Posted on 01/10/2008 11:51:32 PM PST by neverdem
Fred D. Thompson tried...
--snip--
But it was Mr. Thompson’s performance, in which he shook off the laid-back style that has defined his candidacy, that provided...
“This is a battle for the heart and soul of the Republican Party and its future,” said Mr. Thompson, who has staked his run on a strong showing in South Carolina. The primary there is Jan. 19.
“On the one hand,” he said, “you have the Reagan revolution, you have the Reagan coalition of limited government and strong national security. And the other hand, you have the direction that Governor Huckabee would take us in. He would be a Christian leader, but he would also bring about liberal economic policies, liberal foreign policies.”
Mr. Thompson then lit into Mr. Huckabee, the former Baptist preacher and Arkansas governor who won the Iowa caucus, for wanting to close the prison at Guantánamo Bay, for supporting what he called “taxpayer-funded programs for illegals” and for wanting to sign a law restricting smoking.
“That’s not the model of the Reagan coalition, that’s the model of the Democratic Party,” he said.
--snip--
Mr. Thompson leavened his responses with the kind of one-liners that many supporters had hoped he would use sooner.
Asked about the United States response in a confrontation with Iranian speedboats, Mr. Thompson said, “I think one more step and they would have been introduced to those virgins that they’re looking forward to seeing.” At another point, he offered that “you can tell that the news is good coming out of Iraq because you read so little about it in The New York Times.”
He also went after Mr. McCain on immigration.
“I disagree with my friend John McCain on the bill that they proposed last year,” Mr. Thompson said. “I disagree with my friend Governor Huckabee...”
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Perhaps the most salient thing that Fred advanced last night was the fact that, while the other candidates have been falling all over themselves to reform themselves, particularly on the illegal aliens issue, he hasn’t changed at all.
What you see is what you get: a conservative.
McCain’s assertion that he will be strong on securing our borders: $100
Mike’s position that he will reduce spending: $150.00
Romney’s opposition to higher taxes: $200
The rhinosaurus in the commercial for the medicine to fight rhino-virus, just after Hannity interviewed Giuliana: Priceless!
“But...it’s a discussion forum right? Don’t you want to hear other opinions, or should we all just write laudatory comments about Fred Thompson ad infinitum?”
Certainly, so don’t shut up. But do indeed think.
Thompson has about as good a chance as anyone. As do all the Dem candidates against each other, though I think they are being the most cannabalistic of the two parties.
I think that if you want to discuss, providing an explanation of what facts inform your opinion about Thompson in the general election would provide a better chance for us to discuss those facts.
We could first debate whether the facts are actually true, and then we could debate whether those facts can rationally lead to your conclusion.
Simple statements of opinion are mostly useless for a discussion, because others simply express their opinion back, and there’s nothing to actually debate over.
Usually debates that start that way quickly become personal attacks, because the only thing to “debate” is whether the person giving the opinion has any credibility, and to win THAT argument you have to attack the other’s credibility.
Anyway, that’s my two cents, not just for you but really for everybody who posts. Provide facts, give your rational argument supporting your conclusions, and let’s discuss them.
FR is a pro Reagan Coalition "machine".
And that coalition has a proven track record.
But he has!
His passionate demeanor is the welcome needed change.
We need more FRED! He lit up the whole campaign!
Coming in late here but I agree with your statement 100%!!!
Thompson/Hunter 08????????
Hey, let’s get in a pissin’ match about who’s been here the longest!
/sarc
You're merely regurgitating the MSM's talking points. And the MSM Fears The Fred!
Freddie’s back!
Sounds like a classic Freddie nightmare for the Rinos last night.
Don’t count out FRED!
He won the debate. Stay tuned as the REAL conservative starts to speak out!
:’) I like Fred, but the mantra for the 2008 campaign is going to be “experience”. He’ll probably seem too old to run in 2012 (unless he winds up with toddlers by then). He might make a good running mate, but in my view Romney is going to wind up somewhere on the ticket, if not prez, then VP. Fred would make an excellent “elder statesman” VP; for one thing, an important role of the VP in a campaign is to say the rough and tumble stuff that the Prez candidate can’t always say, and Fred has a gravitas to make it sound just right.
Fred as PRESIDENT and Jeri as First Lady.
What better representation for America?
.....“Sincerity is everything. If you can fake that, you’ve got it made.”
It's a very clever rebuttal. It depends on folks not knowing Reagan's record on taxes while governor of California.
Yes he did raise taxes. He was a budget balancer in those days. But he later said that it was a mistake. He said "everytime I raised taxes to cut the deficit the Dems would use it as an excuse to increase spending".
That was before Arthur Laffer and 'supply side' economics came onto the scene.
Reagan then became a 'supply sider' and embreaced tax rate cuts. Which is were Thompson stands.
Fred went from third in IA to last in NH. Regardless of NY Times' choice of words, I had two limiting factors: excerpts limited to 300 words and folks who refuse to access the NY Times.
Good post.
Welcome aboard!!
Welcome aboard!!
OK, discuss this........can true conservative principals win in the general election?
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