There's no official word from Fred Thompson's campaign about when or if the candidate will drop out.
Several Thompson associates have been led to expect a formal announcement of sorts in Washington, D.C. as early as tomorrow.
We will see.
« Rudy, Romney Release Spanish Language TV Ads | Main | Rudy Drills In On Taxes » Fred Thompson.....?21 Jan 2008 12:30 pm Comments (10)
Ruminations: Fred seems to have timed his entry and (possibly) his exit from the race perfectly if what he wanted is the VP spot. Did his reputation for lackadaisical campaigning make this less likely or (by not being a serious rival) actually make it more likely. 
It was clear that Fred agreed to fly "wingman" for his dear old buddy McCain as the South Carolina vote approached. (The two have known each other since 1977 when McCain was the Navy Liaison to the Senate and Fred was a lobbyist working the rooms based on his relationship with his mentor Howard Baker, the Senate Minority Leader.) Fred went after Huckabee to knock down Huck's vote while giving McCain, who besides his friend was McCains co-chair in his 2000 Presidential run. He attacked Huckabee and Romney in the debates, then campaigned, not where McCain was strong with the Vets on the coast seeking those McCain votes, but in the Piedmont where he sought Hucks evangelicals. McCain is an OLD, small-minded mean spirited little twit. You can be a war hero and stupid! Worse, not know he isn't the brightest bulb and have a fighter jock management style remarkably similar to GW Bush's "My way or the highway, it ain't stubborness to insist I'm right, it's my reliable gut instinct and my deep convictions". The press focus of course has been on lauding McCain's comeback, conservative S Carolinians new love of Open Borders and someone who will fight against Bush's tax cuts. And demonizing Rudy as corrupt, Huckabee as a dangerous Creationist now that he threatens McCain, and Romney - somehow - given his 30 year reputation for straight-arrow Ned Flanders-type integrity - as a duplicitous man. ***************** Florida has seen the media pimp and fluff up their favorites many times. It is an old game to Florida's voters who well know from the 2000 race and vote fiasco just how little the MSM depiction of Florida matches reality, and just how MUCH they will don their kneepads and fluff away for "Their man". So "Mr. POW" and "Mr. 9/11" are looked at past bio to where they come down on matters Floridians care about. Which should have helped Rudy and Romney the most in a "Republican-only" contest, except by going dark and not fighting in other states to reclaim his reputation, Rudy left the images of his pal Bernie Kerik's indictment, Police chauffeurs for his mistress, and obsessing about terrorism and ignoring other critical issues - fester too long. Romney seems to be benefiting from people in Florida recognizing he is a serious, decent guy who really means it when he says he wants to go to DC and work to fix America's problems, accusations of flip-flopping nonwithstanding. Another part of Florida is it's elderly population that wants to root for an old man with health problems to do the most challenging job in America, but who also know that they themselves were 'bout ready to work less hours with less energy when they hit 70 and certainly 76 which McCain would be at the end of his term - and McCain is no Reagan defying his age...The other 3/4ths of Florida knows what it is like to be stuck behind someone McCain's age in traffic. And everyone is predicting that the media in Florida will emulate other States in endorsing "Our Great Hero and POW"...and it won't mean as much as it used to when such endorsements were more honest.
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 an Intelligence Analyst, I personally served under both Presidents Carter and Reagan. 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. Fred is still in this race to win! Please help Fred win in Florida:
No Fred events in Florida, so I'd say the end is very near for the ex-GOP frontrunner. http://www.political-buzz.com/
The most pathetic and abortive campaign in recent memory.
Can someone remind me when there was word from the Thompson campaign about anything in particular?
"True Conservative" means absolutely nothing at this point in the race. It is childish and destructive to keep repeating that over and over. I know many "true Conservatives" who will not be the GOP nominee this year. There is more to it than idealogy like competence and vigor and passion.
Curtis Mayfield was right: Freddie's dead. Deal with it.
Watch out, the MITTens and FREDheads are forming a winning alliance this 2008 http://mittandfred.blogspot.com/
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It will be very interesting to see who recuperates Thompson's votes. McCain is not the person we would think of, but if Thompson endorses him that could be a boost. But let's face it-- McCain cannot get THAT big a percentage of the vote among registered Republicans. He really needs a fractured field to make his move. Same for Giuliani.
Meanwhile, the FIRST post-SC poll from Florida was released this morning and it has Romney leading, which is quite a surprise.
Posted by Daniel | January 21, 2008 12:48 PM