Anticipating Fred Thompson’s entry into the presidential race, the Democratic National Committee is trying to get in some preemptive strikes, reports Politico.
Dems have begun painting the sometime actor as a sometime senator whose only heavy lifting has been as a Washington lobbyist. A recently released DNC “research document” is headlined, “MAJOR LEGISLATIVE ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF SEN. FRED DALTON THOMPSON (1994-2002).”
Then the page is blank.
Posted by Randy Scholfield
Registered?
Commenting on WE Blog now requires you to be a Kansas.com member. Use the links above to register, if you haven't already, or to log in.Contact us
Follow us
Daily Archives
-
Recent Comments
- Regular on Let immigrants run
- Politico on Too many exemptions
- XXX on Open thread 11/23
- XXX on Let immigrants run
- BlueJay on Let immigrants run
- Monkeyhawk on Let immigrants run
- Chrisfrommactown on Let immigrants run
- BlueJay on Let immigrants run
- Monkeyhawk on Too many exemptions
- JWink on Too many exemptions
53 Comments
When ABC reports on Thompson do they mention that he’s a paid employee of the company?
I think he’s pretty cool and would make a good President. That slick southern voice of his and his lawyerly ways fits right in the White House. :)
Phred Thompson is nothing more than a paid shill for business. His lobbyist activities have made him the consummate beltway insider. A typical Republican with the American dollar forged for business pockets.
Ya gotta remember, folks, this guy is an actor; he will say whatever is put in front of him and deliver it with gusto. Never mind that what he says is the samo-samo Republican garbage we’ve been listening to for the last six+ years. He’s holding a fund raiser for Libby, for Christs sake. What else do you need to know?
Unfortunately so many of our candidates are exhorters, empty suits with NO RESUME OF EXPERIENCE AND RESULTS. I put Senators Barack Obama, John Edwards, H. Clinton and our own Senator Brownback in this category.
Whatever happened to the great achievers before running for president? i put candidates like Eisenhower, Lyndon Johnson, Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman.I will also add here Kansan Robert Dole even though he didn’t quite reach the Presidency.
I suspect its a game of “follow the money trail.”
Fred, yes. Another lawyer. Like Billie Bob Clinton. Not like Bush, a non-lawyer. That explains why we are so mad at Bush. When he lies we don’t like it, but when those lawyer guys lie, at least it’s slick.
And the funny thing is that he seems to lead the pack among Republican contenders. Oh well, I guess zero is greater than negative!
If the Dems are criticizing Thompson’s resume they are in effect criticizing their own front runners, since his is a very similar experience level to what Hillary and Obama have. For that reason Fred is not my first choice. But if it’s going to turn into a style contest, Fred can bring it.
I’m looking forward to him entering the 10 pack.It’s clear from the polls that Thompson is needed and if the Republicans are looking for another Reagan type, this could be their man.
The DNC takes a dump and the Eagle swallows it, then regurgitates it without the most basic of fact checks.
Fred Thompson was the primary sponsor on nearly 100 bills and amendments.
DNC craps, Randy swallows, Randy spews, repeat as needed.
Are there any serious journalists at the Eagle who actually question the stuff that they repeat?
I might add that John Effing Kerry authored all of about 6 bills in his 20 year legislative history.
Did the DNC give a rip??????
You smell that???
It’s called fear.
Looks like the Democrats are scared shitless of Fred Thompson. Wow!
I thought they had this election with Hillary knocked out of the ball park making all Republicans look like tee-ball players.
Maybe not!
Thompson played a President in Last Best Chance. To the Republicans just pretending to be a President is a good enough qualification. Heck, Mr. Bush has been pretending to be a President for the past six years and that’s good enough for the neo-cons. Republicans are just happy that Thompson is a paid corporate shill who will do their bidding if the checks are big enough.
Hillary is going down. Obama will be leading the Democrat ticket.
Doug
What does Bush and neo-cons got to do with it?
What’s with the “actor” bit? Do you have nothing of substance to say about Thompsons record?
“But unlike the genial Reagan, Thompson’s manner can be brusque and his most natural expression is a scowl. Critics question his endurance: he has a reputation for resisting a demanding schedule and is undisciplined as a campaigner. In a recent speech to California Republicans, Thompson began with some jokes that were well received but then abandoned his carefully written text and rambled through remarks that left many in the audience underwhelmed. His high school football coach in Lawrenceburg, Tenn., told the Nashville Tennessean, “He was smart, but he was lazy. He probably could have been a straight-A student if he’d applied himself.” With eight years in the Senate, his legislative record was thin. Says a former adviser: “While the Senate is filled with ambitious men who aren’t in a rush to get home at night, Senator Thompson kept a lean formal schedule, did the bare minimum to get by and then hightailed [it] to the Prime Rib or the Capital Grille.”
Time
Fred Thompson has sponsored 82 bills since Jan 21, 1997, of which 56 haven’t made it out of committee (Average) and 4 were successfully enacted (Average, relative to peers). Thompson has co-sponsored 223 bills during the same time period (Few, relative to peers).
John Kerry has sponsored 279 bills since Jan 21, 1997, of which 250 haven’t made it out of committee (Very Poor) and 1 were successfully enacted (Average, relative to peers). Kerry has co-sponsored 2000 bills during the same time period (Many, relative to peers).
So, Heckler, you need to get the facts straight instead of posting disinformation.
BFAH
I wasn’t the one who said Fred hasnt done anything. I also didnt post anything that was not true.
Talk to the DNC.
“I might add that John Effing Kerry authored all of about 6 bills in his 20 year legislative history.”
Heckler…above
BFAH-Just so I understand the numbers,THompson sponsored 82 bills, of which 4 were enacted, and cospsonsored 223 bills from 1997 to 2002. John Kerry sponsored 279 bills, 1 acted, and co sponsored 2000 bills from 1997 to 2007.Given the numbers, given the number of years served, Thompson seems to have been much more effective.And just so you know, I have not jumped on the Thompson train.
Yeah, Heckler seems to have missed the mark by a wide margin on Kerry
“Fred Thompson was the primary sponsor on nearly 100 bills and amendments.”
And where are you getting your facts from Heckler?
My source says Fred Thompson sponsored 82 bills, of which 56 didn’t make it out of committee and 4 were successfully enacted. Thompson co-sponsored 223 bills.
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/person.xpd?id=300158=======================”Are there any serious journalists at the Eagle who actually question the stuff that they repeat?”
I agree with you Hectler, if Scholfield were a serious Editorial Writer/Columnist, why would he use “Politico” for his source, we all know that they lean to the right.
LJ,
You have to bear in mind that 1997-present, it was a Republican controlled Congress. Kerry, being a moderate Democrat, would be expected to get fewer bills enacted. Further, it’s not the number of bills, but the lasting impact that’s important. The laws governing FICA are far more important than laws, for example, creating a new holiday.
Authoring and sponsoring a bill are not the same thing.
The knock that Thompson is just an ‘actor’ is, in my view, bogus. In fact, he isn’t really an actor so much as he has roles that portray himself. He plays a prosecutor in L he was a prosecutor in real life. Similar with other roles he has played.
He was a prosecutor and politician BEFORE he bacame an actor.
gee, no kidding Heckler?
When Bush said Kerry “passed five” bills, he was counting five bills Kerry authored that passed the Senate, the House, were signed by the president, and became law.
That’s technically accurate but omits six other pieces of Kerry legislation that have become law.
The Bush campaign’s backup lists five bills, which we verified:
* S.791: Authorizes $53 million over four years to provide grants to woman-owned small businesses. (1999)*S.1206: Names a federal building in Waltham, Massachusetts after Frederick C. Murphy, who was killed in action during World War II and awarded (posthumously) the Medal of Honor. (1994)*S.1636: A save-the-dolphins measure aiming “to improve the program to reduce the incidental taking of marine mammals during the course of commercial fishing operations.” (1994)*S.1563: Funding the National Sea Grant College Program, which supports university-based research, public education, and other projects “to promote better understanding, conservation and use of America’s coastal resources.” (1991)*S.423: Granting a visa and admission to the U.S. as a permanent resident to Kil Joon Yu Callahan. (1987)
The Bush campaign left out two bills authored by Kerry which passed the Senate and later became law in a slightly different form approved by the House, under the same titles and mostly same substance. (This occurs when House and Senate versions differ so slightly that one house adopts the other’s version rather than go to the trouble of a House-Senate conference to work out a compromise.) The citations were provided by the Kerry campaign, and we verified them:
*H.R.1900 (S.300): Awarded a congressional gold medal to Jackie Robinson (posthumously), and called for a national day of recognition. (2003)*H.R.1860 (S.856): Increased the maximum research grants for small businesses from $500,000 to $750,000 under the Small Business Technology Transfer Program. (2001)
In a related article in January we quoted an Associated Press article that turned up only eight laws that bear Kerry’s name. The AP’s count omits these two House measures which technically don’t bear Kerry’s name and a private law (S.423) granting a visa and permanent residency to Kil Joon Yu Callahan that we are including in our count of 11.
BFAH
What’s Bush got to do with it?
Some thoughts from a friend of mine below. I think it will add some humor and I’m personally waiting until the candidates eliminate one another before I worry about paying any attention. Just thought you would enjoy my friend’s ramblings.
———————–
Let’s talk about Fred Thompson. Being from Tennessee, if you asked me to tell you about him a year ago I would have said that he’s really, really tall. Like 6′6” or something. And he is NOTORIOUSLY Lazy. He was a bachelor for quite a few years, and the hottest date in the state. We couldn’t believe it when he hooked up with country singer Lori Morgan. She’s younger than his kids, but was really cute. Problem is, she LIVED the lyrics of her twangy country tunes. She led Fred around like a pig on a nose ring. He started talking marriage, and it was just the oddest combination since…..well, Whoopi Goldberg and Ted Danson. Lori being Lori, she dumped Fred for a football player…Troy Aikman, I think. Then she eventually married another country singer….Sammy Kershaw I think is his name…and they bought a restaurant and they beat the hell out of each other all the time, have each other arrested, then get back together again. Just like their songs. A friend told me Lori wrote a book and said Fred’s penis was 5” in circumference.
Some thoughts on all this:
A) Just because he’s real tall and has a deep voice and plays an authority figure on TV doesn’t mean anything. It’s not like his height can deflect Iranian nukes.
B) Lazy is good. Wish Bush had slept for eight years.
C) I wonder if the kids he has now by the new trophy wife who is younger than the kids from his first marriage…are younger than his grandkids? Are they their own grandpaw yet? Nothing wrong with that I spose, except it’s the antithesis of everything a Republican is supposed to stand for. I read that the top four Repub candidates have ten marriages between them. Yet they can go all self-righteous and tell ME AND YOU about family values?
D) It’s bad enough to have such a small penis. But to have somebody think it was important enough to put in a book?? Yikes.
Sigh,
It was data that shows how many bills Kerry actuall passed…double your 5…
Maybe if you read entire posts you’d get a flavor for the meaning…
Also kinda suspicious that you figure is in good agreement with Bush’s don’t you think?
BFAH_
I won;t argue the quality of the bills, I don;t want to look them all up. The discussion was about numbers. Kerrys tenure from 1997 to now is 10 years,That is 28 bills sponsored, 2.9 bills out of commitee, .1 bills enacted, and 20 bills co sponsered per year. For Thompson, it is 14 bills sponsored, 4 bills out of committee, .66 bills enacted, and39 bills co sponsored.I agree that is would have been easier for Thompson to get bills passed. That wasn’t the discussion. It was about busyness. I think about the same with maybe thomson ahead.
LJ,
i have no complaints about Thompson’s work ethic…seems to have worked on a fair amount of legislation…to my knowledge, none of it particularly earth-shattering. I agree with JWink that persons of substance can rarely be elected now because it has become so much a glamor contest – voice, looks, smart dresser, etc.
Do you think FDR, crippled by polio, would have a chance today? Do you think an uneducated, self-taught lawyer with a high whiny voice and crude manners like A. Lincoln could be elected?
“Kerry, being a moderate Democrat,…”
He’s about as moderate as I am.
Do you think FDR, crippled by polio, would have a chance today? Do you think an uneducated, self-taught lawyer with a high whiny voice and crude manners like A. Lincoln could be elected?
Posted by: BFAH | July 02, 2007 at 11:34
In a nutshell, no.
Thompson did help create the S&L scandal which the government paid $125 billion to help fix. Thompson helped a corporation not to pay out damages to those injured by asbestos. He works on the propaganda team of the Competitive Enterprise Institute which is a professional lying service.
If you want to go on Thompson’s record it’s pretty weak. Can anybody name anything positive he’s done other than rent a red pick up truck for photo ops?
Doug
The S&L industry was already in crisis before Fred had anything to do with it.
Excuse me for nitpicking here Heckler but you posted “Fred Thompson was the primary “sponsor” on nearly 100 bills and amendments.” you didn’t say “authoring”100 bills and amendments.”
delores
You are correct.
Doug
John Hinderacker on the S&L bailout.
“This is a good example of how controversial (and often false) liberal claims become “fact” over time. The heavily regulated savings and loan industry couldn’t deal with either the spiraling interest rates or the innovative competition it faced beginning in the late 1970s. The industry had to be deregulated, or it was doomed. As it turned out, much of the industry was doomed anyway, and the government made things worse by encouraging risky lending practices, by enacting the Tax Reform of 1986, which rendered many S&Ls insolvent, and through regulatory mismanagement. No matter: the AP, like the Democrats, suggests that having anything to do with the “savings and loan crisis” was disreputable.”
But he’s probably wrong, I’m sure it was all Fred’s fault.
Fred Thompson, Fred Phelps, Fred Thompson, Fred Phelps.
Fred Thompson Reublican, Fred Phelps, DemocratFred Thompson Republican, Fred Phelps Democrat
Some funny comments on the Republican Fred.http://wonkette.com/politics/divorce/republican-family-values-fred-thompsons-trophy-wife-247154.php
I see a pardon in the very near future, they can’t risk Libby flipping!I’m sure the 26%ers are going to say “I knew it, there was a Democratic appointed judge on the appeals court!Appeals court won’t delay Libby prison term 2 hours, 9 minutes ago
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Former vice presidential aide Lewis “Scooter” Libby on Monday lost his bid to delay serving his 2 1/2-year prison sentence while he appeals his conviction in the CIA leak case.
ADVERTISEMENTConservatives have pressured President George W. Bush to pardon Libby before he serves any time in prison and Monday’s decision could increase that pressure. A White House spokesman said last month Bush was not going to intervene for now.
Libby, who was Vice President Dick Cheney’s former chief of staff, was found guilty in March of lying, perjury and obstructing justice during an investigation into who blew the cover of a CIA analyst whose husband criticized the Iraq war.
A federal judge last month ruled Libby would have to report to prison in six to eight weeks. His lawyers then asked a U.S. appeals court to keep Libby out of prison while he appeals his conviction, a process that could take months.
The three-judge panel of the appeals court rejected Libby’s request in a one-paragraph order, ruling he has not shown that his appeal “raises a substantial question.”
The ruling was issued by all three members of the appeals court panel. Judges David Sentelle and Karen LeCraft Henderson were appointed by Republican presidents while Judge David Tatel was appointed by a Democratic president.
Libby’s lawyers said they plan to argue on appeal that the prosecutor, Patrick Fitzgerald, was improperly appointed and that the trial judge should not have excluded witnesses and classified material Libby had hoped to use in his defense.
The former CIA analyst, Valerie Plame, has said her identity was disclosed in retaliation after her husband, former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, accused the administration of manipulating intelligence to build its case for the Iraq war.
Nobody was ever charged with blowing Plame’s cover.
During Fred Thompson’s days as a lobbyist one of his clients was the Tennessee Savings and Loan League, on whose behalf Thompson lobbied for a bill to deregulate the industry. Experts say the final version of that bill played a large role in the savings-and-loan crisis of the late 1980s, opening the door to widespread fraud and mismanagement.
Thompson defended his S&L lobbying in a 1994 interview with The Commercial Appeal newspaper in Memphis, Tenn., saying that both parties agreed at the time that regulations limiting the industry’s competitiveness needed to be relaxed.
Savings and Loan Scandal “Facts or Fiction”?
The Savings and Loan scandal is the largest theft in the history of the world.
Deregulation eased restrictions so much that S&L owners could lend themselves money.
The Garn Institute of Finance, named after Senator Jake Garn, co-authored the deregulation of the industry and received $2.2 million from industry executives.
Neil Bush, George Bush’s son, never served time in jail for his part in running an S&L into the ground.Representative Fernard St. German, who was head of the House of
Representatives banking, co-authored the deregulation and was voted out of office after other questionable dealings and was sent back to D.C. as an S&L lobbiest.
Charles Keating, when asked if massive lobbying efforts had influenced the government officials, he replies “I certainly hope so.”
The rip-off began in 1980 when the government raised the federal insurance on S&L’s from $40,000 to $100,000 even though the typical savings account was only around $6000.
Some of the seized assets were a buffalo sperm bank, a racehorse with syphilis, and a kitty litter mine.
James Fail invested $1000 of his own money to purchase 15 failing S&L’s. The government reimbursed him $1.85 billion in federal subsidies.
It sometimes took over 7 years to close failing S&L’s by the government.
When S&L owners who stole millions went to jail, their sentences were typically one-fifth that of the average bank robber.
The government bail out will cost the taxpayers around $1.4 trillion dollars when it is over.
If the White House had stepped in and bailed out the S&L’s in 1986 instead of delaying until after the 1988 elections, the cost might have been only $20 billion.
With the money lost from the S&L scandals, the government could have provided prenatal care for every American child for the next 2,300 years.
With the money lost from the S&L scandals, the government could have purchased 5 million average homes.The authors of “Inside Job”, a book about the S&L scandal, found criminal activity at every S&L they investigated.
========================So the big question is “did Fred help create the S & L scandal”? Yes. Is it something that is relevant to why he should not be president–you decide.
Hey Phantom — From Canada Free Press:
““Fred Thompson is a neocon globalist.”“He had a rather lackluster record on immigration while in the Senate.”“Fred Thompson also supports affirmative action, and ideologically worships free trade, regardless how much it harms America.”“He furthermore is a ‘fellow’ at the American Enterprise Institute, one of the largest (and most sinister) neocon think-tanks, which demonstrates where his true loyalty lies.”“Let’s pray that the more real conservatives learn about Fred Thompson, the more unacceptable he will appear.”
Republicans only care about personna, substance has no place in their decision making.
“…substance has no place in their decision making.”
Kind of like your post.
I sort of have the feeling that whoever the Republiccan Candidate for the WH will be in 2008, has NOT yet stepped on the stage… and that includes Thompson… Also includes possible female contenders…
I think he’s pretty cool and would make a good President. That slick southern voice of his and his lawyerly ways fits right in the White House. :)
Posted by: Republican
All this frothing at the mouth over another guy is quite disturbing Republican. Is there anything you might be hiding in your closet?
I been wondering that for a long time, Jack!! LOL
I picked up on that too. Sounds like maybe it isn’t just the women wanting freddie, that his young wife need worry about!
sexy freddie who married his daughter
the great white party of Grand ole Perverts hope
bwhahahahahaha
TAKING AIM AT ALL OF THE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES RESUMES:
http://ontheissues.org/default.htmhttp://votesmart.org/index.htm
Just ONCE, I’d like to see the Eagle Blog writers or anyone else on the Wichita Eagle take a stab at exposing the RECORD of ALL of the candidates. A nice little summary say, like what can be found on the 2 sites above.
Even my stupid brother Slats can figure out who to vote for after reviewing the above 2 sites.
Just see which of the candidates voting records, work history, and background is most agreeable to what you would like to see in the next President.
I recommend that everyone look at what the candidates have actually DONE, as opposed to what they say they will do. Talk afterall, doesn’t actually accomplish anything. The past WORK of the candidates is what you might want to pay most attention to.
Shame on the Wichita Eagle for another in their series of countless attacks on Conservative Republican candidates.
Let’s see a similar expose of say, um Hillary Clinton?
http://www.galluppoll.com/content/?ci=24391
And another thing, you might want to check out the presidential candidates positions on the top issues of most importance to you.
If you’re curious about the top 10 issues for most Americans, there’s a link above to the Gallup Poll listing the Top 10 Issues according to their data.
In consideration of Mrs. Bill Clinton for President:
http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/RANCHO/POLITICS/BODIES.html
Hillary’s friend Vince, and the mystery surrounding his death:
http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/RANCHO/POLITICS/FOSTER_COVERUP/foster.html
Election year rhetoric is hot and heavy. Some republicans APPEAR to be pulling away from Bush but they only want to be re-elected but I say send them home for the problems they created with Bush.
Tax dollar wastelands = Iraq War/Luxury Iraq Embassy/Homeland Security Department…there must be others.
Construction Woes Add to Fears at Embassy in Iraq – washingtonpost.comHe defended First Kuwaiti and accused the embassy and KBR — a Texas-based company that runs many facilities in Iraq and discovered the wiring problems …www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/ 2007/07/04/AR2007070401685.html?nav=rss_email/components – Jul 4, 2007 -
http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=Iraq+Embassy+Problems&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8
======================================
Oil Oil Oil So how much are american citizens willing to pay for a barrel of oil? This war is doing nothing but increasing the cost.
http://www.icta.org/press/release.cfm?news_id=12
http://www.progress.org/gasoline.htm
http://www.icta.org/doc/Real%20Price%20of%20Gasoline.pdf
http://www.iags.org/costofoil.html