For Thompson, Delay Is Costly [Money, Support Head To Declared Candidates.....]

WSJ.COM ^

[Sub-Driver]

For Thompson, Delay Is Costly Money, Support Head To Declared Candidates In Run for White House By CHRISTOPHER COOPER April 9, 2007

WASHINGTON -- If Fred Thompson decides to run for president, he will have some powerful supporters: The self-described "Tennessee Mafia," a group of Republican politicians from his home state well-versed in the craft of national campaigns. What the actor and former senator may lack is the financial juice that fired the group for more than a quarter century, driving local and national campaigns with astonishing amounts of cash.

"Mafia" members include Howard Baker, a former Republican senator, ambassador and White House chief of staff, who himself ran for president in 1980; Sen. Lamar Alexander, a former two-term Tennessee governor who ran for president in 1996 and 2000; and Bill Frist, the former Senate Republican majority leader, who considered, then rejected his own run for the White House for 2008.

Egged on by a campaign to draft him and buoyed by polls that suggest he would be a serious contender even though he hasn't declared, the conservative and blunt-spoken Mr. Thompson has said he is considering jumping in and may make a decision as early as next month. But in a presidential campaign that is likely to be the most expensive yet -- three candidates have already banked over $20 million in donations -- dithering would seem to be a liability.

Mr. Thompson's deliberations have already cost him a natural ally. Ted Welch, a wealthy Nashville businessman with an uncanny knack for raising political cash, has long been the go-to guy for Republicans seeking the highest office.

[Sub-Driver]

it's always the money isn't it..........

[traderrob6]

This guys full of crap, Fred announces and the money will flow big time.

[RatsDawg]

Ping!

[flashbunny]

Ok, so fred hasn’t spent one dime, has only been mentioned since march 11th, and he’s already polling in the double digits.

Meantime, the 3 RINOs have been running for how long and have spent how many millions of dollars, and have been dropping at the polls?

[NonValueAdded]

Off the pot Fred, it is time!

[Pistolshot]

They are scared of a Thompson candidacy.

What they fail to realize is most of the money will come from private donors, the ones who are waiting for a candidate to SUPPORT, not take because the MSM says we should.

[lesser_satan]

Money will pour into Fred’s coffers the second he declares. You will see every fund raising record on the planet shattered.

[rockinqsranch]

You hit the nail square on the head and drove it home. That is precisely what the RQSR is doing, and we’ll support only the candidate we believe in, not the one crammed down our throats by the MSM.

[Greenpees]

Go Fred !!!

Get in now. I’ll send cash.

[Always Right]

Not even 5% of the money it is going to take to run a campaign has been raised. It is way too early to say it is too late.

[LoneStarLegend78]

Money,blah, blah, blah. I not our Democracy has been teetering but to this day the most Money does not buy the actual vote, at least not in the GOP primary. When Fred declares he will suck all the oxygen from the other candidates and their money. There’s a reason the GOP primary hasn’t raised as much as the Leftists, people are still waiting.

[suijuris]

This guys full of crap, Fred announces and the money will flow big time.

Yep, from people like me. I rarely give to politicians, but I can and will get behind Fred and I beleive there are many folks who think the same.

[ROSCOE SWACKHAMMER]

There is no reason to get in now. So far his publicity hasn't cost a dime. Just like Gingrich, Fred should lay back and let the others duke it out till good and bloody, by saying what he thinks freely to anyone who asks. Since he obviously knows exactly what he thinks and states his position clearly and compactly, he can enter the debate of ideas and win without having to buy any advertising until after he announces. And please note another reason to believe Thompson can be our next president: He speaks at the rate of about 118 words per minute, significantly slower than most current candidates, and almost exactly the rate at which Ronald Reagan spoke. Every thing I have heard him say hits me in the same place Reagan did. Don't ignore the obvious just because you're the only one who sees it.

[CyberAnt]

Exactly!

[pillut48]

Run, Fred, Run!!! I'm ready! I'm ready! I'm ready! /Spongebob Squarepants off :-)

[zarf]

If Fred Thompson decides to run for president, he will have some powerful supporters: The self-described "Tennessee Mafia," a group of Republican politicians crooks from his home state well-versed in the craft of national campaigns graft and dispersal of Tennessee Department of Transportation funding..

[zarf]

If Fred Thompson decides to run for president, he will have some powerful supporters: The self-described "Tennessee Mafia," a group of Republican politicians crooks from his home state well-versed in the craft of national campaigns graft and dispersal of Tennessee Department of Transportation funding..

[SpaceBar]

The mainstream media is goading Fred Thompson into shooting his wad prematurely, and miring himself in the ugly mudslinging fest. He’ll do just fine despite some Wall Street Journal opinion piece and my intuition says he may well end up being the next President of the United States.

[Sir Francis Dashwood]

"Now, don't be hasty little Hobbits... We Ents don't say anything that doesn't take a long time to say..."

[Sir Francis Dashwood]

The mainstream media is goading Fred Thompson into shooting his wad prematurely, and miring himself in the ugly mudslinging fest.

"Now, don't be hasty little Hobbits... We Ents don't say anything that doesn't take a long time to say..."