Fred's Announcement

[Urse]

Please take a few minutes and listen to what the man has to say.

http://blip.tv/file/365125

Thompson/Huckabee 08

[molonlabetn]

I needed that, today...

[The Rabbi]

I have been waiting years for a politician to say

"While there are problems, not every problem is a Federal problem."

That and,

"A government big enough to give you everything is also big enough to do anything to you."

I am making my contribution to the campaign today. I encourage others here to do so. Raising money is one of the biggest challenges of any campaign. Fred is admittedly behind in this. He needs support from gun owners like us. Not just running our key boards on sites like this but actually writing a check, wearing the buttons, talking to others, etc etc.

[TGO David]

The man has my vote as long as he sticks to his guns. And I keep telling you people... him + J.C. Watts = flawless victory.

[The Rabbi]

The man has my vote as long as he sticks to his guns. And I keep telling you people... him + J.C. Watts = flawless victory.

Why J.C. Watts? He was a 4-term congressman from OK. Why is that a dream ticket?

And since when do Republicans think someone is qualified just because he is Black? Bush appointed more Blacks to higher offices than any other President. And see where that has gotten him with the Black community.

No, Thompson needs someone like Dick Cheney, an insider with long experience who can help carry out his plans.

[TGO David]

Dick Cheney needs to go for a multitude of reasons. And since when is stacking the deck considered bad karma in the world of politics?

J.C. Watts isn't just a "token darkie" as you seem to be implying. He is a staunch conservative who is outspoken in his belief that there is no such thing as entitlement and that people who want to live the "good life" need to get off of their asses, get off of welfare and do for themselves.

The fact that he is the conservative answer to Obama's appeal to the black community is icing on the cake.

[The Rabbi]

I said "like Dick Cheney". Cheney's career in politics is done, for a variety of reasons including his own preference.

One of the Thompson's biggest issues is his lack of experience. Critics are already trotting that one out, showing his Senate record for introducing bills (blank).

He needs to counter that with someone who has that experience.

It is very nice that Watts is an outspoken conservative. Alan Keyes is also an outspoken conservative and couldn't get elected dog catcher.

Thompson doesnt need an outspoken conservative (he already is the most conservative candidate running). He needs the big resume. Libby Dole maybe.

[TGO David]

I said "like Dick Cheney". Cheney's career in politics is done, for a variety of reasons including his own preference.

I agree, and sorry for misreading your post. I didn't notice the qualifying word "like".

Alan Keyes is also an outspoken conservative and couldn't get elected dog catcher.

I remember when Keyes ran for President in 2000. He dropped off of my radar after that. I take it that his record is less than stellar.

Thompson doesnt need an outspoken conservative (he already is the most conservative candidate running). He needs the big resume. Libby Dole maybe.

As long as it's not McCain the Insane.

[The Rabbi]

No, McCain needs to be ridden out of the GOP on a rail. If for nothing else than for McCain Feingold, the worst piece of legislation in memory.

[Urse]

The more and more I read and see I like Mike Huckabee. He is my second favorite and my VP choice. He and Fred have a very similiar approach on many key issues. This may not be the most electable ticket but it is my choice.

[Guest Len]

And yet Thompson, a GOP floor manager for that legislation, gets your vote as "the most conservative?" What defines a true "conservative?" A willingness to change to suit the political winds?

Thompson is seen as the 2nd coming of Reagan in conservative circles, and compared to the GOP front-runners he may be, but his record to date does not cry out "conservative!!" to me. Ran McCain/Feingold, consulted for a pro-choice org back in the day, worked both sides of the fence during Watergate, plays a moderate on TV. It seems fine that Thompson is conservative TODAY despite past mis-deeds, but many GOP-ers don't cut Romney or Guliani the same slack. Why is that? Lots of Thompson out there, but not much sugar in the mix as of yet, it would seem. I will say this, Thompson acts more like a leader than the POOTWH. But is it just an act? He's already dodged one debate, is millions behind in the fund-raising and his positions on the issues seem more defined by his supporters than by him. Lead on Fred!

PS. Props for his annoucement speech, though. He said some things that needed to be said.

No, McCain needs to be ridden out of the GOP on a rail. If for nothing else than for McCain Feingold, the worst piece of legislation in memory.

[The Rabbi]

Blahblahblahfloormanagerformccain-feingoldblahblahlazyblahblahtrophywifeblahblablah.

Get the picture?

He's already repudiated McCain-Feingold.

He plays a moderate on TV? Horrors! Makes him unfit for sure.

He has done the right thing, laying out basic principles about governing and then tackling issues with those principles as his touchstones. It is the Reagan approach. And it works.

This has been Bush's problem (both Bushes): they never had "the vision thing" and so always ended up taking political expediency over principle and in the end having neither. A committed small gov't conservative would never have supported the drekk Bush has pushed in office, e.g. steel tarrifs, expansion of Medicaid with a drug benefit, etc.

[TGO David]

Shrub ran out of "vision" when things started getting tough in Iraq and popular opinion at home started to turn against the war. This was his own fault as he should have never tied ousting Saddam to the notion of WMDs.

He pissed me off when he started turning Liberal on the issue of illegal immigration, but of course he wasn't going to do something that would have made him unpopular with his homeboy Vincente Fox.

[The Rabbi]

Shrub ran out of "vision" when things started getting tough in Iraq and popular opinion at home started to turn against the war. This was his own fault as he should have never tied ousting Saddam to the notion of WMDs.

He pissed me off when he started turning Liberal on the issue of illegal immigration, but of course he wasn't going to do something that would have made him unpopular with his homeboy Vincente Fox.

His vision issues started long before 9/11. He actually has remained very consistent on that particular one. Tying ousting Saddam to WMD was a necessity, given the justification for the war as Saddam's flouting of U.N. sanctions--sanctions the UN itself wasnt about to enforce.

On immigration I see his position as the conservative (Libertarian) position and the anti-illegal crowd as the statist-Democratic one.

[Guest Len]

The "plays on on TV' part was a joke. The rest is legitimate political fodder. Romner has "repudiated" his position on abortion, but yet he is still seen with suspicious eyes. My original comment about Thompson still stands and can't be denied. He has little in the way of a record to prove his supposed "conservative credentials." Might he be one? Perhaps. Might he be a good leader? Perhaps. But there is little proof to this point of either.

Funny you mention the trophy wife. Lots of talk about how she pulls the political strings in his campaign, but no huge backlash about that from the conservatives. Of course they got all over Hilary for the same stuff back in '92 and '96. What's good for the goose...

Adding another serving at the hypocrisy buffet is the Larry Craig thing. Now the conservative spin is he should not be judged as a senator based on his alleged private behavior. I fully agree. But then again, was similar slack cut for Bill Clinton when he and Monica did the nasty? I don't think so.

Hey, I hope Thompson is everything he's made out to be, I just don't see much to back up the claim just yet.

Blahblahblahfloormanagerformccain-feingoldblahblahlazyblahblahtrophywifeblahblablah.

Get the picture?

He's already repudiated McCain-Feingold.

He plays a moderate on TV? Horrors! Makes him unfit for sure.

He has done the right thing, laying out basic principles about governing and then tackling issues with those principles as his touchstones. It is the Reagan approach. And it works.

This has been Bush's problem (both Bushes): they never had "the vision thing" and so always ended up taking political expediency over principle and in the end having neither. A committed small gov't conservative would never have supported the drekk Bush has pushed in office, e.g. steel tarrifs, expansion of Medicaid with a drug benefit, etc.

[The Rabbi]

The "plays on on TV' part was a joke. The rest is legitimate political fodder. Romner has "repudiated" his position on abortion, but yet he is still seen with suspicious eyes. My original comment about Thompson still stands and can't be denied. He has little in the way of a record to prove his supposed "conservative credentials." Might he be one? Perhaps. Might he be a good leader? Perhaps. But there is little proof to this point of either.

Funny you mention the trophy wife. Lots of talk about how she pulls the political strings in his campaign, but no huge backlash about that from the conservatives. Of course they got all over Hilary for the same stuff back in '92 and '96. What's good for the goose...

Adding another serving at the hypocrisy buffet is the Larry Craig thing. Now the conservative spin is he should not be judged as a senator based on his alleged private behavior. I fully agree. But then again, was similar slack cut for Bill Clinton when he and Monica did the nasty? I don't think so.

Hey, I hope Thompson is everything he's made out to be, I just don't see much to back up the claim just yet.

Romnney repudiated his position in abortion when he got into the race. Fred has addressed the issue a long time already.

I've never heard any talk about Jeri. But no matter what, someone would say something. Laura Bush was said to be too passive and "stand by your man"-ish. Whatever Jeri is doing, she is not organizing a secret committee to redesign the entire health care system. Which is what Hillary did.

As for Craig, he was not boinking a subordinate. Which is what Clinton did. Any CEO in the country caught doing that would have been out. Ask Harry Stonecipher if you don't believe me. McGreevey was being blackmailed by his gay lover but was allowed to stay in office until the term ended. Double standard? You decide.

[Guest Hyaloid]

Well.. right now there are few candidates that are at LEAST saying teh right things. Thompson is one of them. Will he back up those words? I dunno, you never REALLY do know until they get into office. He sure has ALOT of soundbites and distributed video clips on the internet that would be easy to find and skewer him with if he didn't.

Until then, I'll be dreaming of a Thompson/Paul (yeah right) ticket... *le sigh*

[Guest Len]

McGreevey was being blackmailed by his gay lover but was allowed to stay in office until the term ended. Double standard? You decide.

McGreevy resigned in November '04, he "came out" in August '04. Richard Codey (NJ Senate President) served the remainder of the term.

[The Rabbi]

McGreevy resigned in November '04, he "came out" in August '04. Richard Codey (NJ Senate President) served the remainder of the term.

Sorry. He was there during a politically crucial time. How many Republicans have spent 3 months in office following a scandal?

On August 12, 2004, faced with threats from Cipel's lawyer Allen Lowy that Cipel would file a sexual harassment suit against him in Mercer County Court (McGreevey in his book says Lowy told him "...although we think we will get $50 million, we'll take five"), McGreevey announced at a press conference: "My truth is that I am a gay American." He also said that he "engaged in an adult consensual affair with another man" (whom his aides immediately named as Cipel), and that he would resign effective November 15, 2004. Even though McGreevey's sexual orientation had been speculated about in New Jersey political circles and questions about the nature of his relationship with Cipel had been alluded to in the media even before August 2004, McGreevey's announcement made him the first openly gay state governor in American history. The Star-Ledger won the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Reporting for its "coverage of the resignation of New Jersey’s governor after he announced he was gay and confessed to adultery with a male lover".

The timing of McGreevey's announcement enabled him to be the first to present news of the upcoming lawsuit to the media, and the decision to delay the effective date of his resignation until after September 3, 2004 avoided a special election in November to replace the governor. Doing so allowed the Democratic Party to retain control of the governor's office for at least another year, and avoided the prospect of a Republican candidate for governor running in tandem with George W. Bush, which could have helped Bush capture New Jersey's electoral votes. (Bush did not win New Jersey's electoral votes in the 2004 presidential election, but captured 46% of the statewide vote, compared to 40% in the 2000 race.)

[Mike.357]

I came in late on this but am not passing it up

Len said And yet Thompson, a GOP floor manager for that legislation, gets your vote as "the most conservative?" What defines a true "conservative?" A willingness to change to suit the political winds?

Rabbi says -He's already repudiated McCain-Feingold.

HA, you want it both ways. So how does Fred change his mind and this is OKAY in your opinion? But when I expressed it in another thread you alluded that my way of thinking was wrong. You can't have it both ways!

[The Rabbi]

I came in late on this but am not passing it up

HA, you want it both ways. So how does Fred change his mind and this is OKAY in your opinion? But when I expressed it in another thread you alluded that my way of thinking was wrong. You can't have it both ways!

You got to distinguish cases....

[Mike.357]

You got to distinguish cases....

No, either changing ones mind is right or it is wrong. I say changing you mind, ie: stand on things, is right.

[The Rabbi]

No, either changing ones mind is right or it is wrong. I say changing you mind, ie: stand on things, is right.

OK. You're entitled to that opinion.

[Guest Boomhower]

I am making my contribution to the campaign today. I encourage others here to do so. Raising money is one of the biggest challenges of any campaign. Fred is admittedly behind in this. He needs support from gun owners like us. Not just running our key boards on sites like this but actually writing a check, wearing the buttons, talking to others, etc etc.

Thursday, September 6, 2007

Tennessee a red state? For Thompson, it's rich with green

In the only financial disclosure report filed so far by Thompson' date=' his “testing the waters†committee reported raising almost $3.5 million as of July 31. Of that, about 45 percent — $1.6 million — came from Tennessee.[/quote']

Sounds like TN is showing good support.

[Tim Nunan]

And yet Thompson, a GOP floor manager for that legislation, gets your vote as "the most conservative?" What defines a true "conservative?" A willingness to change to suit the political winds?

Thompson is seen as the 2nd coming of Reagan in conservative circles, and compared to the GOP front-runners he may be, but his record to date does not cry out "conservative!!" to me. Ran McCain/Feingold, consulted for a pro-choice org back in the day, worked both sides of the fence during Watergate, plays a moderate on TV. It seems fine that Thompson is conservative TODAY despite past mis-deeds, but many GOP-ers don't cut Romney or Guliani the same slack. Why is that? Lots of Thompson out there, but not much sugar in the mix as of yet, it would seem. I will say this, Thompson acts more like a leader than the POOTWH. But is it just an act? He's already dodged one debate, is millions behind in the fund-raising and his positions on the issues seem more defined by his supporters than by him. Lead on Fred!

PS. Props for his annoucement speech, though. He said some things that needed to be said.

While Thompson seems to be the most conservative candidate and has basically supported gun owners he is a self confessed Federalist and did support the Campaign Reform bill. One can only hope the current Fred is the one we'd get; though we thought we had a more conservative President than we got.

http://www.fred08.com/Principles/PrinciplesSummary.aspx?View=Federalism