Marc Ambinder (December 19, 2007)

Hate to all Safire on you, but its scuttlebutt, which refers to a barrel of water that served on an 18th-century sea-going ship as both ballast and a source of fresh water for the crew. From which the term descends to a reference to a water fountain or water cooler, around which gossip may be exchanged.

Posted by Gus | December 19, 2007 2:32 PM

I disagree - Tancredo shares a strong stance on immigration with Hunter, so it is possible that he might endorse Hunter. Now, Thompson may have been astute and offered some sort of role in his administration to deal w/ the immigration issue, and that may be tempting enough for him to bite.

Posted by Sean | December 19, 2007 4:32 PM

No reason to endorse Hunter. He's not long for this world, either. It's about as useful as endorsing Kucinich.

Posted by Opie | December 19, 2007 4:45 PM

FRED THOMPSON is the best person to lead this country. He is a true conservative and has been his entire life. All one has to do is check his record to see this.

During my time in the Army as am Intelligence Analyst, I served under both Presidents Carter and Reagan (as my commanders in chief). Without argument, President Reagan was the best commander-in-chief a military person could ever have served under. Fred Thompson possesses the same qualities and vision as President Reagan in that he is strong on national defense and sees a dire need to secure our borders and control immigration.

I can think of no better person to lead this country and fix the problems we have. He is the only candidate from either party who has specific and detailed plans on border security and immigration reform; revitalization of America's armed forces; saving and protecting Social Security; and tax relief and economic growth. These are detailed on his Web site at www.fred08.com. I challenge you to find any other candidate who has laid out specific plans to fix anything.

Fred Thompson has published his first principles, some of which are mentioned above. In addition to those, he strongly believes in individual liberty, personal responsibility, limited government, federalism, traditional American values, the rule of law and is a strong proponent of the Second Amendment -- all concepts established during the birth of our country and documented in our Constitution.

Again, try to find any candidate who has laid out their plans to "fix" this country. You will find they all speak in vague and abstract terms on their plans.

For those who have heard Fred Thompson speak, you will usually hear him say that the Fred Thompson you see today is the same Fred Thompson you saw yesterday and is the same Fred Thompson you will see tomorrow. He stands by his principles and values and doesn't shift his positions based on polls or public opinion; in other words, he doesn't say what the voters want to hear just to get elected, but remains steadfast on his views and convictions.

During his time in the Senate he focused on three areas: to lower taxes, strengthen national security and expose waste in the federal government. Fred Thompson has foreign policy experience, having served as member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Senate Intelligence committees.

As chairman of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, he opened the investigation in 1997 on the Chinese government's attempt to influence American policies and elections, and this investigation identified connections with the Clinton administration (documented in the committee's report).

As a member of the Finance Committee, he worked tirelessly to enact three major tax-cut bills. Fred Thompson remains steadfast and even though a person may not agree with all his views and he understands some may disagree with him, you can count on him to be consistent and unwavering.

Don't be fooled by his laid back approach and what critics call his "laziness." As a former assistant U.S. attorney, he earned a reputation as a tough prosecutor and he possesses the toughness this country needs in order to tackle today's and tomorrow's issues.

I ask that you take a hard look at what this country needs, then take a hard look at all the other candidates' views, policies, their records and their track record on consistency. Fred Thompson possesses integrity, loyalty, commitment, energy and decisiveness, all traits of an effective leader, and will emerge as the best person to take this country boldly forward.

Posted by Dr. Frederick Paxson | December 19, 2007 4:49 PM

Frederick-- time for your medicine, dear.

Posted by Dr. Frederick Paxson's Mother | December 19, 2007 4:54 PM

Tancredo is the last person who will endorse either Mitt or Fred. Have you watched the debates?

http://www.political-buzz.com/

Posted by matt | December 19, 2007 4:56 PM

IF Tancredo is going to get out of the race the voters who have understandable concerns about immigration should look to Democrat Senator Chris Dodd. In the Democratic presidential debates on November 30th in Philadelphia the debate moderator, Tim Russert, asked Senator Clinton about a recent opinion she had shared with the media regarding the New York governor's plan to grant drivers licenses to illegal immigrants. She stated that it was "a good idea". Russert then asked the rest of the candidates if any thought the granting of driver's licenses was NOT a good idea. The only candidate who raised his hand was Christopher Dodd. He immediately stated that "Driving is a privilege, not a right" and he further stated that the idea was unwise and the American people would not stand for it. (Clinton, hearing this logic, immediately reversed field, Obama and Richardson simply disagreed with Dodd, citing that they had supported such legislation in the past). Dodd turned out to be right about the response of the American people. The issue dominated the news in the following days and the New York governor withdrew his proposal in the aftermath.

In his answer Dodd stated that the US needs to secure its borders. He noted that illegal immigration hurts American labor and we need to look at the reasons these people are crossing our southern borders.

Dodd simply has the experience to tackle the immigration issue. Unlike the other candidates, Dodd is in touch with Americans on this issue. Immigration is consistently listed as the top issue by voters and our next president has to take on the immigration problem as a top priority.

I will caucus for Dodd here in Iowa on January 3rd because he is the strongest candidate on immigration.

Posted by Dan McGinn | December 19, 2007 4:57 PM

For a look into growing xenophobia in Minnesota, see:

'Minnesota's Own Version of "Verjudung," or How Somali Refugees Threaten Christmas In The Upper Midwest'

Michael Blaine, "Rudely Stamped"
www.rudelystamped.blogspot.com

Posted by Michael Blaine | December 19, 2007 5:05 PM

Pardon me for interrupting the campaign ads, but let me suggest not looking to Chris Dodd. Unless, of course, you're a racial power group looking for government handouts. Like all the other Dems, he supports "reform", which would lead to even more political power inside the U.S. for foreign governments and home-grown far-left groups like NCLR. And, as with the 1986Amnesty, the enforcement provisions won't be enforced and will lead to even more illegal immigration.

As for MN, I wonder whether the last link has anything to do with the (unverified by me) claims here:

tinyurl.com/38quxa

TB, chicken, corporatism, and useful idiots like Blaine make for a heady mix.

Posted by TLB | December 19, 2007 6:00 PM

Why would Tancredo drop out? As Jon Stewart (or was it Bill Maher?) once pointed out of Dennis Kucinich, this is the only time he'll ever get to be introduced as "the next President of the United States!"

Posted by David | December 19, 2007 6:38 PM

As TLB points out, if you're into white power, Dodd might not be the guy for you.

Posted by Steve | December 19, 2007 7:13 PM

Actually, the racial power group I was refering to is the NationalCouncilOfLaRaza; legislation from Dodd would give them millions of dollars for neighborhoods with "substantial populations of income-disadvantaged households of Hispanic origin".

Of course, at the program site the NCLR puts that in a bit sharper language: the funding is for "Latino families", no beating around the bush.

Posted by TLB | December 19, 2007 11:06 PM

I could see Fred calling up Tom and saying "hey there, Tom, you know, if I were elected President, I would happily appoint you the next head of ICE."

And I could see Tom saying "President Fred!"

I can also see Fred calling up Duncan and saying "hey there, Duncan, you know, if I were elected President, I would happily appoint you Secretary of Defense..."

So don't be surprised if Hunter follows suit before New Year's.

Posted by Gullyborg | December 20, 2007 12:39 AM

Why would Tancredo endorse Fred Thompson or Romney? He sparred with them in the debates and doesn't seem to have a kind word to say about them.

He's friends with Ron Paul, and Paul is the most legitimate one he could endorse. Hunter's below Tancredo in the polls, so that wouldn't really make sense.

"I challenge you to find any other candidate who has laid out specific plans to fix anything."

Ron Paul has specific plans to fix all those things, in a way that will actually do it, unlike Fred Thompson. How is Thompson going to pay for Social Security?

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