With the music of his Nashville roots providing the melodic background, Fred Thompson entered the small room in the front of the Old Main Brewing Company. It was by far the smallest crowd in the smallest venue I have visited in Iowa. Now perhaps it was because it was more small town, hand shaking, question and answer kind of campaigning (the kind Fred evidently said yesterday he doesn't like). Thompson is a tall man and carries himself with that John Wayne presence. His deep, slow drawl supported a surprisingly quick wit. But the big surprise was that Fred, while struggling to find a style that attracts a great deal of money or poll numbers actually has substance. Be it the war on terror, economic issues, even the role of protecting pattens within the US economy (addressing a specific question posed to him) he showed himself to be intelligent, resolute and confident in his ability to be President.
The most significant discovery...Fred isn't really lazy or apathetic. Fred is just a raging (as much as a slow talking Tennessean can rage) independent man. He does not want to play the typical role Presidents must play deciding, instead, just to be himself - win, lose, or draw. He started his campaign on his schedule, he goes where he wants to go, does what he wants to do (or not do as exhibited in the Iowa debate where he proudly did not raise his hand) and apologizes to no one about it.
It is an admirable quality that will surely prevent him from getting the nomination much to the disappointment of his loyal following. I believe he is a strong leader but too obstinate to actually get elected to a national office. Case in point, according to Athena Mitchell, a great-grandmother from nearby Perry, Thompson refused to put on a fireman's hat or sit in the engine the other day on a stop in a small Iowa town. "I like him, but that disgusted me" said one of his big fans. What she does like was ironically (or not so) quoted by Fred himself twice. "What you see is what you get." Again an admirable quality that probably stands between him and a legitimate shot at the White House.
Jonathan Martin of Politico was in the crowd and gives the view from his seat.
1 comment:
Like many conservatives, six months ago I had evaluated and passed on Giuliani and McCain. I was very excited about the possibility of a well-known, likable conservative joining the fray, and Fred Thompson fit the bill. I was sure he would win the nomination with both his principles and his personality. In the meantime, folks like Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney worked the campaign trail very hard, and you can see the fruits of their labor in places like Iowa.
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