Yesterday, Jason speculated on the possibility that Fred Thompson and Mitt Romney would form an alliance of sorts in order to stop McCain and Huckabee in South Carolina. I noted that such an alliance made little to no sense. McCain and Huckabee teamed up because of their mutual interest in taking Romney down a notch. Huckabee was strong in Iowa and McCain wasn’t, whereas McCain was strong in New Hampshire and Huckabee wasn’t. So the alliance worked well because they didn’t have to compete against each other for votes.
On the other hand, Mitt Romney’s support base overlaps significantly with both Huckabee and Thompson. They will be directly competing with each other for support. That’s why it was no surprise to see Fred go after Huckabee so hard during the last debate and afterwards. Now that Romney has won Michigan, he will undoubtedly get a bump in support that might come at the expense of Thompson, Huckabee or both. Thompson is enjoying a modest post debate climb in the polls (at least in South Carolina) and he doesn’t want to see his gains be erased by MittMentum. It’s no surprise then that Thompson said this:
The day after former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney’s Michigan victory, Republican candidate Fred Thompson called promises made to Michigan voters regarding their economic plight “misleading.”
“Everybody was flocking up there to Michigan and promising, in effect … the federal government was going to come in there and bail the entire state out. Now, they said it with a straight face and apparently it worked for some of them. That’s no way to get elected president on things you could not – and should not – deliver,” Thompson told a crowd in Laurens, South Carolina Wednesday.
It’s going to be a hard fought three days until the primary.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
LJ,
And Thompson was hard on Mitt last night as well. But my point really was (and I probably wasn’t as clear on this) after Thompson drops out.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:23 pm
“That’s no way to get elected president on things you could not – and should not – deliver”
Really? Is it really any wonder why Michigan voters choose Mitt?
Fred can say what he wants, but there are deffinately things that the Federal government can and should do to help the auto industry, and with it, Michigan – and I’m not talking about a multi-billion dollar bailout of Ford and GM.
Fred’s idea that the Federal Government should just sit by and watch a significant portion of the economy run right into a brick wall – and not even lift a finger – is completely irresponsible.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
Jason,
And Thompson was hard on Mitt last night as well.
Oh, I must’ve missed that. Got a link by chance?
But my point really was (and I probably wasn’t as clear on this) after Thompson drops out.
I don’t get that. Thompson will almost certainly endorse McCain after he drops out.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:31 pm
LJ, Thompson’s supporters generally aren’t McCainiacs.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
They are not McCainiacs, but I think Thompson’s friendship with McCain will earn the endorsement, but most of Fred’s voters will align with the most conservative option.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
It will be interesting to see Thompson drop out personally endorse McCain and then a majority of his supporters and staff jump to a different candidate.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:41 pm
#3 LJ
Do you think there will be any scratching of the head if the “true conservative”, as Fred calls himself, endorses McCain?
January 16th, 2008 at 2:42 pm
Mitt’s made a career of delivering what “can’t be delivered”. The government doesn’t need to “bail out†Detroit either; just lay off some of the government regulations.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:42 pm
Why in the heck would Thompson endorse McCain? He and Mitt are so much closer to being alike on the issues, unless you’re talking about a ‘good ole boys club’. I hope Fred is bigger than that.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:42 pm
2
The state of Michigan has been run by the left for years. It’s not just the auto industry that is in trouble it’s the entire state. Democrat policies are slowly taking down Michigan. What do you expect the federal government to do? Order the people to elect responsible leaders? Same thing is taking place in California. You govern from the left year after year and suddenly people are surprised with the outcome and want someone to bail them out so they can continue to make the same mistakes
January 16th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
Thompson and McCain are best friends, He will endorse John McCain after SC once he loses and that will give McCain a big bounce going into Florida, where i am currently here in Jacksonville,FL volunteering for McCain. And McCain will also get a big endorsement from our Gov. Charlie Crist. Alot of people are speculating about it but many insiders close to Crist say that he will endorse McCain the weekend before Florida’s primary. Crist and McCain are good friends and McCain was the only presidential candidate to campaign with Crist during his run for Governor.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
Friends or not I dont think thompson will risk his reputation by endorsing McCain.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
I want to know why Thompson keeps attacking Huck for his positions on closing Guantanamo and banning waterboarding when McCain has the exact same positions as Huck. Fred should attack them both on this and get a nice “two-fer”
January 16th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
Is there any real debate about who would be best for Michigan’s economy? Romney knows more about Michigan & the automotive industry than all the other candidates combines. He also knows more about turning around businesses than all the other candidates combined. I don’t think there’s any room for real debate.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
sam….i’ve heard rumors that crist will be endorsing rudy…so i wouldn’t count on anything just yet.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
On #13. Uhm…McCain has been tortured. Why remind people of that? It only helps McCain.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
10. Agreed, and yet they keep voting Democrat!
January 16th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
Thompson and McCain are closer than you think my friend. At the time Thompson was in favor of McCain-Feingold, and Thompson was onboard McCain with alot of other things in the Senate as well.
And Thompson Endorsed McCain for president in 2000 and said that if he had decided not to run for president for 2008, then he would have endorsed McCain again.
I dont think Thompson has that much respect for Romney, and that can be seen from the comments he’s made about him and the debates when Thompson went after Romney, so no way he endorse’s Romney.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
Jeff #13,
Great point. But Freddie and John are bff.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:48 pm
Yea Thompson has had numerous opportunity’s to go after McCain and he hasnt done so, makes you wonder why…… it’s b/c he and McCain are friends, and he knows that as long as he can peel away votes from Huckabee, then McCain will win SC, and then he will endorse McCain. I think it all is very clear if you just pay attention to whats going on.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:49 pm
there is NO doubt Fred will endorse JMac.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:49 pm
No way Crist endorses Rudy.
I will almost guarantee you that Crist will be Endorsing McCain, and if he doesnt i’d be willing to pay everyone on this board $20 bucks, b/c thats how certain i am that Crist will Endorse McCain!
January 16th, 2008 at 2:52 pm
If Fred endorses Huck he looses all respect that he has gained from the republican base. I bet he won’t endorse anyone.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:53 pm
I don’t think anyone ever said Fred would endorse Huck; we are talking JMac here.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:55 pm
*23 – sorry i meant mccain
January 16th, 2008 at 2:55 pm
Romney’s point about the fed sending more money to r&d, not directly to the auto companies is because the federal government created the problem in the first place. Mitt is a capitalist, but the government has devastated the auto industry therefore it should help solve the problem.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:57 pm
#14,
Which would be great if Mitt were running for Governor of Michigan. Unfortunately, he is running for President and I can’t really an economic stimulus from the federal level that will bail out Michigan. I try to not be very critical here, but I think you are kidding yourself if you think Mitt wasn’t pandering.
January 16th, 2008 at 2:58 pm
LJ-
Great analysis debunking the idea of the Fred/Mitt alliance. Nobody wants to ally w/ Mitt b/c it is not in their enlightened self-interest to do so. Mitt was, is, and remains the biggest threat to all of the others, strategically and in the long-term.
Ironically, Fred would probably help his friend McCain more by staying in, rather than endorsing him. He’s draining more votes from McCain’s opponents than by staying out…
January 16th, 2008 at 3:07 pm
However, can two guys (McCain & Thompson) with very limited resources really do much together. They both out of money.
January 16th, 2008 at 3:15 pm
To say that it’s the Democratic government of Michigan that’s bringing it down is way, way, way over simplifying things. Michigan is a one trick pony and that pony is the automotive buisiness. As long as GM, Ford and Chrysler are down then not much can be done for it. When most small businesses in this state are dependant on automotive to make a living (those workers spend money buying or as sub suppliers) they are hard pressed to stay open in the current market.
The state governement is finding itself dealing with a huge drop in revenue and trying to pay bills. All the GOP members are doing is to scream DON’T RAISE TAXES yet they don’t come up with concrete ideas on where to get the money either. Believe me I’ve listened and not one good idea has come out of Lansing.
January 16th, 2008 at 3:21 pm
Greg,
LJ would know better than me, but I don’t think McCain has the financial problems he once did. Granted he doesn’t have it available like Romney, but I think he’s no worse off than Rudy at this point.
January 16th, 2008 at 3:28 pm
For any so inclined, the guy for Victims Voice says that he is still aceepting donations to put more commercials on the air in South Carolin and also Florida. This is the commercial that gives the mother of Wayne Dumond’s victim a voice to share her story of what really happened in his early release. I would think that McCain, Romney, Thompson and Rudy followers could find reason to donate. If any of you visit other blogs, please feel free to post the link there as well. Here is the link.
http://www.victimsvoice527.com/donate.html
January 16th, 2008 at 3:30 pm
Don’t have a link LJ, it was during Hannity and Colmes post election wrap up.
January 16th, 2008 at 3:41 pm
You can find the link if you look on Realclearpolitics or even on the Fox news channel. It is there.
January 16th, 2008 at 3:43 pm
When I hear McCain talking about his service I just want to send him to be torture again and again.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:03 pm
Are you left-wing Falz…thats stuff you normally hear from Leftists. How utterly pathetic.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:12 pm
35, What is this country coming too!!!!!! I hope can everybody on this site how completely out of line that comment. That sort of comment should be banned.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:13 pm
A little type: I hope everybody on this site can agree how out of line that comment was.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:30 pm
#35 – I cannot believe you just wrote that. John McCain is a hero. You should thank him for his service. And just think, he fought for the freedom of ALL Americans, even someone like you.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
Can anyone envision a McCain/Huckabee ticket?
January 16th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
#40 yes. That would be victory ticket.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
#39 I dislike McCain each time he speaks, and #35 made me crack up. Its just a funny way of saying, shut up please. I think we should thank the service of everybody in the army and not just single out individuals… after all it is a team effort. Plus John McCain has already been thanked for time and time again. Just look how many years he has been in the Senate.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:41 pm
#42 I would prefer a McCain/Rudy ticket personally.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:43 pm
40, I might personally like such a ticket, but if McCain wins he needs to find the most hard-core orthodox conservative he can find. I’m thinking maybe the SC governor would make a good candidate for McCain.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:43 pm
If Thompson doesn’t get out on Sunday and endorse McCain, it will only be because Thompson’s attacks against the other candidates get more coverage while Thompson remains a candidate.
Thompson is 100% McCain’s stalking horse.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:44 pm
LJ, I agree with you that it is very, very unlikely for Thompson to pair up with Romney. Thompson has a much stronger and longer relationship with McCain than he does with Romney. In fact, there is no reason for Thompson to have worked with Romney in the past. However, do recall that Thompson is in this race because his supporters wanted a conservative candidate, and there is no one who is more conservative than him. Since Mitt is the next most conservative (I know you may not agree on this, but I will let many pundits have a saying on this), and since Mitt is more likely to win the nomination than Thompson, more and more conservatives are starting to like the idea that Romney and Thompson be together on a ticket. Again, this idea is getting popular among the people who care for conservative principles, not with Thompson himself. If Thompson is in this race because people want him to be, then why cannot he pair up with Mitt, if there are enough people asking him to?
January 16th, 2008 at 4:45 pm
“Its just a funny way of saying, shut up please.” There’s nothing funny about that statement.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:52 pm
As a 40-year resident of Florida, I’d really be interested in seeing who Crist would endorse. Most of us Republicans consider him to be a RINO of the first order.
Jeb Bush & lots of his former govt guys are Romney supporters, it’s been rumored.
And isn’t George P Bush (his son) working for Thompson?
Florida is very schizo, hence the essentially four-way tie among Romney, Rudy, the Huckster, and McCain.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:52 pm
#22, yoohoo, Sam…http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=giuliani+crist&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2
January 16th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
Of the current and former GOP Florida governors, only one has made an endorsement of a candidate – Bob Martinez endorsed Giuliani.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:55 pm
crist will probably wait until after the fl primary to announce his endorsement.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:59 pm
I agree that comment is out of line. i also agree that continually bringing it up by McCain is out of line, as well.
January 16th, 2008 at 5:11 pm
John McCain has abuse of his so-called servive. We all are thanks of the american soldiers but McCain just like John Kerry did in 2004 shamelessly use that “experience” for political reasons. What is more annoing is that McCain speak like he is above of everybody else and that the others candidates are inferior to him because of that.
January 16th, 2008 at 5:14 pm
This is a ridiculous time to be talking about Fred joining in alliances. We’re less than a week away from him being forced out of the campaign. What would be the point?? It doesn’t matter who he endorses after he drops out either….most of his remaining supporters will find refuge in Team Mitt.
January 16th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
#53 – “so-called servive”
By that statement, I take it that you have not served in the military.
January 16th, 2008 at 5:35 pm
“service”, for that I’m sorry.
January 17th, 2008 at 2:12 am
#35 How dare you. I am a very strong Romney supporter, but I admire McCain for his service to his country. Statements like this are ill advised and indicative of a closed, hostile mentality. All politicians like to trumpet their strengths and triumphs. McCain is no different than any of our candidates in that.