Topic: Presidential Campaign 2008
Fred Thompson Lacking In "Substance" "Substance" is the new video put out by the Thompson campaign, which it wants to air in Iowa. The 30-second video ad doesn't say how he will accomplish his Conservative-endorsed goals.by DigitalBob
(Libertarian)
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Last night I reported that the Fred Thompson campaign put out an emergency funding drive to raise money for a TV ad. They might actually make it. They need to raise over $248,000 by 6 p.m. Friday night so they can show an ad called "Substance" across Iowa. The last I looked (12/27/07 3 p.m. EST), the tote board was over $103,000.
For free, you can take a look at it here before wasting spending your money on it. If your sound is turned off, I'll summarize, with my openly biased comments in tow.
1. Wall Street Journal says that Fred Thompson's Tax Cut Plan leads the GOP field. It assumes a priori knowledge of what is included in that plan. I've read the plan and can think of a simpler one, like NO income tax, and replace it with nothing. Swapping a flat or fixed tax for an income tax still means that somebody is being taxed. But in order to eliminate deficits, you need to take draconian spending cuts first.
2. "A Leading Economic Group calls it a plan conservatives can rally around." The ad doesn't say who that group is. That plan needs to be really good, because there are a bunch of liberals, independents and moderates in Congress, last time I looked. Again, no specifics in the ad.
3. The "conservative" (the ad said it) National Review says that he has "specific, conservative policies" (the ad quotes are on the screen) on immigration. Again, no specifics.
When I looked up his plan, I thought most of it was already in place. We have had a failure of government administration to follow the law for the last 20 years and longer. Until there is some credibility on immigration by our government, "getting tough" is meaningless.
4. Investor's Business Daily is quoted that Thompson will have a "Reaganesque rebuilding" of our military.
Rebuilding? We're already spending over $470 billion on the regular defense budget, and another $200 billion for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan annually. The 7th US Army is still in Europe, and has been since WWII. We have five Naval bases in Japan, at least 12 aircraft carrier groups around the world, over 9,000 active nuclear weapons, and 700 military bases. The advanced tactical fighter is over $130 million EACH! We have soldiers on the line in South Korea, still enforcing UN resolutions from over 50 years ago. What do we still need? I'm guessing you want me to pay for it, or are you going to print the money from nothing?
What we need is better veterans benefits for our soldiers and marines who are coming back with head injuries, missing limbs and with P.T.S.D. from serial deployments. We need to take care of our wounded heroes and not make new ones.
5. The National Right to Life Committee endorses him because they know he can win. Hmm. Last I looked, Hillary Clinton can win too, and she has a perfect Pro-Choice voting record. I would hope that any group that gives an endorsement does so because it believes in what a candidate stands for, and not just "electability". The Thompson campaign could have worded that one better.
And that's about it. It was a cheat sheet for conservatives, who already knew their agenda. There were no specifics. There was nothing about his voting record or experience. It was not an ad for the rest of us. If you want to know what he will do with each of these bullet points, you need to look up white papers on his web site. I had to.
If you are looking for "substance" in a TV ad, try this one instead. This candidate has his congressional voting record to fall back on. His latest big fundraising day was on December 16th. It pulled in at least $240,000 per HOUR. Tick, tick, tick.
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2007 DigitalBob, all rights reserved.
Published: Thursday, December 27, 2007
Last modified: Thursday, December 27, 2007
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I can't help but notice that you aren't giving him credit for performing better then you thought he would. In your last post you said it would take him a week to hit target, but now he looks like he may come in just under target.
Digital Bob, your posts are getting worse as the day goes on. A 30 second ad is not the forum to go into wonk-like detail about policy, it will only give you very broad generalities. How you could realistically expect a campaign ad to be "substantive" shows that you really do not understand the process. All of the assertions that Fred makes in his ad are true, and they are backed up by policy papers on his website. I would love to debate your reasoning in each of points- they are each riddled with erroneous assumptions and flaws, but im afraid it would only inspire to pen yet another screed against Fred.
This is my first time stopping by Digital Bob, but I already get the feeling that you are a Pauliac. You guys all sound the same. And p.s. it doesn't sound good ;-)
I must say that you betray any sense of objectivity with the accusation that Fred is without substance. Unlike most of the other candidates, Fred has been one of the few willing to actually discuss his plans on taxation, immigration, social security, medical policy, et al. Moreover, while on TV he must be brief, on his site and in numerous publications he has elucidated in some of the most erudite and passionate defenses of conservatism and federalism and is a true constitutional scholar. Blame Fred perhaps for not having a zippy campain or for not communicating as well as one would like but to say he is without substance only makes you look silly and like a ron paul schill. Ron Paul does have some interesting ideas and I would not accuse him of being without substance, so just because Fred is putting forth WORKABLE, POSSIBLE ideas instead of rather untenable ones like Paul, please dont confuse the facts.
You have got to be kidding. What? The "Lazy" angle doesn't work anymore so you complain he doesn't have details of his Tax Cut Plan, Military Plans & Immigration Reform in a 30 second ad?
Show me a 30-second ad from ANY candidate that's detailed and specific on just one of these issues and I'll send you my next months wages.
And by the way... if you want to do some research on Fred's plan.... just check out http://www.Fred08.com and look under the ISSUES tab for all his WHITE PAPERS... that's if you're not too LAZY!
Posted By: Allan Stewart
Date: 2007-12-27 20:58:03
Fred Thompson has put out more detail on his positions than any other candidate. I have never seen a candidate's commercial that contained any details like you seem to want and I don't know how they could ever be expressed in that time frame. Maybe you don't know the purpose of a commercial. Or maybe you couldn't find anything of Substanceto criticize.
Posted By: Larry James Long
Date: 2007-12-27 21:36:12
OK digitalBob, there you go again.
It is more than obvious that you have no clue as to the power of a draft candidate.
I have never given one red cent to any politcal candidate EVER, be it local, state or federal in nature.
Did I mention EVER?
Yet, I wrote to "The Friends of Fred" in June, long before Fred annoucned, asking the leadership to tell my former Senator from Tennessee to RUN FRED RUN!!!
At the same time I sent $100 not knowing if Fred would run or not. That is what a draft call person will do. Oh! by the way I'll let you in on a little secret, THERE IS A WHOLE LOT OF US OUT THERE, working the grass roots but the MSM doesn't get it. But they soon will.
I am retired and my resouces are limited but still I have managed to scape up more than $1000 to support the Thompson candidacy. Oh! did I mention that there is a lot of others just like me.
You still don't get it do you?
Remember this, Fred Thompson is the only candidate on either side of the isle that has been drafted in this election cycle.
Caution! Don't underestimate the power of a DRAFT CANDIDATE!!!
I have to say, DigitalBob, that these articles are pretty funny, mainly for the comments that you're attracting in the end. I would love it if the MSM would report more on EVERY candidate. But all of these comments from Thompson supporters on your posts remind me of some other supporters... Guess Who!
You're the only who got it. My criticism was mainly about the ad, and secondarily about the candidate. "True Conservative" would have been a more honest title.
Unlike the MSM, I tell you up front that I'm going to be biased and tough on the candidate. I would be surprised if supporters of a candidate didn't come to the aid of their favorite.
He might make a fine attorney general, if he wants the job. He at least knows what's in the constitution. I like his stance on federalism.
All that money and Ron Paul still can't get a head of Fred in the polls... it'd make me want to write something like this too... if I was supporting Paul...
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2007 DigitalBob, all rights reserved.