Wednesday, June 13, 2007

How to Defeat Fred Thompson

Kenneth P. Vogel has some suggestions on how opponents could negatively portray Fred :



  • Lobbyist: Thompson made nearly $1.3 million over about two
    decades of lobbying both before and after his eight-year Senate stint, according to government documents and media accounts from his successful run for the
    Senate in 1994...

  • Trial lawyer: Before Thompson won his Senate seat, published
    reports said his private law practice handled personal injury cases and defended people accused of white-collar crimes. And in the Senate, he opposed some legislation intended to rein in escalating jury verdicts and attorneys'
    fees...

  • Campaign finance reformer: Thompson was among the leading
    Republican backers of the sweeping package of campaign finance reforms commonly known as McCain-Feingold...

  • Centrist senator: Though the influential American Conservative
    Union scored Thompson's Senate career voting record at 86 percent, some of the votes on which he strayed from the GOP fold could prove problematic for ardent partisans.

  • Pro-Abortion-rights supporter: Every time Thompson got the
    chance in the Senate, he voted with those who oppose abortion rights. But the
    social conservatives for whom abortion is a litmus test scrutinize every bit of
    a politician's record -- and Thompson's provides some fodder for opponents to
    question the depth of his opposition to abortion rights.

Will Fred Thompson be 2008's Ross Perot? You would think so if he splits the Republican vote and lets a Clinton into the White House!