Blue Mass Group

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Fred Thompson is in

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Fred Thompson, the former US Senator from Tennessee and fixture on TV’s “Law and Order,” is forming a presidential exploratory committee, and will likely announce his candidacy for president soon — possibly on July 4.

Thompson’s experience, professional skill in front of the cameras, and folksy appeal make him a player right away, though he obviously must play catch-up in terms of fundraising and of lining up endorsements and influential staff.  His announcement has got to be considered bad news for Mitt Romney, who was starting to gain traction in Iowa polls in light of his profligate spending in that state and some stumbles by previous front-runner Rudy Giuliani.

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  1. They had to do something to stifle the candidacy of Ron Paul.  This was becoming the “sleeper” candidacy of the ’08 election, just like Ronald Reagan was the sleeper candidate of the ’64 election.  Fred Thompson should siphon off enough votes from Paul to demonstrate that both are “lunatic fringe” candidates. 

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    Ron Paul’s audience are mostly uneducated young people that think that going back to the time of robber barons will solve the world’s problems.  Civilization has come too far to backslide into the 19th century.  His “freedom and liberty philosophy” would throw our poorest and helpless out to live in the street, allow medicines only to the rich, reward the corrupt and filthy rich.  We don’t need to go back there, a time of racial segregation, religious intolerance and hatred.

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    • Hi,

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      I’m Libertarianism, have we met?  I don’t think we have, because you don’t know me.  I’m what Ron Paul is.  He runs as a Republican to get elected, because that’s Texas for you.  I heard you talking about the views of said politician, and frankly I’m confused.  Perhaps you could explain how you came to that conclusion.  Maybe the dictionary needs to change my definition.

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      With love,

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      Libertarianism

  2. Fred Thompson could take way the votes from the conservation wingnuts that can’t vote for McCain or Gulliani.  They are already jumping off the Romney bandwagon once they heard Fred was running.  Mitt might take some losses in money as well.

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    But Fred is no prize himself, wonder what the Christian conservatives will think about him, seeing who he left his wife for.  No comment.

    • He didn’t leave his first wife for her, he was divorced for a while before they met.  But it did remind me of a Wolfowitz picture posted on Talking Points Memo when the World Bank scandal broke.  If anything there would be some interesting White House dinners.

  4. You know what they say about the one-eyed man. I have a hard time imagining that Thompson can be a credible national candidate or make much headway against McCain or Giuliani, but he may let even more air out of Romney’s already deflating gasbag.

    • but there’s a lot of people on the right who have been desperately waiting for him.  Myself and friends included.  Watch support for all top 3 to lose more than you’d expect.

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      July 4th will no doubt be a speech to rival that of President Thomas Whitmore’s.  No Doubt.

      • i only know him from a few movie roles.  what should we know about Fred Thompson that we otherwise might not hear about on a bluish blog?  btw, i thought you were a tancredo fan.

        • and, as I understand it, he pretty much always has been.  Hence, the idea is that there won’t be the level of distrust that there is between the conservative base and Rudy McRomney, and that it won’t be as easy to paint him as a flip-flopper.

          • under the thumb of the all-controlling Jews, in lock step with all them ho-mo-sexshuls, squeezing immorality throught that snake-like Black cable and right into our gawd-feering living rooms!!!!!  he’ll either go down in flames in very short order, or be inordinately popular.

            • Have done remarkably well in national politics, even those that are divorced and remarried.

              • …Nelson Rockefeller should have tried out in Hollywood.  It was considered that his divorce effectively denied him the Republican nomination for president in 1976.

        • I make fun of Tancredo fans.  It’s a hobby.

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          As far as Fred, here’s what we love:

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          Democrats have wtf momentum.  With the war going, we can’t just win with a boring windbag or someone who is lacking in the articulate department (see: Kerry and Bush).  Fred Thompson is incredibly charismatic.  His history in acting will no doubt aid him greatly in debates.  Republicans will need someone who can fit the persona to overcome the diversity overload of the impending black/female/mexican nominee the Democrats are dishing up.

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          Secondly, he’s connected.  Romney has done a fabulous job raising money, but Thompson is the guy who has the connections to the ‘in-people’ and, once legal, will be raking in dough from a lot of the moderate to conservative Republicans (which I feel I number in, despite you thinking I’m a Tancredo wackjob).  Out of all the guys running, Thompson is the one who is getting the most vocal support from people on the Hill. 

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          He has a clear conservative record.  Granted, you don’t like that, but we do.  He was a senator for only 8 years, but he wasn’t flip-flopping (see mitt) or being a democrat (see rudy).

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          The most important part is the chatter.  People on the right are talking about him.  You don’t hear people talking with a gleeful tone when you talk about Rudy…but Fred Thompson makes people excited.  I would compare it to the way people talked about DP in the early stages when he was building his grassroots machine.  That’s the best way to put it. 

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          Another Tancredo note:  He has directly supported a group called Young Americans for Freedom.  Back in the day, this was a reputable group that counted The Gipper among its ranks.  Nowadays it’s a bigoted, racist organization that would like nothing more than to embarrass College Republicans with their asinine behavior, citing the organization as too liberal.  I heavily dislike Tancredo.

            • but i have to tell you, he and rudy are running a close race for the best corpsish skeletal look.  yee!

          • and thanks for your thompson rundown.  it will be interesting to watch.  i can certainly understand his desirability from your point of view. 

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            btw, Richardson in American (born that way!), not Mexican.  If he were born Mexican, he couldn’t run for prez.  Sure Richardson is multiracial Mexican/white (Boston roots!), but calling him Mexican makes you look either ignorant or racist, and I don’t want to see you pegged as either since you probably are neither. 

          • …Thompson is charismatic?  He may have been at one time, but whenever I’ve heard him recently, he came across as something between a snail and a slug.

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            As to his having been an actor, that’s pretty much irrelevant.  He was reciting lines written by others.  An analogy with Reagan would be somewhat misplaced.  Reagan had been a major politician for a number of years (governator of California, and attempted candidacy for the presidency in 1976) before he finally got to the big time in 1980.  Thompson’s political career has been as a back-bencher in the Senate.

  5. … that many have overlooked.  One of the problems with running for President from the legislature is that you usually have a long record of official votes and actions that supply your opponents with material to use against you.  This is one of the reasons Edwards has been able to get as far as he has.  Thompson has one of the longest records of anyone in the field and although I haven’t gone into research mode yeat, you can bet others will and there will probably be alot of material there for cannon fodder.

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    I’m not saying this will bring him down, but it is a negative and he will probably need every ounce of charisma once people harp on dirt from his political past.

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