I just don’t get it. Fred Thompson was toe-to-toe with Giuliani before he even declared his candidacy. He seemed to have states like Texas, Alabama, and Tennessee wrapped up for him before he was an official candidate and now…. Nothing.
Sure, Thompson enjoyed a nice bump in the polls after he declared his entrance in the race with a generalized typical Republican stump speech on his website. But then what? Nothing. He has slipped in nationwide polls and seems to have lost some ground in the states he was dominating. And somehow, he has managed to alienate prominent evangelicals like Dr. James Dobson, which I think is a huge mistake.
Don’t get me wrong, I like Fred Thompson. He’s basically right on all the issues. But does he just not know how to run a national campaign?
He’s thumbed his nose at New Hampshire, which I think is just irresponsible. The only media attention he’s been getting lately is from taking jabs at Giuliani and Romney, which goes to show that he is not the next Ronald Reagan because he’s violating the 11th commandment: thou shalt not speak ill of thy fellow Republicans.
And since we’re on that topic of Reagan and Thompson, let me further explain why he’s not the next Reagan.
Reagan was the Governor of California. Thompson was a Senator from Tennessee. While we’re at it, let’s chip away at that actor connection people are making: Reagan had a much more extensive and prominent acting career starring in over 70 movies and television shows, whereas Fred Thompson had about half of that (several roles were uncredited). And Reagan was an arguably better actor than Fred Thompson, especially when you consider that some have referred to Reagan as the most successful actor in history.
Reagan was the “Great Communicator,” while Fred Thompson can barely hold his own in a debate. Reagan had to fight his way through tough poll numbers when he entered the national scene as a candidate for President, while Fred Thompson was viable before he even declared. And I’m just throwing this out here, but something tells me that Reagan would’ve taken a stronger stance on gay marriage than Thompson.
Now, I could highlight a few similarities that few, if any, have mentioned. Both Thompson and Reagan had two wives. Thompson and Reagan also had similar religious backgrounds (Reagan was a member of the Christian Church, Fred Thompson is a member of the church of Christ. Both the church of Christ and the Christian church have roots in the Restoration Movement). However, Reagan was an infrequent churchgoer, as is Thompson.
Just for kicks, I’ll go out on a limb and say that Mitt Romney has just as many similarities to Reagan as Fred Thompson does.
Both Reagan and Romney won the governor’s seat in blue states. Both were pro-choice and switched to pro-life. Reagan had to work his way through tough poll numbers, just like Romney has had to do since he entered the race (though he is doing well in New Hampshire and Iowa now). Reagan was the last Republican to carry Massachusetts in a presidential race. Romney won as a Republican governor in Massachusetts.
I’d also like to point out that conservative news magazine NewsMax.com referred to Romney as the “Reagan Candidate.”
The excitement of the Thompson campaign was like a balloon that was blown to full capacity and then let go without being tied to keep the air in. He hasn’t been that White Knight that rides in to save the GOP from a poor selection of candidates. He’s been reduced to taking aim at his fellow Republicans, which I think will end up hurting him even more, especially since most of us are still in the dark as to how he’d be all that different than the ones he’s been slinging mud on.
Honestly, I find his situation to be unfortunate and disappointing. He waited too late to enter, but even when he did, he had excellent poll numbers served to him on a silver platter. How he has managed to squander such excitement and anticipation is beyond me.
Fred Thompson is not the new Ronald Reagan. Far from it, I’m afraid. I would’ve liked to have seen him do well and perhaps even win the race, but virtually everything I’ve seen from him has been shrouded in bloated expectation and disheartening disappointment. I’d still like to think he could turn it around, but until he does, I won’t be interested in voting for him in the primary.
Posted by Braden 
