Social Conservative Love for Fred Watch, Part I
by Ryan Sager
Mon, 4 Jun 2007 at 4:49 PM
updated Mon, 4 Jun 2007 at 4:52 PM
I already reported Gary Bauer's very friendly remarks regarding a Fred Thompson candidacy.
Now, social conservative Paul Weyrich, is laying it on — comparing Mr. Thompson to Ronald Reagan at some length, concluding thusly:
Is Fred Thompson the second coming of Ronald Reagan? Not exactly. Is he, like Reagan, the right man for this desperate hour? That depends upon God's Providence. If we pray hard God will answer that last question. Right now without announcing formally, Thompson is doing well in the polls. Will his standing go up or down when he becomes a real candidate? I can only guess. I think his standing will go up.
Some other choice quotes from Mr. Weyrich on Mr. Thompson:
* "I think Thompson would take the right position (from the standpoint of conservatives) on nearly every issue to confront us."
* "As to the war on terror, clearly Thompson understands the nature of the enemy. I don't believe Thompson would cut the enemy any slack."
* "Both Reagan and Thompson were actors. Both men connect with the voters. Both men excite conservatives and even Republicans. Both men are seen as saviors, Reagan from the inept President Jimmy Carter; Thompson from the mistakes of fellow Republican George W. Bush, although that is not said out loud very much."
It looks like we have another not-quite-an-endorsement endorsement. And, more broadly, we have the definite possibility that Mr. Thompson could emerge as the social-conservative to Rudy Giuliani.
A while back (last year) when I spoke to Mr. Weyrich, he was in despair that, essentially, social conservatives couldn't beat one social-liberal frontrunner (Mr. Giuliani or John McCain) with 10 social conservative alternatives (Sam Brownback, Mitt Romney, Jim Gilmore, Mike Huckabee, etc.) — social conservatives needed to pick one and stick with him.
Who currently thinks Mr. Romney is the candidate most likely to take that spot?
Related Topics: GOP Primary
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