A Different Look At Two GOP Candidates

So, how much do you know about the GOP field? I'm willing to bet that most people don't know very much more than what they've been told through Old Media soundbites on CNN or some other news outlet. When I workout at the gym, the gym TVs are always on CNN so I am stuck watching Wolf Blitzer while I'm churning away on the Cross-Country Ski machine. What I normally see is Wolf fawning over Democrats for any reason and criticizing the GOP for any reason.

Thus, it is a good idea to not listen to liberal newsreaders like Blitzer and actually get information from those who know what they are talking about.

I am going to present here two different columns about two GOP Candidates that actually look at the qualities of each rather than automatically assume the worst just because they are Republicans (ala CNN style). The first is about Fred Thompson.

(Disclaimer: My first choice candidate was Tom Tancredo. My second choice is Fred Thompson and my third choice is Mitt Romney.)

Jed Babbin, writing for Human Events Online has this to say about Fred Thompson:

Among the serious contenders in South Carolina is Fred Thompson. Is he the unifying force around which conservatives can rally? His record is based more on personal choices than on alliances with liberals. Thompson’s ability to unify Republicans stems from two things. First, his gut-level conservatism. Which leads to the second, trust. When asked a question, Thompson reacts comfortably without pausing to ponder which focus group will react in which way. He seems comfortable in his own skin. His avuncular style is a bit too folksy at times, but his answers are consistent and – in a way voters will see – principled. Which means people will trust Thompson. This year the American electorate is more angry and disgruntled than I have seen it in more than four decades of study. Neither the President nor Congress – having failed to win the war, secure our borders or control reckless government spending – have the voters’ trust. The biggest issue this year may not be the war, or taxes, or the economy. Trust could overwhelm them all. And people trust Fred Thompson. Fred Thompson is running an insurgent campaign in South Carolina. Having taken a pass in New Hampshire and Michigan, Thompson is operating without the media propulsion that benefit McCain, Romney and Huckabee. But South Carolina is historically friendly to insurgents: the most famous and successful American insurgent of all – General Francis Marion, the Swamp Fox – was a South Carolinian.

Yes, Fred does have all of those qualities and more. In fact, I've read more on-line endorsements for Fred Thompson than any other GOP candidate.

You can access Jed's complete column on-line here:

Thompson Can Unify Republicans
Jed Babbin
Human Events Online
January 18, 2008

And Ann Coulter used her latest column to talk up Mitt Romney. Here is what she wrote:

One clue that Romney is our strongest candidate is the fact that Democrats keep viciously attacking him while expressing their deep respect for Mike Huckabee and John McCain. ... Turn on any cable news show right now, and you will see Democratic pundits attacking Romney, calling him a "flip-flopper," and heaping praise on McCain and Huckleberry -- almost as if they were reading some sort of "talking points."

See my comments above.

Ann continues:

At worst, Romney will turn out to be a moderate Republican -- a high-IQ, articulate, moral, wildly successful, moderate Republican. Of the top five Republican candidates for president, Romney is the only one who hasn't dumped his first wife (as well as the second, in the case of Giuliani) -- except Huckabee. And unlike Huckabee, Romney doesn't have a son who hanged a dog at summer camp. So there won't be any intern issues and there won't be any Billy Carter issues. It's also possible that Romney will turn out to be a conservative Republican -- at least more conservative than he was as governor of Massachusetts. Whatever problems Romney's Mormonism gives voters, remember: Bill Clinton came in third in heavily Mormon Utah in 1992.

So, since Tom Tancredo is out, I am pushing for Fred Thompson. And if Fred fails to get in, it's going to be Mitt Romney.

You can access Ann's column on-line here:

The Elephant In The Room
Ann Coulter
TownHall.com
January 16, 2008