Post by Woody Williams on Jun 26, 2007 15:31:57 GMT -5
Democrats tear into Fred Thompson
By: Mike Allen
Jun 25, 2007 03:18 PM EST
Even before his expected July announcement, Fred Thompson's all-but-declared entry into the Republican presidential stakes has prompted the Democratic National Committee to attack him as a potential GOP front-runner and to use his prospective candidacy to raise money.
Democratic strategists say Thompson's populist style and show-biz allure could prove extremely appealing in a general election at a time when voters are so down on Washington. So the party has launched a preemptive campaign against him that includes a DNC fundraising e-mail branding Thompson, "The inside-outsider."
"Remember the Republican culture of corruption?" the letter asks. "The revolving door of Republican politicians moving in and out of top political offices and Washington, D.C., lobbying firms? That's Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson. For years, acting wasn't the 'Law & Order' star's profession -- it was a hobby. In the real world, Thompson has made a fortune in a decades-long career as a Washington lobbyist. And just this month, as part of his role as the ultimate Washington insider, Thompson offered to host yet another fundraising event for Scooter Libby's legal defense fund. Thompson has been vocal in his support of Libby, saying that he would 'absolutely' pardon him. As he runs for president, he'll try his hardest to hide the truth from the American people. And we need to stop him. Support our efforts to get the truth out about Fred Thompson."
'Staunch supporter of Scooter Libby'
The DNC is preparing expensive postal mailings to follow up on the e-mails targeting Thompson, party sources said.
Another DNC research report sketches likely lines of attack on Thompson: "reliable supporter, defender of President Bush," "staunch supporter of Scooter Libby," "key role in Bush Supreme Court nominations," "already has a flip-flop problem," "ill-equipped for the campaign," "a thin Senate record, questions of 'work ethic', " "controversial legal clients may cause problems," "lobbying careers full of land mines."
Working to influence news coverage, the DNC also recently began circulating a "research document" with the headline, "MAJOR LEGISLATIVE ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF SEN. FRED DALTON THOMPSON (1994-2002)." Then the page is blank until the line, "Paid for by the Democratic National Committee."
Thompson advisers tell The Politico that they recognize they need to fill in that empty sheet and are scrambling to be sure they -- and their candidate -- have answers to that and a host of other questions from skeptics by the time he officially announces.
That will be a crucial factor in determining whether Thompson's undeclared-candidate halo, which gave him a first-place finish in a Nevada poll published this weekend, will survive his presidential coming out. Thompson showed signs of rustiness in Richmond earlier this month when a reporter asked him to name his greatest accomplishments in the Senate -- not exactly a hardball question - and he struggled to answer. "It doesn't always have to do with putting your name on a piece of legislation," he finally said. "There was an awful lot of bad legislation that I helped to stop, for one thing."
Attacks before campaign's start
Thompson still has not set a launch date for his campaign but advisers say the need to be ready for attacks and policy questions is likely to push the announcement back from the first week of July to the second or third week. "There is a tipping point at which your supporters could lose their enthusiasm," said a Thompson adviser involved in the debate over the date. "The challenge is to know how you signal to those people who have been working so hard at the grass roots, 'Hang tight. It's coming. Trust him.' On the other hand, you want to be sure you have a comfort level with your infrastructure and your ability to hit the ground running."
Friends say Thompson and his wife, Jeri, are working nearly full time getting ready for the announcement. "This is the most important decision he's ever going to make," said a friend who has discussed the matter with Thompson.
His campaign is rapidly building a large national organization, with most of its operations in Nashville along with some press and policy officials in northern Virginia. Thompson is holding his first fundraiser for his own campaign this week in Nashville, and will hold another July 6 in Atlanta's Buckhead area, with former Sen. Mack Mattingly playing a key role.
Thompson also plans appearances later in South Carolina and New Hampshire. In the Granite State, Thompson will mingle with actual voters in addition to giving a speech at a GOP event.
By: Mike Allen
Jun 25, 2007 03:18 PM EST
Even before his expected July announcement, Fred Thompson's all-but-declared entry into the Republican presidential stakes has prompted the Democratic National Committee to attack him as a potential GOP front-runner and to use his prospective candidacy to raise money.
Democratic strategists say Thompson's populist style and show-biz allure could prove extremely appealing in a general election at a time when voters are so down on Washington. So the party has launched a preemptive campaign against him that includes a DNC fundraising e-mail branding Thompson, "The inside-outsider."
"Remember the Republican culture of corruption?" the letter asks. "The revolving door of Republican politicians moving in and out of top political offices and Washington, D.C., lobbying firms? That's Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson. For years, acting wasn't the 'Law & Order' star's profession -- it was a hobby. In the real world, Thompson has made a fortune in a decades-long career as a Washington lobbyist. And just this month, as part of his role as the ultimate Washington insider, Thompson offered to host yet another fundraising event for Scooter Libby's legal defense fund. Thompson has been vocal in his support of Libby, saying that he would 'absolutely' pardon him. As he runs for president, he'll try his hardest to hide the truth from the American people. And we need to stop him. Support our efforts to get the truth out about Fred Thompson."
'Staunch supporter of Scooter Libby'
The DNC is preparing expensive postal mailings to follow up on the e-mails targeting Thompson, party sources said.
Another DNC research report sketches likely lines of attack on Thompson: "reliable supporter, defender of President Bush," "staunch supporter of Scooter Libby," "key role in Bush Supreme Court nominations," "already has a flip-flop problem," "ill-equipped for the campaign," "a thin Senate record, questions of 'work ethic', " "controversial legal clients may cause problems," "lobbying careers full of land mines."
Working to influence news coverage, the DNC also recently began circulating a "research document" with the headline, "MAJOR LEGISLATIVE ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF SEN. FRED DALTON THOMPSON (1994-2002)." Then the page is blank until the line, "Paid for by the Democratic National Committee."
Thompson advisers tell The Politico that they recognize they need to fill in that empty sheet and are scrambling to be sure they -- and their candidate -- have answers to that and a host of other questions from skeptics by the time he officially announces.
That will be a crucial factor in determining whether Thompson's undeclared-candidate halo, which gave him a first-place finish in a Nevada poll published this weekend, will survive his presidential coming out. Thompson showed signs of rustiness in Richmond earlier this month when a reporter asked him to name his greatest accomplishments in the Senate -- not exactly a hardball question - and he struggled to answer. "It doesn't always have to do with putting your name on a piece of legislation," he finally said. "There was an awful lot of bad legislation that I helped to stop, for one thing."
Attacks before campaign's start
Thompson still has not set a launch date for his campaign but advisers say the need to be ready for attacks and policy questions is likely to push the announcement back from the first week of July to the second or third week. "There is a tipping point at which your supporters could lose their enthusiasm," said a Thompson adviser involved in the debate over the date. "The challenge is to know how you signal to those people who have been working so hard at the grass roots, 'Hang tight. It's coming. Trust him.' On the other hand, you want to be sure you have a comfort level with your infrastructure and your ability to hit the ground running."
Friends say Thompson and his wife, Jeri, are working nearly full time getting ready for the announcement. "This is the most important decision he's ever going to make," said a friend who has discussed the matter with Thompson.
His campaign is rapidly building a large national organization, with most of its operations in Nashville along with some press and policy officials in northern Virginia. Thompson is holding his first fundraiser for his own campaign this week in Nashville, and will hold another July 6 in Atlanta's Buckhead area, with former Sen. Mack Mattingly playing a key role.
Thompson also plans appearances later in South Carolina and New Hampshire. In the Granite State, Thompson will mingle with actual voters in addition to giving a speech at a GOP event.
