Is Fred Thompson All Charm, No Substance?

[question everything]

I usually skip George Will's column, but this one in Newsweek caught my eye.

Will: Is Fred Thompson All Charm, No Substance?
By George F. Will
Newsweek

(snip)

Speaking of Fred Thompson ... Some say he is the Republicans' Rorschach test: They all see in him what they crave. Or he might be the Republicans' dot-com bubble, the result of restless political investors seeking value that the untutored eye might not discern and that might be difficult to quantify but which the investors are sure must be there, somewhere, somehow.

One does not want to be unfair to Thompson, who may have hidden depths. But ask yourself this: If he did not look like a basset hound who had just read a sad story—say, "Old Yeller"—and if he did not talk like central casting's idea of the god Sincerity, would anyone think he ought to be entrusted with the nation's nuclear arsenal? He is an actor, and, as a Hollywood axiom says, the key to acting is sincerity — if you can fake that, you've got it made.

(snip)

Because this campaign started so early, it may be shrewd for Thompson to bide his time until his rivals seem stale, and then stride onstage. But once there, the latecomer should have some distinctive ideas he thinks will elevate the debate. In a recent speech, Thompson expressed a truly distinctive idea about immigration. Referring to the 1986 amnesty measure that Reagan signed into law, he said: "Twelve million illegal immigrants later, we are now living in a nation that is beset by people who are suicidal maniacs and want to kill countless innocent men, women and children around the world." Kids, do not try to deconstruct that thought at home; this is a task for professionals. Thompson seemed to be saying that the suicidal maniacs besetting us are among us—are among the 12 million. And that although the maniacs are here, they want to kill innocents elsewhere ("around the world"), too.

Well, Reagan, too, had his rhetorical pratfalls, and Thompson, a former prosecutor, must know how to sift evidence and formulate arguments. But as Thompson ambles toward running, he is burdened by a reputation for a less-than-strenuous approach to public life, and that opaque thought he voiced about immigration looks suspiciously symptomatic of a mind undisciplined by steady engagement with complexities. If so, a sound you may soon hear from the Thompson campaign may be the soft "pop" of a bursting bubble.

URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19140623/site/newsweek/

[whistle]

1. Fred Thompson is an actor that's all!

[StudentsMustUniteNow]

2. Obama Vs. Thompson

The Battle of the Insubstantial Corporate Charmers

[TwilightGardener]

11. Explain to me how Obama is "insubstantial". Explain to me how

someone can devote many years to public service, as a community activist, as a State Senator, as a law professor, as a US Senator--and yet somehow be "insubstantial". Thompson was mostly a sleazy lobbyist and an actor, with short stints in law and an undistinguished Senate career--in which he apparently did not care much for actually serving the people of Tennessee. There is no comparison here. Obama has served his community, his state, and his country throughout his career, when he could have been involved in more lucrative practice.

[StudentsMustUniteNow]

16. So did Big Dog n/t

[aquart]

3. I hadn't noticed the charm.

[BattyDem]

4. According to Tweety ...

he smells good - and that's all that really matters. :sarcasm:

[Stinky The Clown]

15. Tweety's desk was seen to rise off the floor when he was talking about Daddy Fred

Tweety's so fucking obvious ...... another man-crush, another erection.

[BattyDem]

24. LOL!

:rofl:

Did you ever see the episode of Seinfeld where George develops a major man-crush for Elaine's boyfriend (played by Dan Cortese)? He would get all silly and giddy whenever he was around the guy. THAT is who Tweety reminds me of - George Constanza with a bad case of man-crush! :evilgrin:

George didn't get over it until the object of his affection told him to, "Step off George, step off." Somebody at MSNBC needs to say those words to Tweety before he has an orgasm on national television! :eyes:

[illinoisprogressive]

5. I do not like thompson but, all this about if someone has substance is silly

aside from Jr., usually if someone runs for president you can be pretty sure they have some brains and policy and ideas. The real question should be, does a candidate share the same views as me. And is capable and judicious.

[question everything]

30. True. But is he willing to work for these ideas?

Or, as you correctly compare him to Bush, does he just relies on work horses like Rumsfeld and Cheney to carry the load while he can take it easy?

This is what has been said about Thompson - that he likes to play more than work.

[TwilightGardener]

6. He has charm? I never saw it. I KNOW he has no substance.

Read his Paul Harvey/ABC spewings and his speeches. He has yet to come up with a reason for being Prez, besides the fact that Republicans seem to want him, and he wants to do "some things that only a President can do". Like what, fly on Air Force One? Have a bowling alley/movie theater in your house, and an on-call chef?

[Robeson]

7. Just another Republican prop, who would be more than happy...

...to take orders from his overlords, while playing the role of his life.

[waiting for hope]

8. I just can't get enough of this...

Jon Stewart compared him to Franken Berry:



:rofl:

That could go a long way.....

[Mist]

9. I must have missed the charm. But Rethugs like pliable actors who

can look presidential. Worked with Reagan, worked with *.

[Robeson]

12. lulu.....

...love, love, love your avatar....:hi:

[DKRC]

10. Puhleeze! I've had rashes with more charm than that man!

:puke:

[baldguy]

13. charm?

[MADem]

14. "They all see in him what they crave." I think that idiot Will actually got something right.

The GOP gents look at him and they hear this VOICE full of testosterone, a walk that isn't quite a swagger and is self-assured, a cigar smoking, take-no-BS type of guy, and they ALSO see Titsy McBoobsALot, his very blonde, very buxom and very, very young bride. Hey, a First Lady that looks like a stripper? GOP family values!!! There's envy, but there's also...ADMIRATION.

The GOP ladies look at him and perhaps they are attracted to the strong roles he's played on TV, the fatherly assurance in his voice--if they like his looks, well, they need a better health plan with a vision supplement--or maybe they're just stupid, and they do what the menfolk tell them. I really do think a woman has to be stupid to be a Republican, because the GOP is not very female friendly, to my mind...but that's just my opinion....

I think if the GOP ladies got a good long look at Titsy, though, they might not be so enthused. They're gonna have to rope in her Moxie AND her Spunk, tone down her coloring (the fire engine red lips and eyelashes that stick out almost as far as her twins have to go) and cover her up so her ratio of exposed skin to wisps of cloth is a bit more, well, Republican. They're also going to have to make her look a little less like, say, his naughty granddaughter. Streetwalker Chic doesn't go over well with the pearls and twinset money crowd, certainly....

Only a matter of time before the media digs up the ex-wives...and that could be problematic,too, in addition to all the other factors mentioned in the article. Not every GOP ex-wife is like Jane "I SAID No Comment" Wyman.

Thanks for posting that article--it was worth reading!

[Zoigal]

17. Never forget

that Fred Thompson is an ACTOR.

[ellenfl]

19. so was ronnie raygun. eom

[ellenfl]

18. his 'charm' is just a gop talking point. they're trying to sell him.

i have no idea what kind of lawmaker he was, but his gig on l&o does not inspire fandom, imo. his character is very rw on that show. personally, i do not find him attractive at all . . . i think women that do must be blind.

i totally agree with MADem . . . the republic party is totally anti-female. i just don't get republic women . . . unless i consider that they could be stepford wives . . . or men (mann coulter?).

ellen fl

[Robeson]

22. "they could be stepford wives "....

...nail meet hammer.

[Bitwit1234]

20. Deputy Dawg in the flesh.

[TwilightGardener]

21. Fredhorn Leghorn.

[Eurobabe]

27. LMAO, those are two great visuals!!

:rofl:

[Nite Owl]

23. Who could think he is

charming? He looks like he ate a pickle and he's now mad at the world.

[saltpoint]

25. Ol' Fred's running real low in both categories.

What til the fundies get a load of his wife's low-cut evening wear.

Fred will grab a few headlines these next couple weeks as he prepares to announce for the race, but I predict sometime late summer or early fall, a literary guild someplace will hold a press conference and reveal that Fred Thompson is in fact the incarnation of the men on the Mississippi River who approach Huck on the raft.

They're slave-hunters. Huck, realizing that deception is morally wrong and that he'll likely burn in hell, lies to the men, telling them that his pa is sick, thus saving Jim who hides inside the overhead.

The men leave, more fearful of contagion than suspicious of the kid's story.

One of those men was Fred Thompson, the lit guild will charge. A case of fictional soul transfer. Not unheard of, but rare just the same.

[Eurobabe]

26. If you like charming bassett hounds, why perhaps....

[GreenTea]

28. Every republican wants to be a union busting Reagan!

The republicans despise unions...WHY? Corporate profits!

[unhappycamper]

29. Yes. nt

[AtomicKitten]

31. not seeing the alleged charm

which makes him officially an empty suit

[leftofthedial]

32. no charm, no substance

[Vickers]

33. Actually, he seems pretty substantial...

....hell, the beef curtains on the side of his face must weigh about 8 or 9 pounds each.

[NastyRiffraff]

34. In other words:

He's lazy and stupid:

But as Thompson ambles toward running, he is burdened by a reputation for a less-than-strenuous approach to public life and that opaque thought he voiced about immigration looks suspiciously symptomatic of a mind undisciplined by steady engagement with complexities