...and here it is:
All of you people who are virtually hysterical in your comments on political posts, the "Oh my God...Fred it finished...what's wrong with you kool-aide drinkers...are you all crazy, you sick bastards?"
What would you have me do?
That's right...for all your bleating like sheep being goosed by wolves, for all your histronics, I haven't yet heard an answer to that question.
What would you have me do?
Support Romney? He's in favor of a new assault weapons ban. McCain? Close the gun show loophole and gut the First Amendment. Huckabee? Sorry boys and girls, I was raised a fundamentalist Baptist...I can't say I would look forward to an evangelical as President...especially one who believes in spending spending spending. I am a libertarian at heart...more government is by definition bad. Defend the borders; kill the terrorists and stay the hell out of my life!
Do I think Thompson's doing great? No. But I do believe he's the only man standing up. Romney and McCain want the Presidency so bad they would eviserate their grandmothers in the town square if they thought it would get them elected...they positively stink of ambition out of control...and that makes them exactly the kind of people I don't want running my country.
What would you have me do?
Maybe there's a chance of a brokered convention. Maybe Thompson ends up as a Vice-Presidential candidate, which will hopefully put some pro-gun heat on the nominee. Maybe he drops out, in which case I will do my level best to carry a pro-gun message to the nominee.
I despise politics...I always have. At the national level, it's a game of whores. I believe in the Constitution, and I'd like to save as much of it as I can. I work for guns and for the Second Amendment.
I serve Kool-Aide, I don't drink it.
Right on Mike. Fred is the only one I have seen that tells it like it is, and don't care if you like it or not. I have heard my entire life that is what people want, but no, they want to hear what they want to hear, not how it really is. They want to have smoke blown up their butts. And that is what they are getting from everyone but Fred. It is a shame that Fred is not doing better than he is, but I will continue to support him.
ReplyDeleteI totally believe the man or woman for the job, is the one who does it out of necessity, not the one who wants to be president for their own ends. The forefathers were like that, The presidency was a job, and they had lands and people to take care of back home, and they wanted to be HOME. I think Fred is trying to get this point across to the people, and they don't get it. None of us want a career politician. Email or write Fred and try to get him motivated.
ReplyDeleteMichael;
ReplyDeleteI think you should do what I am doing... what all gun owners should do.
Support the hell out of Fred until he's either president or giving a concession speech.
Until the man calls it off, I'm backing him. All the naysayers are accomplishing is to get us fighting...
Not to sound too tin hat, but have you noticed that the majority of the "you FredHeads are dumb" commenters are anonymous...
I'm just saying, that's all.
Go! Big! Fred!
Michael you had previously said you have a trigger issue that simply supercedes all others. That is 2A rights. I respect your loyality to Fred. But your not recognizing that Huckabee is a viable alternative on that TRIGGER ISSUE is clearly being clouded by an emotional reaction to his religion. The spending thing I believe is BS. He had a state to run for over 10 years. He did a fine job of it. Ya know when the government offers a service to the people the citizens pay for it. I don't hear anyone saying they didn't want better roads, more cops, etc. And he did all that for a state that was at the bottom of the barrel on every measure. So I believe that issue is moot. In addition he wants to reduce govt by getting rid of one of the most oppressive agencies the IRS. That in and of itself would be the accomplishment of the 21st century.
ReplyDeleteTo answer your question, here is what I suggest. Again your loyality is fine. Just recognize reality. One slip up here and your gun rights potentially are gone for a generation even if the SCUS finding is favorable. You stay with Fred until he withdraws. He will withdraw at some point. Probably not that far down the road. I'll let you slide 'til then :) Then you simply say that there is in fact another choice and it's Huckabee. The world won't come to an end. Relax. It will be alright. Even Fred will understand. Matter of fact, when he withdraws he will ask that you do just that. Move to the next guy. He is an honerable and decent guy. He understands the harsh realities of politics. He will do the right thing. Then you just move forward with Huckabee.
While 2A rights is your trigger issue it may not be Freds. He is a politician as much as the next guy. Your projection that he is somehow above the fray I believe is not grounded in reality. I wouldn't put it past him to endorse and support Romney if he gets the delegates. So this is not about Fred. It is about us, you and me and all the other 2A guys around here.
It is about the end game. To quote Vince Lombari “If winning isn't everything, why do they keep score?” Or as Bill Jordan said, "there's no second place winner".
Wow, that came off that Huckabee has a destiny.
ReplyDeleteWhat would I have you do?
ReplyDeleteRealize that while Fred may be the only one "standing up" he is also going backwards.
If gun owners want to have an impact on the nominee they had damn well better come up with another strategy that doesn't include Fred.
I predict 2A voters will split towards Huckleberry and McCain. Huckleberry is OK on guns and I suspect many 2A voters will look to progun congressman to reign in McCain and his tendencies.
Loyalty to a political candidate is not the same as loyalty to a comrade in arms. Fred is a politician who isn't performing. If you stick with him to the end you may wind up marginalizing the 2A vote. Is that what you want? For Rep pols to say, hey, the 2A vote is toothless?
Remember, W stated while campaigning he would sign a renewed AWB. A progun Congress made sure the AWB wasn't renewed. So, it is reasonable to expect if elected a progun congress could stop McCain and his "gunshow loophole". (This assumes a progun Congress exists.)
Fred will be out of the race on Jan 19 when he comes in 4th or 5th in SC.
You have until then to decide a new strategy or if you are going to ride Fred over the cliff to the crash and explosion.
2A...seems there IS one person running with a 100% pro 2A.
ReplyDeleteOne person running has introduced legislation to get rid of all the unconstitutional bullstuff.
One person running who actually cares about the country, has some understanding about how we were intended to operate.
Paul
I would have you stop this nonsense about how Fred is best because he lacks ambition. Do you REALLY believe Ronald Reagan lacked ambition? RR sought the presidency, he didn't expect the presidency to seek him the way Fred does. This is not a virtue on Fred's part, it explains why he sucks as a candidate.
ReplyDeleteI can proudly vote for Fred.
ReplyDeleteI can hold my nose and vote for the rest against Obama or Clinton.
Given a choice I would rather vote for someone than against another.
Ratcatcher55
First of all Michael, COOL DOWN!!! ".... sick bastards."? WTF? If you go back and read the various notes, many were written to point out the issues with Fred's campaign, not to announce that they weren't still supporting him.
ReplyDeleteWithout pointing fingers, some people react with shock, when confronted with feedback that they can't accept. Then they get angry (and call others names). Next comes a feeling of rejection. Get through this one fast, were're all big boys and girls; because the next phase is acceptance that there is a problem and the solutions will follow.
You might also do some self-reflection. After all, didn't you start out by supporting Ron Paul? How did you get from there to here?
So,where do we go from here, to boost Fred?
Michael, We've had one caucus in which Fred did better than he was expected to a few weeks before. The first primary will be tonight. Huckabee won Iowa, McCain will probably win NH. So this thing isn't done yet. South Carolina is next and Fred needs to win there, or at least a very strong second. If he wins South Carolina he's at least a co-front-runner.
ReplyDeleteWhat would I have you do? Get down to South Carolina and get out the legions of "Shooting Gallery" devotees to the polls!
How about Dr. Ron Paul?
ReplyDeleteAs a congressman he has voted against every piece of anti-gun legislation while in office.
Action should speak loudly if we are really paying attention.
Fred's the guy I want to support. I don't plan to ditch him because he's not the most popular guy. If he decides to drop out, then I'll figure out who to back.
ReplyDeleteJeez people, grow up.
ReplyDeleteYou support the candidate you want during the nomination process.
Once that is over you then support the Republican candidate.
Pretty simple. Stop bad mouthing the other Republicans ... even Paul. As long as you support the winning nominee after the convention, all will turn out OK in the end.
I could vote for Fred or the huckster. I can't vote for McCain, Guiliani or Romney. Simple as that.
ReplyDeleteHere is what you do:
ReplyDeleteCall in all your favors with leaders of the NRA and get the NRA to endorse Fred Thompson. Get the NRA to use its own tools, such as direct mailers to members and "issue ad" tv and radio spots to show that Fred is the best candidate.
There is no single endorsement with more power in a Republican primary.
If you have ANY pull with NRA leadership, now is the time to tug as hard as God will let you.
In the meantime, keep fighting for Fred and ignore the "he must pull out now" crowd. You know who they are? They are people who want someone else to win. They have an agenda.
Here is the fact:
We are currently in what is essentially a five-way dead heat for the GOP nomination. The candidates are all close to within the margin of error of each other. It wouldn't take much for the current 1-5 ranking to totally reverse. So far, we have had two caucuses in small states and we are counting primary votes in another small state. There are 47 others, and the numbers in big states like California and New York are very different from the numbers in places like Iowa. The real sleeping giant in this race, Rudy Giuliani, hasn't even begun to campaign. And the winners of Iowa have, historically, gone on to lose. Just ask Bob Dole, GHWB 1980, Tom Harkin, Dick Gephardt and "none of the above" (which beat Carter in 1976). I could be wrong, but I think the only non-incumbent President who won Iowa was GWB in 2000. And he trounced McCain, who won New Hampshire that year... another state with a history of backing losers. So forget about any doom and gloom over Iowa and NH and continue supporting Fred Thompson.
Consider this:
Conventional Wisdom has Huckabee and McCain being the two front runners right now.
Do you REALLY think that the GOP is going to nominate a candidate who is a big tax increaser, a big spender, and an amnesty apologist? Because that's what we get in both Huckabee AND McCain.
In other words, we have TWO people competing for the same big government liberal RINO vote.
And... these are the only two candidates who have managed to piss off Rush Limbaugh enough to get him to call them out on the air.
The media is going to keep pushing these two, because they "like" them over the other GOP candidates. That means both will likely be in this for the long haul. Meanwhile, the other candiates - Thompson, Giuliani, Romney, and even Paul - will be knocking one another off and narrowing the field. That means we will eventually be down to just one candidate who isn't Huckabee or McCain.
What do you suppose happens when the race becomes a three way contest between two big government liberal RINOs and just one other more credible conservative candidate?
You guessed it: McCain and Huckabee both go down in flames.
So now you need to ask yourself a question:
Who of the three - Thompson, Giuliani, or Romney - do you want left standing? I left out Paul because, let's face it, he is NOT going to win this. The winner of the GOP nomination will be either:
Rudy Giuliani, who attacked gun rights as Mayor (but is otherwise a very good candidate);
Mitt Romney, who has flip-flopped all over the place while recently pandering to gun owners in a very insincere fashion; or,
Fred Thompson, who has always been NRA A rated and a good conservative on other issues?
Forget Huckabee and McCain. Neither one will win. Look at the other three and choose who you want to be President. Stick with that candidate, and STAY TRUE long enough to see that candidate survive the winnowing out process. In the end, the one of those three who lasts wins. All you have to do is keep up your support.
And get the NRA out there!!!
We will all know in 11 days.
ReplyDelete"This is where we make our stand — this is where I have chosen to make my stand," Thompson told a crowd at a barbecue restaurant. He later told reporters he needs to do well in South Carolina, which votes Jan. 19.
"If he does not do well here, it's pretty much over," said South Carolina state Sen. Larry Grooms, a regional chairman for the campaign.
AP story posted on http://news.yahoo.com
Gullyborg:
ReplyDeleteNRA is not going to get involved in a Republican primary fight with several pro-gun candidates in play and the field wide open. There's way too much risk in that move, and I think you're overestimating the power of their endorsement. Even in the Democratic primary, the most they were willing to do was a small mailing for Governor Richardson, and that was a primary where all the other candidates weren't friendly.
I suppose people get so emotionally invested in a candidate it is hard to let go.
ReplyDeleteFred picked in a brokered convention? A guy who excites no one? Not going to happen.
Fred picked as VP, per MB. A guy who excites no one and doesn't win votes? Not going to happen.
MB getting the NRA to endorse Fred? Just who do you think MB is, anyway? The NRA doesn't ask "how high" when he says jump dude.
Some of you are going to need grief counselling after his crushing defeat in SC if you don't start letting go.
Michael: I share every sentiment in your post, except your exasperation. There is a candidate who is adamantly pro-Second Amend., has been raising money like mad, and has the grassroots network in place to deliver the vote: Ron Paul.
ReplyDeleteAll victory takes is for good men and women to stand in support of their values, the pundits and the polls be damned. Join the meetup groups, contact the campaign, and donate on Jan 21.
Liberty in our lifetime is possible, if we are willing to fight for it against all odds.
I am not asking MB to get the NRA to endorse Fred. I am asking every Fred fan who is an NRA member to call the NRA and be heard.
ReplyDeleteAnd the NRA has a damn good reason to get involved. There are only two candidates left in this race with a good Second Amendment record:
Mike Huckabee and Fred Thompson.
These are two very different candidates. And I am far from alone in beliving that Mike Huckabee, if nominated, will spell disaster for the GOP in November.
The NRA would be very, very wise to get involved in this primary and move some muscle for Fred.
And do you think I am overestimating what the NRA can do? Did you vote in 1994? I did. And the results that year came from the NRA. A very recent survey asked whose endorsement would most influence voters. Guess who was at the top? The NRA. And their numbers were something like 4 times higher than Oprah Winfrey.
And you think Fred excites no one? Really? Then who in hell are these people on line supporting Fred? Why is Fred consistently above Mitt Romney in national polls?
Oh, and Ron Paul? PUHLEASE.
Yes, Fred has an uphill battle and SC is an important state. If Fred disappoints in SC, he is done. But don't underestimate his appeal as a VP. He has the gravitas and reassuring quality needed in the man a heartbeat away from the Presidency... kind of like when GWB chose Dick Cheney.
Brokered convention? Fred could absolutely be the nominee. He is the only candidate left who doesn't alienate a significant portion of the GOP.
McCain? Call him McAmnesty. Half the party hates him.
Giuliani? Mr "no family values"? Nominate him and the evangelicals bail.
Huckabee? Disaster waiting to happen. His non-evangelical support is 14% and every secular fiscal conservative out there would seriously consider voting libertarian or even voting for Hillary.
Romney? A nice guy, but talk about someone who can't light a fire. He's already spent more money on this primary than anyone else in primary history and he is at 9% nationally. If he wanted to be taken seriously by the GOP establishment, he should have forgotten this Presidential election and run against Senator Kerry instead (or even against Ted Kennedy back in 2006). That's a race he could have won, and in 8 years he'd still be young enough to run for President - as the hero who knocked off one of the worst senators ever. Besides, he's a wishy washy flip flopper.
Fred:
pro-life
fiscal conservative
hawk
solid on immigration
pro-gun
never flip flopped
what more could the "big tent" GOP want?
if he is not the nominee, then he darn well should be a top choice for VP - especially if we nominate someone like Rudy or McCain, who has baggage.
Fred fever - catch it!
Your blog is so excellent that I like it very much, you must be good at writing.
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