Re-Handicapping The GOP Candidates

[Fat_Sunny]

McCain: Would Win The General Election But A Huge Part Of The Base Hates Him. Will Spilt Primary Votes With Rudy, Allowing A More Conservative Candidate To Emerge Victorius.

Rudy: A New Skeleton Comes Out Of His Closet Every Day. Sorry To Say He Has Already Peaked. It Will Be Impossible For Him To Win The Primaries. Too Bad.

Romney: Starting To Come Across As Inconsistent And Even A Bit Odd. Mormon, Whatever That Means To People. Dyes His Hair Jet Black And Leaves White Sideburns...Looks Foolish. A Flash In The Pan Without Staying Power.

Brownback/Huckabee: As If! Non-Starters From The Get-Go.

And The Winner Will Be: Out Of Nowhere Is Coming A True Dark Horse Candidate: Fred Thompson! Former Senator, Actor. Popular With Conservatives. Outstanding Speaker. Looks Presidential And Has "Gravitas". Good Name Recognition Due To TV Career.

You Heard It Hear First On April 1, 2007. The Unbeatable Republican Ticket Would Be:

Thompson-Rice

Is F_S Visionary? Or Just A Crack-Head?!

[TheMojoPin]

Dyes His Hair Jet Black And Leaves White Sideburns...Looks Foolish.

"What did he say?"

http://actors.pick2web.com/pics/381262/tonysirico.jpg

[TheMojoPin]

I don't really have anything against Thompson per se, but I'm baffled by the Right's frothing at the mouth over any pinko celebrity that even dares to mention politcs, yet as soon as any celeb wants to run for anything riding the elephant, they're the bee's knees and the strawman of "celebrities should stay out of/shut up about politics" doesn't come up. Imagine how apeshit they'd go if a celeb ran for office as a Democrat. It would be a bloodbath.

[pennington]

I still like Rudy, he's not going to back down no matter what they dig up.

Funny, I was recently thinking a Rudy/Fred Thompson ticket would be a nice executive/Washington insider winning combo.

[Fat_Sunny]

I still like Rudy, he's not going to back down no matter what they dig up.

You Are Probably Right That He Won't Back Down, But More And More People On The Right Will Find Him Unacceptable. It's A Shame, But When The Primary Votes Start Getting Counted, He Won't Be On Top. IFHO.

[AgnosticJihad]

I don't really have anything against Thompson per se, but I'm baffled by the Right's frothing at the mouth over any pinko celebrity that even dares to mention politcs, yet as soon as any celeb wants to run for anything riding the elephant, they're the bee's knees and the strawman of "celebrities should stay out of/shut up about politics" doesn't come up. Imagine how apeshit they'd go if a celeb ran for office as a Democrat. It would be a bloodbath.

Damn, you beat me to it. Lovely sig pic, by the way.
I've not heard of this Thompson fellow and know nothing about him or what he stands for, and thus can't really comment on his candidacy. Prehaps Fat Sunny can enlighten me.

[PapaBear]

This won't help you with his politics, but THIS (http://imdb.com/name/nm0000669/) is who he is.

http://www.e-z-smith.com/images/thompson04.jpg

[TheMojoPin]

Damn, you beat me to it. Lovely sig pic, by the way.
I've not heard of this Thompson fellow and know nothing about him or what he stands for, and thus can't really comment on his candidacy. Prehaps Fat Sunny can enlighten me.

Thompson's not a bad guy. And I'm not saying an entertainer can't run for office...go with whatever party they want. I just find the hypocrisy of the side that cries the most about "actors/singers/etc. need to shut up and do their job" is also the side that most readily votes those same kind of people into political office pretty amusing.

[Fat_Sunny]

Here Is A Pretty Comprehensive Bio From Wikipedia. Thompson Succeeded Al Gore In The Senate From Tennessee, And Then Ran For Re-Election...Won Both Races With Over 60% Of The Vote.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Dalton_Thompson

But Once You See PapaBear's Picture Above, You'll Say "Oh, He's THAT Guy From Law And Order"!

And MojoPin, Laura Ingraham's Slogan "Shut Up And Sing" Applies To Entertainers That Use Their Celebrity Status Just To Mouth Off (Like Sean Penn Or Rosy Or Like Linda Ronstadt In Her Concerts), NOT To People That Walk The Walk (Like Bono).

By The Way, What Celebrities Have Actually Run For Office On The Left? F_S Can Only Think Of Zelda Gilroy Who Ran For Congress As A Lezbo In CA And Won, And Miss Jane Hathaway Who Ran For Congress In PA And Lost. No One On The Right Dissed These Two, Because They Actually Did The HARD Thing And Ran For Office. Republicans Respect That, Whether Left Or Right.

[K.C.]

First off, I don't think McCain would win the general election...he's tied himself to Bush too much in the past eight years.

Thompson's not a bad bet, but I think it's going to be Huckabee, still. When it comes down to it, he's the guy that's most in tune with what the Republican Party is today.


And I don't think a Republican has a chance unless Hillary or Obama win, neither of whom I expect to pull it out for the Dems.

[Fat_Sunny]

And I don't think a Republican has a chance unless Hillary or Obama win, neither of whom I expect to pull it out for the Dems.

Who WILL Pull It Out For The Dems? Edwards? Or Is There A Dark Horse On Their Side Too?

[TheMojoPin]

[SIZE="2"]And MojoPin, Laura Ingraham's Slogan "Shut Up And Sing" Applies To Entertainers That Use Their Celebrity Status Just To Mouth Off (Like Sean Penn Or Rosy Or Like Linda Ronstadt In Her Concerts), NOT To People That Walk The Walk (Like Bono).

By The Way, What Celebrities Have Actually Run For Office On The Left? F_S Can Only Think Of Zelda Gilroy Who Ran For Congress As A Lezbo In CA And Won, And Miss Jane Hathaway Who Ran For Congress In PA And Lost. No One On The Right Dissed These Two, Because They Actually Did The HARD Thing And Ran For Office. Republicans Respect That, Whether Left Or Right.

Why is running for office considered so much harder than activisim? I'll concede that as a day to day job, elected officel can be much more difficult, but it's not committed social activists aren't just sitting around doing nothing. And why is a celebrity suddenly more acceptable when it comes to politics just because they're running for office? That doesn't suddenly make them more knowledgable or experienced or whatever mythical criteria exists that people toss out when they just make a blanket statement like "celebrities don't know anything about politics."

And Sheila Kuehl? Nancy Kulp? Look, ou can't honestly believe if a big name celebrity a la Ah-nuld ran as a Democrat for a major office that they wouldn't get savaged. I looked up your examples, and even Kulp got jumped on for being too liberal and accused of exploiting her "celebrity."

And I'm curious as to why you think Bono "walks the walk" and Penn doesn't. I'm not saying I agree with either or that you need to, but Penn devotes a huge amount of time to travelling, donations, charity work, writing, etc., etc. to the various causes he supports. He basically does what Bono does, but on a much scaller scale because he's not nearly as famous or rich.

[K.C.]

Who WILL Pull It Out For The Dems? Edwards? Or Is There A Dark Horse On Their Side Too?

Of the existing candidates...i've liked Edwards to pull it out all along because I think he's a lock to win Iowa, and he'll build moment from that and draw well in the Southern, moderate Dem states.

But I'm a big believer in the fact that Al Gore will announce in September...everything is setup for him to just walk in and steal the nomination and he's more electable to the moderates and independents now, then he was in 2000 when he split them fairly evenly with Bush.

Gore if he announces...if not, Edwards.

[AgnosticJihad]

Thanks for posting the bio.
Thompson doesn't seem to be too far to the right, though I don't like the fact that he was a corporate lobbyist. I'm not so sure about his voting record either, but I can't honestly judge that without seeing the legislation in question. As far as I'm concerned, he seems more consistent than McCain, and Giuliani never had a real chance anyway.
I'm not so sure about sharing the ticket with Rice though. Seems to me her connection to Bush's administration might hurt Thompson.

[Fat_Sunny]

I'm not so sure about sharing the ticket with Rice though. Seems to me her connection to Bush's administration might hurt Thompson.

It Will, And SHe Will Need To Overcome That During The Campaign. Rice Still Appears To Be Very Well Respected By Black Americans. Here Is How It Could Work: Obama And Hilary Have A Knock-Down Drag Out Primary Fight And Hilary Ends Up Winning. The Blacks Feels Deprived, As They Should, And Assume Hilary Will Pick Obama As A VP. She Will Not, Of Course. She Will Pick A Somehwat More Conservative White Southerner Or Midwesterner, Like Bayh Of Indiana Or Warner Of VA. The Blacks Are Robbed Again.

Then Comes November And The REPUBLICANS Have A Black On The Ticket And Blacks Are Bitter At The Dems For Not Giving Them Their Props. If The Republicans Were Able To Pick Off Just 20% Of The Black Vote (They Usually Get 5-10%), They Would Win In A Landslide. It Is Not That Far-Fetched!

[Recyclerz]

Since I did so badly in the NCAA pools this year, I'm resting my prognosticating muscles for a bit but I do have these comments.

On the Republican side, I'm looking forward to a year long knife fight. McCain has picked up a number of the hatchet men that W used to take him out in 2000 as well as the guy who blew up Harold Ford in TN this past election, proving he would rather be President than right. We know Rudy will go for the jugular and Newt Gingrich is wandering around the Fox TV studios under the misapprehension that the American people are getting ready to take to the streets to demand that he be made Lord Protector of the Realm. Should be fun.

On the Democratic side I'm wishin' & hopin' & prayin' that there enough people like me that believe that (despite how much money Hilary raises) we shouldn't coalesce around the first one through the door of the Iowa caucuses. I don't think Hilary can win and I'm probably going 3rd Party if she's the nominee. Right now I'm supporting Bill Richardson (& even throwing some shekels at him) in the perpetually naive belief we need an actual thinking adult in the Oval Office.

[Fat_Sunny]

the perpetually naive belief we need an actual thinking adult in the Oval Office.

If You Have Heard Newt Gingrich Speak The Last Couple Of Years On Education, Defense, Health Care, And Everything Else, You'd Have To Agree That He Is By Far The Most Thoughtful Politician Of This Generation. He Has Spectacular Ideas, And Lots Of Them.

Having Said That, He Is Absolutely Un-Electable.

[epo]

I said it 6 months ago and I'll say it now. Mike Huckabee is the great dark horse candidate in this race. He has a great personal story and will play well with the rubes.

[johnniewalker]

I thought you were talking about tommy thompson. He could take wisconsin maybe, he did quite a job as governor. I've been looking around, is he even on the radar at all?

[Yerdaddy]

It Will, And SHe Will Need To Overcome That During The Campaign. Rice Still Appears To Be Very Well Respected By Black Americans. Here Is How It Could Work: Obama And Hilary Have A Knock-Down Drag Out Primary Fight And Hilary Ends Up Winning. The Blacks Feels Deprived, As They Should, And Assume Hilary Will Pick Obama As A VP. She Will Not, Of Course. She Will Pick A Somehwat More Conservative White Southerner Or Midwesterner, Like Bayh Of Indiana Or Warner Of VA. The Blacks Are Robbed Again.

Then Comes November And The REPUBLICANS Have A Black On The Ticket And Blacks Are Bitter At The Dems For Not Giving Them Their Props. If The Republicans Were Able To Pick Off Just 20% Of The Black Vote (They Usually Get 5-10%), They Would Win In A Landslide. It Is Not That Far-Fetched!

So you're picking the Republicans based on the theory that they will be chasing after the black vote? That's awesome! Who do you pick to win the Superbowl this year? Manchester United?

[Yerdaddy]

Here Is A Pretty Comprehensive Bio From Wikipedia. Thompson Succeeded Al Gore In The Senate From Tennessee, And Then Ran For Re-Election...Won Both Races With Over 60% Of The Vote.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Dalton_Thompson

But Once You See PapaBear's Picture Above, You'll Say "Oh, He's THAT Guy From Law And Order"!

And MojoPin, Laura Ingraham's Slogan "Shut Up And Sing" Applies To Entertainers That Use Their Celebrity Status Just To Mouth Off (Like Sean Penn Or Rosy Or Like Linda Ronstadt In Her Concerts), NOT To People That Walk The Walk (Like Bono).

By The Way, What Celebrities Have Actually Run For Office On The Left? F_S Can Only Think Of Zelda Gilroy Who Ran For Congress As A Lezbo In CA And Won, And Miss Jane Hathaway Who Ran For Congress In PA And Lost. No One On The Right Dissed These Two, Because They Actually Did The HARD Thing And Ran For Office. Republicans Respect That, Whether Left Or Right.

You're in the minority on this board. When Angelina Jolie walked the walk with a reasoned and factual appeal for Sudan 50% of RFnet voters said she should shut the fuck up and 40% supported her. (http://www.ronfez.net/forums/showthread.php?t=57350&highlight=angelina) Which suggests most people here don't judge celebs based on the merits of their arguments or the value of their actions.

[Recyclerz]

If You Have Heard Newt Gingrich Speak The Last Couple Of Years On Education, Defense, Health Care, And Everything Else, You'd Have To Agree That He Is By Far The Most Thoughtful Politician Of This Generation. He Has Spectacular Ideas, And Lots Of Them.

Having Said That, He Is Absolutely Un-Electable.

I haven't heard him speak other than in short TV clips, but I have read some of his stuff and I am befuddled as to why certain parts of the Republican clan, apparently including Fat Sunny, get their panties moist when thinking about this guy. If by the most thoughtful politician of this generation you mean that he thinks the most of himself then I might see your point.

Subjectively, I honestly don't see where he is much more than a partisian hack with delusions of grandeur, but if you care enough to provide examples that you believe show otherwise, I will read them.

[Fat_Sunny]

Recyclerz, Fat's Impression Of Newt Having Visionary Ideas Is Listening To Him Speak Several Times On C-Span On Xm Radio. He Is An "Idea-A-Minute" Kind Of Guy. The Best Fat Can Do Is To Link You To His Website, As He Does Not Have Copies Of The Actual Speeches.

http://www.newt.org/

Now, Do Not Mis-Understand Fat. He Feels That Newt Betrayed Him And Others From The Day He Took Over Congress In 1994. How? He Came Into Power Largely By Make A Huge Deal Out Of Jim Wright's Book Deal. What Is The First Thing Newt Did When He Took Over Congress In 1994: He Signed A $3,000,000 Book Deal His-Phony Self!

Fat Has No Tolerance For Hypocrisy And Moral Blind Spots, Whether On The Left Or Right!

[Dan 'Hampton]

Unfortunatly American Idol is a microcosm of American politics. It's a popularity contest and your ability has nothing to do with you winning or not. Whoever is elected isn't going to do jack shit to help the average american so get that out of your head.

[Bulldogcakes]

Story (http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=070402191528.ffkr6hqs&show_article=1&catnum=1)

The people who raise the most money usually win. Politics is a business like any other. You may looooove that lil micro brew, but Bud's got the ad dollars and will end up #1 most every time. So far the leading fund raisers are

Hillary-26 mil
Romney-23 mil
Guiliani- 15 mil
McCain-12.5 mil

Right now, it looks like Romney vs Hillary 08. Try to control your gag reflex, folks on both sides of the aisle. In Guiliani's defense, he just officially got in the race a little while ago, while the others have been campaigning all along. Considering that, he's doing very well.
McCain, on the other hand, looks finished. Instead of building a new coalition, he pandered to the base and lost the middle. And the base doesn't trust him anyway. He made his name on the straight talk express and now he looks like every other candidate, and a 70 year old one to boot.


Obama didn't release his, I doubt that was because he's in front.

[Bulldogcakes]

I haven't heard him speak other than in short TV clips, but I have read some of his stuff and I am befuddled as to why certain parts of the Republican clan, apparently including Fat Sunny, get their panties moist when thinking about this guy. If by the most thoughtful politician of this generation you mean that he thinks the most of himself then I might see your point.

Subjectively, I honestly don't see where he is much more than a partisian hack with delusions of grandeur, but if you care enough to provide examples that you believe show otherwise, I will read them.

Try this

Medicare and Social Security Systems for the 21st Century (http://www.newt.org/backpage.asp?art=2651)

Winning in a Global Economy (http://www.newt.org/backpage.asp?art=2649)

He's been pushing these proposals since he was elected speaker in the mid 90s. If you've ever watched any of his C-Span policy speeches, whether you agree or disagree with him you'd appreciate his depth of knowledge and thoughtfulness on many issues. Al Gore talked about "Reinventing Government", Newt has real proposals for modernizing Washington.

[K.C.]

Story (http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=070402191528.ffkr6hqs&show_article=1&catnum=1)

The people who raise the most money usually win. Politics is a business like any other. You may looooove that lil micro brew, but Bud's got the ad dollars and will end up #1 most every time. So far the leading fund raisers are

Hillary-26 mil
Romney-23 mil
Guiliani- 15 mil
McCain-12.5 mil

Right now, it looks like Romney vs Hillary 08. Try to control your gag reflex, folks on both sides of the aisle. In Guiliani's defense, he just officially got in the race a little while ago, while the others have been campaigning all along. Considering that, he's doing very well.
McCain, on the other hand, looks finished. Instead of building a new coalition, he pandered to the base and lost the middle. And the base doesn't trust him anyway. He made his name on the straight talk express and now he looks like every other candidate, and a 70 year old one to boot.


Obama didn't release his, I doubt that was because he's in front.


Here's the thing, though...Romeny's going to need a hell of a lot more money because he's such a long shot in the Midwest and South.

Plus, I don't think a lot of these Evangelical preachers have endorsed their candidate yet. When they do, and basically start making their followers send tithes to the campaign, that guy will get a huge boost.


As for Hillary, I know that's where all the smart money is right now, but it just seems way too difficult to run wire-to-wire in a primary these days with all of the media focus and how fickle the American public is.

I've got to think we'll get a new flavor of the month at some point, unless she just amasses so much money she spends everyone into the ground similar to what Bill did with Dole in '96.

[Bulldogcakes]

Here's the thing, though...Romeny's going to need a hell of a lot more money because he's such a long shot in the Midwest and South.

Plus, I don't think a lot of these Evangelical preachers have endorsed their candidate yet. When they do, and basically start making their followers send tithes to the campaign, that guy will get a huge boost.


As for Hillary, I know that's where all the smart money is right now, but it just seems way too difficult to run wire-to-wire in a primary these days with all of the media focus and how fickle the American public is.

I've got to think we'll get a new flavor of the month at some point, unless she just amasses so much money she spends everyone into the ground similar to what Bill did with Dole in '96.

Yeah, Romney may be one of these candidates who raises tons of money but goes nowhere. Like John Anderson in 1980, for anyone old enough to remember. But the money is the best predictor of who ends up on top. Again though, it's early.

As far as his evangelical problems in the Midwest and South go, that could be fatal for him in the primaries. And there's already polling saying that the base isn't thrilled with ANY of these candidates. Thats where someone like Gingrich comes in. He lays low now, and when nobody catches fire or if the lead dog stumbles he can make a big announcement at the last minute and become the savior of his party. He's been courting Evangelicals for years and (despite his messy divorce record) I believe they would line up behind him enthusiastically.

[Bulldogcakes]

There are reports all over the place today that Obama has raised in the 21-23 million $ range. That puts him within a few mil of Hillary, so this is a dogfight.

There's another report saying that if the primary were held today, Hillary would lose New Hampshire. Hillary may not be the lock we all think she is, and people may FINALLY be sick of Bush/Clinton/Bush/Clinton and politics as usual. I hope so.

[Midkiff]

A little too familiar.
http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m48/jdmidkiff/193936833143a20bef0e074.gif
Yes. He sucked.

[Fat_Sunny]

Today Drudge Has A Big Pic Of McCain With A Black Spot On The Top Of His Head, With The Suggestion That It Is A Relapse Of Melanoma. Someone Is Out To Get McCain On The Health/Age Issue!

[Bulldogcakes]

EXCLUSIVE: Obama Bests Clinton in Primary Fundraising (http://www.abcnews.go.com/WNT/story?id=3008821&page=1)

WOOOOOOOOO!!!! WOOO!!!! WOOOOOO!!!!!

[Fat_Sunny]

Wow!! That's Gotta Shake Bill And Hill To The Core. A Years Ago They Were Thinking This Would Be A Cake-Walk!

[scottinnj]

I don't really have anything against Thompson per se, but I'm baffled by the Right's frothing at the mouth over any pinko celebrity that even dares to mention politcs, yet as soon as any celeb wants to run for anything riding the elephant, they're the bee's knees and the strawman of "celebrities should stay out of/shut up about politics" doesn't come up. Imagine how apeshit they'd go if a celeb ran for office as a Democrat. It would be a bloodbath.


Yeah I can see some of the hypocrisy there. But I'm pretty consistent. A hollywood who talks politics is like radio noise to me....both liberal and conservative.
I was for the invasion of Iraq, but I wasn't too thrilled knowing that Britney Spears was a member of the coalition of the willing. It's fun to sing Toby Keith's songs, but when Hannity interviews him, it's off to Keith Olberman for me, just to see how he is going to make either Fox News, Rupert Murdoch or Bill O'Reilly "the worst person, in the world!"
Go back to calling Cubs games. UGHH!

[scottinnj]

EXCLUSIVE: Obama Bests Clinton in Primary Fundraising (http://www.abcnews.go.com/WNT/story?id=3008821&page=1)

WOOOOOOOOO!!!! WOOO!!!! WOOOOOO!!!!!


As a Republican, I actually hope Sen. Obama wins the Democrat Nomination. And if he won the general election and became president, I'd support him.

[Bulldogcakes]

Newt Gingrich en espanol (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpZcRDSruNI)

[pennington]

Today Drudge Has A Big Pic Of McCain With A Black Spot On The Top Of His Head, With The Suggestion That It Is A Relapse Of Melanoma. Someone Is Out To Get McCain On The Health/Age Issue!

Follow-up on Drudge: The spot on McCain's head was caused when he hit his head getting out of a helicopter.

[Fat_Sunny]

Follow-up on Drudge: The spot on McCain's head was caused when he hit his head getting out of a helicopter.

Why The Hell Did They Let That Dangle Out There For 14 Hours? Rumors Suck!

[Yerdaddy]

I was for the invasion of Iraq, but I wasn't too thrilled knowing that Britney Spears was a member of the coalition of the willing.

Don't be so hard on yourself. She thought it was a different kind of club.





"Honestly, I think we should just trust our president in every decision he makes and should just support that, you know, and be faithful in what happens." - Britney Spears

Ouch! In the immortal words of Bill Clinton: "Ah feel yer tonsils... er, pain!"

[Recyclerz]

Try this

Medicare and Social Security Systems for the 21st Century (http://www.newt.org/backpage.asp?art=2651)

Winning in a Global Economy (http://www.newt.org/backpage.asp?art=2649)

He's been pushing these proposals since he was elected speaker in the mid 90s. If you've ever watched any of his C-Span policy speeches, whether you agree or disagree with him you'd appreciate his depth of knowledge and thoughtfulness on many issues. Al Gore talked about "Reinventing Government", Newt has real proposals for modernizing Washington.

OK, since BDC pointed these out, I read them and some of the other campaign stuff on Newt's site. I am trying to be objective, and maybe I'm failing, but I'm not impressed. Now, to be fair I recognize that this site is part of his campaign gimmick and, as a politician, he's got to spin it to sell it. And I admit that parts of what he is saying is true - a health care delivery system should be based on results, people have an obligation to try to stay healthy by not doing stuff that we know will lead to a bad end, Social Security is heading towards a bridge abutment, et al. But my biggest problem with his solutions is that they require a (working) magic wand to be successful in that all of them ignore the transition costs from what we have now to his libertarian idyll.

Newt seems to be selling the meme that free and unfettered markets are the solution to every problem. I'll agree that a free market is the most efficient model that we have come up with as a species so far to allocate goods and services and I'll stipulate that it should probably be the default choice when looking for a solution to a socio-economic problem. But you don't have to be a card-carrying member of the Khmer Rouge (although I am) to see there are instances where the market mechanism breaks down and there are other times when the market solution is not in sync with our society's professed sense of morality and/or justice. Adam Smith was a great thinker but his world and his experiences were much different than the world we've got so slavish committment to his solutions don't always make sense, even though sometimes they do.

Again, if I see that Newt is going to be on C-Span or Charlie Rose, I'll grab some Maalox and give him another try. But from what I've seen so far, he's more a typical politician with one-trick that is not quite mainstream rather than a transformative thinker, IMHO.

[scottinnj]

Who WILL Pull It Out For The Dems? Edwards? Or Is There A Dark Horse On Their Side Too?



Are you kidding me? Governor Richardson of New Mexico.

[high fly]

Thompson's not a bad guy. And I'm not saying an entertainer can't run for office...go with whatever party they want. I just find the hypocrisy of the side that cries the most about "actors/singers/etc. need to shut up and do their job" is also the side that most readily votes those same kind of people into political office pretty amusing.


You would be referring to Laura Ingraham, author of Shut Up and Sing.
It would be fun seeing Thompson run because the righties would have to deal with the cliche, "Hollywood Elites."


Mitt, being a conservative Mormon, would oppose any legislation legalizing same-sex polygamy.

Rudy does nothing but step in buckets of paint.

McCain is hated by Republicans running the party.

Romney - isn't Sir Romney the dunce in The Wizard of Id?

Brownback's name sounds too gay.

[Bulldogcakes]

OK, since BDC pointed these out, I read them and some of the other campaign stuff on Newt's site. I am trying to be objective, and maybe I'm failing, but I'm not impressed. Now, to be fair I recognize that this site is part of his campaign gimmick and, as a politician, he's got to spin it to sell it. And I admit that parts of what he is saying is true - a health care delivery system should be based on results, people have an obligation to try to stay healthy by not doing stuff that we know will lead to a bad end, Social Security is heading towards a bridge abutment, et al. But my biggest problem with his solutions is that they require a (working) magic wand to be successful in that all of them ignore the transition costs from what we have now to his libertarian idyll.

Newt seems to be selling the meme that free and unfettered markets are the solution to every problem. I'll agree that a free market is the most efficient model that we have come up with as a species so far to allocate goods and services and I'll stipulate that it should probably be the default choice when looking for a solution to a socio-economic problem. But you don't have to be a card-carrying member of the Khmer Rouge (although I am) to see there are instances where the market mechanism breaks down and there are other times when the market solution is not in sync with our society's professed sense of morality and/or justice. Adam Smith was a great thinker but his world and his experiences were much different than the world we've got so slavish committment to his solutions don't always make sense, even though sometimes they do.

Again, if I see that Newt is going to be on C-Span or Charlie Rose, I'll grab some Maalox and give him another try. But from what I've seen so far, he's more a typical politician with one-trick that is not quite mainstream rather than a transformative thinker, IMHO.

(Before I even get to the specifics, I also noticed that the site was a basically a campaign commercial. I googled looking for the Medicare/Soc Sec proposals, and that was the first one I found with some detailed stuff. But I gagged a little too perusing the website)

I think this boils down to the basic difference between the Right and Left. The Left sees government as a free people expressing themselves, the Right sees the marketplace as a free people expressing themselves. The Left sees powerful corporate bosses having undue influence, the Right sees powerful politicians the same way. I, as you know, fall on the Right and think its no contest. A powerful politician can pass laws that can land you in jail. The most powerful CEO in the country can do nothing comparable. I'll agree that markets have blind spots, and can run amok if unchecked. But I think we're way past that in this country in terms of taxes, litigation and regulation. Electing a Republican often means the laws/regulations on the books get lax enforcement, but they usually never go away. Even long after they make no sense.

I'm not sure that Newt is a transformative thinker, any smart conservative tries to do similar things. Either inject market forces into federal bureaucracies, deregulate where it makes sense and privatize whenever possible if for no other reason to get around onerous federal work rules and costs.
Given the way government has grown unremittingly in my lifetime (consistently out pacing inflation) I think these proposals as at least inject some market forces (therefore freedom) into a huge Federal system that I doubt will ever do anything but grow further, no matter who's in charge. The Social Security one is a no brainer financially, from the individual's point of view. It can also give the average American a stake in our capitalist system, if they own stock as part of their SS acct they might think differently the next time a politician attacks big biz and corporate greed. I know you'll argue it "costs" the Feds money, but I think the Feds work for me, not the other way around. Let them figure it out, like I have to do every April 15th.

[high fly]

I see the left and right differently.
I see the right, the conservatives as looking at the problems of the day and deciding we have gone wrong by getting away from the way things were done back in the day. They see the solution as going back to the basics and forgetting the newfangled ideas which have only screwed things up.

The left, the liberals look at the problems of the day and believe that the old solutions don't work so well and that we need new solutions. They believe that the old ways let too many people fall through the cracks and we need new solutions to take care of everyone, and not just those in their group.

[K.C.]

You would be referring to Laura Ingraham, author of Shut Up and Sing.
It would be fun seeing Thompson run because the righties would have to deal with the cliche, "Hollywood Elites."


Mitt, being a conservative Mormon, would oppose any legislation legalizing same-sex polygamy.

Rudy does nothing but step in buckets of paint.

McCain is hated by Republicans running the party.

Romney - isn't Sir Romney the dunce in The Wizard of Id?

Brownback's name sounds too gay.


I don't know that there's enough substance with Fred Thompson in the end.

I'm telling you guys, don't sleep on this Huckabee guy...I could see him picking up steam very quickly as it moves closer to the caucauses for the Republicans.

He's a bit like a straight-edge, non-sexual, god-fearing version of Clinton in the way he talks. The hayseeds will eat it up, and he's more conservative than the Giuliani/McCain/Romney front runner group.

[Fat_Sunny]

WASHINGTON (AP) - Republican Fred Thompson, the actor-politician who is considering a bid for president, said Wednesday he has lymphoma, a form of cancer.
In an interview with Fox News, the former Tennessee senator said he is in remission and the diagnosis shouldn't affect his life expectancy.

Thompson, 64, told Fox News Channel's Neil Cavuto that he has non- Hodgkin's lymphoma, but hasn't been ill or had any symptoms.



Well, F_S Is Very Sorry To Say That This Unfortunate Announcement Will Probably Torpedo Fred's Chances. Sad.

[A.J.]

Well, there's always TOMMY Thompson.

[Fat_Sunny]

Yerdaddy Will Take Note That F_S Wasted 5 Minutes Looking For This Thread So That He Would Not Have To Start A New One!

Update: According To Fox News (Epo's Fav), Fred Thompson Will DEFINITELY Throw His Hat In The Ring On Or Around July 4!

[Yerdaddy]

Yerdaddy Will Take Note That F_S Wasted 5 Minutes Looking For This Thread So That He Would Not Have To Start A New One!

Update: According To Fox News (Epo's Fav), Fred Thompson Will DEFINITELY Throw His Hat In The Ring On Or Around July 4!

You could easily make that 5 minutes up by typing like a normal person instead of Comic Book Store Guy.

http://www.hijinxcomics.com/images/comic_book_guy.jpg

"Now make like my pants and split!"


THAT'S how you waste 5 minutes!

[Fat_Sunny]

That Takes NO Extra Time. F_S Can Type No Caps, Or All Caps, Or Some Caps Just As Fast As Anyone Can Type Without Any Punctuation. F_S Has A Very Broad Skill Set!

[AKA]

You could easily make that 5 minutes up by typing like a normal person instead of Comic Book Store Guy.

http://www.hijinxcomics.com/images/comic_book_guy.jpg

"Now make like my pants and split!"


THAT'S how you waste 5 minutes!


What's not being discussed is (a) Bloomberg's effect when he runs as a third party candidate and completely Perot's the GOP, (b) Newt or (c) the possibility of a Gore/Obama ticket being a true dream team.