be a viable candidate and that we WILL NOT allow them to choose our candidate for us!

Iowa:

		Huckabee	40,841	34%
		Romney	29,949	25%
		Thompson	15,904	13%
		McCain	15,559	13%
		Paul	11,817	10%
		Giuliani	4,097	4%
		Hunter	524	1%

 

New Hampshire:

McCain	88,466	37%
Romney	75,343	32%
Huckabee	26,768	11%
Giuliani	20,395	9%
Paul	18,303	8%
Thompson	2,886	1%
Hunter	1,220	0%

 

Michigan:

		Romney	337,847	39%
		McCain	257,521	30%
		Huckabee	139,699	16%
		Paul	54,434	6%
		Thompson	32,135	4%
		Giuliani	24,706	3%
		Uncommitted	18,106	2%
		Hunter	2,823	0%

 

South Carolina:

McCain	143,224	33%	97% reporting
Huckabee	128,908	30%
Thompson	67,897	16%
Romney	64,970	15%
Paul	15,773	4%
Giuliani	9,112	2%
Hunter	1,035	0%

 

Nevada:

Romney	22,649	51%
Paul	6,087	14%
McCain	5,651	13%
Huckabee	3,616	8%
Thompson	3,521	8%
Giuliani	1,910	4%
Hunter	890	2%