And Now, Thompson vs. Himself...
by Ryan Sager
Tue, 5 Jun 2007 at 9:00 PM
updated Tue, 5 Jun 2007 at 9:08 PM
... on Hannity & Colmes: (unless quotation marks are used, I'm paraphrasing)
9:00: Right up front, I've got to say (tuning straight from the debate to this interview) it looks incredibly lame to skip the debate and then try to carve out your own special space. That said...
9:00: First question from Hannity: Do you wish you'd been at the actual debate. It looks like his answer is no.
9:01: Hannity says Thompson never desired the office. Should we want someone who hasn't lusted after the office? Do you see that in some of the other candidates?
9:01: "I don't want to talk about other candidates. ... I'm sure that they're good guys." He seems (or at least claims) not to have watched much of the debate. "The man has to fit the times."
9:03: Hannity: Why do you want to be president? "We ought to be thinking about the day after Iraq." Our enemies have a 100-year plan. We have a plan until the next election. We're facing more competition from overseas. We have an entitlement crisis.
9:05: He plugs "imwithfred.com," apparently a new campaign Web site.
9:07: Hannity: Was it right to go into Iraq? Thompson: He seems to be saying yes. Saddam and his sons would still be working to get nuclear weapons, even if he didn't have them yet when we invaded.
9:09: Hannity: What do we do next in Iraq? Thompson: "Take the next step." See what General Petraeus says needs to happen next.
9:14: Hannity: What do you do about Iran? Thompson: "That's almost an impossible one to answer," he says. The president has access to more information than I do. But ... he thinks the country could collapse of its own weight, due to internal opposition to the ruling regime. If everyone in Iran had a computer, he says, the government would fall. (They're certainly depending a lot on technology at the Thompson headquarters.)
9:15: Hannity: Scooter Libby? Thompson: It's a "shocking injustice." Also, "No crime had been committed." Longest answer so far, on the least consequential issue of the night.
9:17: Hannity: Would you pardon him [Libby] now? Thompson: "I would, absolutely. ... it's a gross injustice."
9:21: Hannity is a hell of a tough interviewer ... he asks Thompson to attack the Democrats (nailed him!). Thompson: Democrats bad.
9:23: Hannity asks Thompson about the voter survey (first reported on Latest Politics) where he checked a box saying he supported abortion rights in the first trimester. Thompson: "I don't remember that box." He says it was a long time ago and maybe a staffer filled out the survey.
9:24: Hannity asks if Thompson still supports McCain-Feingold. Was it the right decision? Thompson: "Part of it was, and part of it wasn't." He says he came to clean up the money in politics. He wanted to raise hard-money limits, do away with the soft money (I still think that's a good idea, he says). But he's now against banning ads 60 days before elections. "That's not working."
9:25: Hannity asks about Thompson's impeachment vote (for impeachment, on grounds of obstruction of justice, not perjury). He stands by it.
9: 25: Hannity: Are you ready for the attacks on your family, your wife? "I have a wife who is strong and sweet. ... It's a badge of honor to get attacked by some of these bozos."
9: 27: Hannity: Top five priorities if you're elected president? Thompson: Explain to the American people how important the War on Terror is; reform the tax code; entitlement reform.
And, the music plays...
Related Topics: GOP Primary
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