The work clearly had so little impact on Thompson's life that he doesn't even recall doing it. Guys like Richard Land are saying this story is a non-starter.
Seriously, if this is the best the opposition can offer, this is going to be a cakewalk for Thompson.
You may be right. The way I look at it is this: If it stands like it is today, Fred’s initial blanket denial and his follow-up in Powerline will make this a non issue. If the Times comes up with real proof of REAL involvement, not periphery stuff, then he’s toast.
I'm an anti-abortion voter, but am I troubled by this? Nope. Even I worked for Planned Parenthood in 1975 as a volunteer, as a 19 year old, I rationalized that preventing pregnancies prevented abortions. That was long before PP became strongly identified with the pro-abort positions it has today.
What's the alternative? McCain is going down in flames, Giuliani is out of the question, and Mitt's recent conversion to being against abortion stacks up less favorably than Fred's zero rating from NARAL and the other baby-killer organizations.
Oh, yes, I suppose there's Duncan Hunter, but if he makes it from 1 or 2 percent in the polls, to say, 10 percent by the time the NY primary is here, sure, why not?
His apathetic response reveals his heart.
A pro-life individual would be outraged at the suggestion that he or she may have aided abortion, particularly in their professional life for money.
The fact that his reaction is "I don't remember" says a lot. It means he holds out the possibility that he may have lobbied for abortion, and ultimately doesn't care.
I'm just curious: would you cut Rudy, McCain, or Romney so much slack if one of them claimed to have forgotten or would have you concluded he was lying?
What troubles me about this is that if Fred is such an abortion foe, why wasn't he immediately and greatly conflicted? This should have been a moral dilemma of first rank; not the kind of thing you easily forget. I'm hoping this is an isolated event and not the first of a series of events where Fred sets aside his convictions for convenience's sake.
This one event (even if proven to be true) doesn't change my positive opinion of Fred Thompson but it does make me uneasy.
Seriously, if this is the best the opposition can offer, this is going to be a cakewalk for Thompson.
This is probably just the opening salvo. Why would the opposition open fire until the candidate is clearly in the race?