May 05, 2007

Video : Fred Thompson Takes on the Naysayers

Video posted at Fred2008.org. (h/t : Glenn)

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May 04, 2007

Andy McCarthy on "Optimism"

Posted at NRO:

Optimism is a major problem if it causes one to discount huge difficulties (see, e.g., the sunny assumption that democracy will quickly take hold in the Muslim world because we are all supposedly hard-wired to love freedom) or becomes an excuse to avoid confronting huge difficulties (see, e.g., the sunny assumption that diplomacy will make Iran stop building nukes, stop promoting terror, stop destabilizing Iraq, etc.). I am not an optimist in these regards, and I would prefer if my next president isn't either.
Amen to that.

(h/t : Bryan)

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Fred Thompson Takes on the Saudis

Via NRO:

Sometimes, you read or hear something, and an image forms in your mind that just won't go away. For me, one of those images comes from the 2002 news stories about religious police in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, who beat young girls trying to escape a burning school. Because they weren't wearing headscarves and black robes, 15 innocent girls were locked in a blazing building to burn while firemen watched helplessly.

Not all Saudis support this sort of extremism, but many Muslim radicals reject the premise that women should have even the most basic rights. These include the right to vote, to work, to drive, to choose one's own husband, to charge a man with abuse or simply to move about without male escort....

Life for women under the Taliban and similar governments ought to inspire anger and indignation in everybody, especially human rights advocates. I'm constantly surprised, however, by the apparent apathy among many who say they care about the rights of women and other minorities.

I doubt, for example, that our television networks have spent as much time exposing the horrors of life for millions of women in pre-liberation Iraq and Afghanistan as they've spent covering Abu Ghraib. For some reason, everyday atrocities such as the endemic beatings, honor killings and forced marriages of women just don't seem to be newsworthy.

Cross-posted at Fred2008.org

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May 03, 2007

Fred Thompson on Cuban Health Care

Posted at PajamasMedia:

You might have read the stories about filmmaker Michael Moore taking ailing workers from Ground Zero in Manhattan to Cuba for free medical treatments. According to reports, he filmed the trip for a new movie that bashes America for not having government-provided health care.

Now, I have no expectation that Moore is going to tell the truth about Cuba or health care. I defend his right to do what he does, but Moore’s talent for clever falsehoods has been too well documented. Simply calling his movies documentaries rather than works of fiction, I think, may be the biggest fiction of all.

While this PR stunt has obviously been successful — here I am talking about it — Moore’s a piker compared to Fidel Castro and his regime. Moore just parrots the story they created — one of the most successful public relations coups in history. This is the story of free, high quality Cuban health care. . . .

The other thing that irks me about Moore and his cohort in Hollywood is their complete lack of sympathy for fellow artists persecuted for opposing the Castro regime. Pro-democracy activists are routinely threatened and imprisoned, but Castro remains a hero to many here. According to human rights organizations, these prisoners of conscience are often beaten and denied medical treatment, sanitation or even adequate nutrition.

If Moore wants a subject for a real documentary, I would suggest looking into the life of Cuban painter and award-winning documentarian Nicolás Guillén Landrián. He was denied the right to practice his art for using the Beatles’ song, “The Fool on the Hill,” as background music behind footage of Castro climbing a mountain. Later, he was given plenty of free Cuban health care when he was confined for years in a “mental institution” and given devastating, repeated electroshock “treatments.”

Cross-posted at Fred2008.org

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Let's Do the Timewarp Again!

Quick, somebody rescue US Representative John Conyers (D-Fantasy Island) from the twisted region of space-time he apparently inhabits.

Included in H.R. 1592 is this, frankly, bizarre paragraph: more...

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Latest Quinnipiac Poll : "Giuliani Tumbles, Thompson Explodes"

Via the New York Sun:

Compared to Quinnipiac's last national poll in February, Mr. Giuliani fell to 27% from 40% — a huge tumble. Mr. Romney barely budged, going to 8% from 7%. Mr. McCain also barely budged, going to 19% from 18%. And Mr. Thompson burst onto the scene, coming in at 14%, having not been included in the last poll (and, as usual, stealing third place from Mr. Romney, despite not having lifted a finger).

So, the bad news for Mr. Giuliani is obvious: a big tumble, and the appearance that it has been caused almost entirely by Mr. Thompson stealing a big chunk of his support out from under him. The bad news for Mr. Romney is equally obvious: that he's being overshadowed by a guy who's not even in the race. As for the good news for Mr. Thompson: He's doing great for a guy not doing anything.

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April 25, 2007

Fred Thompson on Homeland Security

"t’s not just security technologies that need to change, but also the old black and white era attitudes of those who administer them."

Full article at The Fred Thompson Report.

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April 23, 2007

The Case for Retroactive Abortion

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April 20, 2007

Ted on Steak Knife Control

Ted Can play, Ted can write. Ted Nugent (CNN)

WACO, Texas: Zero tolerance, huh? Gun-free zones, huh? Try this on for size: Columbine gun-free zone, New York City pizza shop gun-free zone, Luby's Cafeteria gun-free zone, Amish school in Pennsylvania gun-free zone and now Virginia Tech gun-free zone.

Anybody see what the evil Brady Campaign and other anti-gun cults have created? I personally have zero tolerance for evil and denial. And America had best wake up real fast that the brain-dead celebration of unarmed helplessness will get you killed every time....

....Who doesn't get this? Who has the audacity to demand unarmed helplessness? Who likes dead good guys?

I'll tell you who. People who tramp on the Second Amendment, that's who. People who refuse to accept the self-evident truth that free people have the God-given right to keep and bear arms, to defend themselves and their loved ones. People who are so desperate in their drive to control others, so mindless in their denial that they pretend access to gas causes arson, Ryder trucks and fertilizer cause terrorism, water causes drowning, forks and spoons cause obesity, dialing 911 will somehow save your life.

Ted's website.

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April 19, 2007

AFA Petition Against Grassroots Gag Order

I received this from the AFA this morning. I reckon this is an issue I agree with the AFA on, and their ability to lobby the congress is strong.

Without a doubt, this could be the most important letter I have written you. I wrote to you in January about legislation in the U.S. Senate that could have silenced grassroots communication. Thankfully, the legislation was defeated after you and other concerned citizens let your voices be heard. Now, the U.S. House of Representatives is set to vote on the same issue.
Read the rest below. more...

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April 18, 2007

Glenn Reynolds On Campus Gun Bans

Glenn Reynolds Via NY Daily News:

On Monday, as the news of the Virginia Tech shootings was unfolding, I went into my advanced constitutional law seminar to find one of my students upset. My student, Tara Wyllie, has a permit to carry a gun in Tennessee, but she isn't allowed to have a weapon on campus. That left her feeling unsafe. "Why couldn't we meet off campus today?" she asked.

Virginia Tech graduate student Bradford Wiles also has a permit to carry a gun, in Virginia. But on the day of the shootings, he would have been unarmed for the same reason: Like the University of Tennessee, where I teach, Virginia Tech bans guns on campus....

...Virginia Tech doesn't have that kind of trust in its students (or its faculty, for that matter). Neither does the University of Tennessee. Both think that by making their campuses "gun-free," they'll make people safer, when in fact they're only disarming the people who follow rules, law-abiding people who are no danger at all.

This merely ensures that the murderers have a free hand. If there were more responsible, armed people on campuses, mass murder would be harder.

Glenn has more here at Instapundit.

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Harry Reid Urges Caution on Gun Control

Looks like the Dems may be starting to see the light on gun control.

If so, that's likely good news for gun owners--but bad news for Republicans.

h/t : Glenn.

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April 16, 2007

Gonzales Testimony Postponed for Propaganda Purposes

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick "Leaky" Leahy has postponed the Attorney General's testimony on the firings of eight Federal Prosecutors (more than one hundred fewer than Clinton fired), which was scheduled for tomorrow:

Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy made the decision Monday to postpone the long-awaited hearing that has been considered Gonzales' last chance to quiet a controversy that has prompted calls in both parties for his resignation.

Leahy said the hearing had been rescheduled for Thursday. He said he made the decision after conferring with Gonzales and the committee's senior Republican, Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania. "All three of us agree," he said.

Leahy wants to make sure that news coverage of the Virginia Tech tragedy doesn't disrupt full play for his carefully orchestrated political hit job over the firings.

Lunatic fringe accusations that the Bush Administration engineered the shootings to take the heat off Gonzales in ten...nine...eight...

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April 14, 2007

The Weekly Standard on Fred Thompson

An interesting profile:

I was 30 minutes late. Thompson, who was on the phone with Howard Baker, his political mentor, didn't seem to care. He hung up, extended his large hand, offered a friendly greeting, and led me to his office. We were alone. Thompson's work space looks just like what the home office of a successful politician or CEO should look like--though a little messier: a large desk, dark wood, leather furniture, lots of books and magazines and newspapers, a flat-screen TV, and box upon box of cigars--Montecristos from Havana.

The presence of the cigars and the absence of a press chaperone were clues that Thompson is taking a different approach to his potential candidacy. A campaign flack would have insisted on hiding the cigars--Senator, how did you get those Cuban cigars? Isn't there a trade embargo?--and might have dampened Thompson's natural candor. On subjects ranging from Social Security to abortion, the CIA and to Iran, there would be lots of candor over the next several hours.

And by the end of the conversation, two unexpected realities had emerged. If he joins the race for the Republican nomination, and if he campaigns the same way he spoke to me last week, Fred Thompson, a mild-mannered, slow-talking southern gentleman, will run as the politically aggressive conservative that George W. Bush hasn't been for four years. And the actor in the race could well be the most authentic personality in the field.

h/t : Glenn.

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April 12, 2007

Fred Thompson Takes 2nd in L.A. Times Poll

Via the L.A. Times:

Former New York Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani leads the crowded field of announced and potential contenders with support from 29% of probable Republican primary voters surveyed, followed by Thompson with 15% and McCain with 12%. Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor and a fundraising powerhouse, had 8%.

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Video : Fred Thompson Discusses his Lymphoma

Ian has the video at HotAir.

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April 08, 2007

PJM Online Poll : Fred Thompson Jumps to 43.6%

Full results here.

Rudy's currently in third place, with 10.1%.

In the same poll two weeks ago, Rudy was in first place with 28.6%

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April 06, 2007

Thompson Gearing Up?

The Politico says he is:

Fred Thompson, the “Law & Order” actor and former senator from Tennessee, has moved beyond pondering a bid for the White House and begun assembling the nucleus of a campaign should he decide to run, according to people involved in the effort.

Thompson has not yet decided to seek the Republican presidential nomination. But “he is getting more serious every day,” said an adviser familiar with Thompson's plans.

h/t: Allah.

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The War on (Some) Drugs

Wow. I actually agree with Arianna Huffington on something. Scary.

h/t : Glenn, who adds:

The "Drug War" is a colossal disaster, and it's even undermining the real war. The unwillingness of candidates in both parties to oppose it is a disgrace.

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April 05, 2007

Fred Thompson and U.S. Highway 43

Fred Thompson's letter may have come out of sincerity or it may have come out of a certain political calculus. More likely than not, it came out of a little bit of both. In any event, it's the kind of thing that reminds folks of our last actor President, and it was a smart thing to do.

Given all the bumbling going around in the race for President these days, I could go for some smart.

h/t : Glenn

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How To Be a Real John Edwards...

...in 5 easy steps:

1. Announce that your wife Elizabeth has been diagnosed with life-threatening cancer.

2. Set up a web page to collect messages of sympathy and support for your sick wife in her time of need.

3. Require each supporter to provide an email address.

4. Funnel the email addresses of your wife's supporters to your campaign fundraising staff.

5. Use the email addresses to hit your wife's supporters up for contributions to your political campaign.

Michelle has more.

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April 04, 2007

Rasmussen : Rudy Loses 9 Points With Fred in the Mix

According to Rasmussen's latest poll, when Fred Thompson's included in the mix of potential GOP nominees, he pulls 14%, 9 points of which apparently come directly from Rudy's backside. At 14%, Fred's currently two points behind McCain.

Source : Rasmussen

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April 03, 2007

Fred Thompson's Post-911 Speech

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April 02, 2007

Fox News Poll : 2 out of 3 Voters Predict Dems Take Over White House in '08

Via Fox News:

By 67 percent to 22 percent, American voters think the Democrats are going to win the 2008 presidential election. Fully 90 percent of Democrats think their party is going to be victorious and 60 percent of independents agree. Among Republicans, 44 percent think Democrats will win the White House and 45 percent think their party will hold on to the presidency.
Despite this, the poll has some bad news for Hillary:
40 percent of voters say they would be displeased or scared if Clinton were to become the next president.
Barring news that Hillary invents a cure for cancer or personally tracks down Osama bin Laden, I'm gonna predict right now that this 40 percent number is not going down between now and November '08. And this is during a time when the Clinton scandals have been off the radar for years.

On the GOP side, Giuliani's still in the top slot, with Fred Thompson coming in third:

MORE BELOW THE FOLD
more...

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March 31, 2007

Skirmish at HotAir over James Dobson and Heathen Thompson (UPDATED, BUMPED)

Over at HotAir, Allah and Bryan are engaged in a vigorous debate over James Dobson's remarks on Fred Thompson's religious beliefs.

Bryan says:

I for one am fed up with bloggers jumping to the attack on Christians and Christian leaders. The MSM gets very few things right, and treats very few subjects fairly. Christian groups and leaders are perennial MSM targets, usually getting either an anthropological treatment a la the NYT or getting treatment that is outright dishonest and hostile. Treat every MSM report on both with the same skepticism that you treat MSM reports on war and politics, and expect that there is another side to the story that the MSM is leaving out. That’s almost always the case.
Allah has a different take:
Dobson’s entitled to complain about the headline but he has only his own spokesmen to blame for the rest. If what he meant was “I honestly don’t know what religion Thompson belongs to,” his spokesman could have and should have said that. He didn’t. ... His spokesman makes it sound like Dobson meant, “I suspect he’s a Christian but he’s not nearly vocal enough about it to please evangelicals,” which of course is a veiled political threat given Dobson’s own political influence. It would be like the head of the AFL-CIO saying that Hillary’s record on labor might make it hard for union members to support her — while quickly adding that of course he’s not endorsing or non-endorsing her in saying that, just “reading the tea leaves.” Nonsense.
I suspect that your perspective on this dust-up is defined mostly by whether you think James Dobson exercises too much control over the Republican Party or not enough. If you think Dobson has too much power in the GOP, then you more likely read his message as a thinly-veiled threat. If you think he has too little power, you likely don't.

Personally, I think Dobson comes across as a bully, but that perspective is undoubtedly colored by my experience in my own state, where evangelical Republicans have a long-standing and well-deserved reputation as bullies. Maybe if I was more concerned with my neighbor's sexual proclivities, I'd see Dobson as an "unwavering leader and clever strategist" rather than a "bully."

In any event, there appears to be at least a perception on the part of a lot of rank-and-file Republicans that Dobson has the power to torpedo, or at least seriously sandbag, a presidential candidate not to his liking. Further, there's a suspicion that Dobson's "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" may have more to do with the candidate's fealty to James Dobson than the candidate's personal submission to Jesus Christ, and these are just a few of the reasons why Dobson's comments have stirred up so much discussion in the conservative / Republican ranks.

UPDATE: Jawa commenter David Marcoe asks:

Why do the words [of an] idiotic individual become a millstone around the neck of an entire group? You realize that men like Falwell, Robertson, and Dobson have almost no practical influence with in American Evangelism.
MORE BELOW THE FOLD
more...

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