Fred Thompson News

Well, the news was BIG about BIG FRED THOMPSON today. I received a call from Amelia Daniels at WATE and sat down for an interview and within an hour or so Gordon Boyd of Volunteer TV and I sat down to talk about BIG FRED THOMPSON.

It is Great that the movement toward forming an Exploratory Committee is in the immediate future.

The WATE video is located, here.

The Volunteer TV story is located here.

Republican Presidential Straw Poll

Press Release

Thompson’s Strength Shows Itself on Eve of Second Candidate Debate
May 15th, 2007

(Knoxville, TN) – On the eve of the second Republican presidential primary debate, the Draft Fred Thompson 2008 Committee announced four more Members of the U.S. House of Representatives have joined the Committee’s Leadership Team. The Members include Gresham Barrett of South Carolina, Steve Boyer of Indiana , Jeff Miller of Florida and Don Manzullo of Illinois .

In another indication of Thompson’s rising support among key-state Republicans, Thompson ranked third behind McCain and Guiliani in the latest South Carolina Republican presidential poll conducted by Ayers McHenry & Associates.

“This is an exciting day for the Draft Committee. As many political insiders will be focusing on tonight’s debate, more and more voters are focusing on Fred Thompson,” said Committee Co-Chair, Rep. John J. Duncan, Jr.

“I am also extremely glad to welcome four more of my colleagues to our Leadership Team,” Duncan added. “These Congressmen represent a significant step forward for our effort. Each brings a tremendous reputation and a wealth of experience and Senator Thompson will be well served by their support.”

Commenting on Thompson, Rep. Barrett said, “Middle America can relate to Senator Thompson's common sense values. He is a statesman and a leader who appeals to a cross-section of American voters and I am excited about the prospects of his candidacy."

Rep. Steve Boyer, Ranking Member on the Veterans Affairs Committee, added, “Senator Thompson has the record, the integrity and the focus to lead this nation forward. He’s a true American statesman and we’re ready to get in the trenches for his campaign.”

Rep. Jeff Miller echoed this support saying, “Fred Thompson is exactly what this country needs right now. He would bring a conservative voice and a proven track record of leadership to this race and to the White House.”

Rep. Manzullo, former Chair of the House Small Business Committee and co-chair of the House Manufacturing Caucus added, “He (Thompson) understands the need to encourage strong economic growth through common sense policies. Whether you are a small business owner, or work on the front lines of the factory floor, your choice for president should be Fred Thompson.”

In welcoming these new members, Committee Co-Chair Rep. Zach Wamp said, “These are fine members of Congress who have always exemplified the values of the people they represent. By joining the rest of us in calling for Fred Thompson to run for pres we can rest assured these great leaders bring with them even more grassroots support, from across the Midwest and Southeast.”

The Ayers McHenry & Associates poll conducted May 5 – 8 showed Thompson with 6 percent support, double that of former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney’s 8 percent. Senator John McCain ranked first with 25 percent and former New York Mayor Giuliani showed 20 percent support.

The Draft Fred Thompson 2008 Committee serves to promote the potential candidacy of former Senator Fred Thompson. For more information about the Draft Fred Thompson 2008 Committee’s effort, visit www.fred08.com.

The Right Leadership for America

Thompson’s Presence Felt Among GOP As He Ties for 2nd Nationally and 1st in Alabama Ten declared GOP Candidates Gather for First Debate while Voters Keep Their Eyes on Fred Thompson

May 3, 2007 (Knoxville, TN)

Although not an announced candidate for president, former United States Senator Fred Thompson has moved into a tie for second place among likely Republican Primary voters according to the latest national Rasmussen Poll conducted April 23-26, 2007.

The poll shows Thompson tied with Senator John McCain at 14 percent. Thompson’s support has not slipped since Rasmussen began including him in their survey five weeks ago. Former New York City Mayor Giuliani remains in the lead with 30 percent while other candidates registered near or less than 10 percent.

In addition to the national survey, an InsideAdvantage/Majority Opinion poll conducted April 30-May 1 in Alabama shows Thompson in a statistical tie for first place with Mayor Giuliani with 19 percent and 21 percent respectably. Senator McCain drew 15 percent and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney with 5 percent.

“As the ten declared candidates gather at the Reagan Library tonight to debate, there will be a six foot five shadow across the stage,” said Dean Rice, Draft Committee Treasurer. “These poll numbers further confirm what the Draft is seeing every day. Voters are increasingly anxious for Thompson to join the race, but are patient enough to wait for him.”

The Draft Fred Thompson 2008 Committee is co-chaired by Congressman John J. Duncan, Jr. and Congressman Zach Wamp and includes elected officials, Republican Party activists and business leaders from states ranging from Connecticut to Texas and from South Carolina to California.

For more information about the Draft Fred Thompson 2008 movement, go to
www.fred08.com.

Prepared Remarks to the Lincoln Club in Orange County, CA

So we meet again, and I'm honored, because I know we're here for the same reasons: Love of our country and concern for our future.

A lot of Americans have these concerns tonight. They are concerned about the way things are going in our country right now. Some fear we may be in the first stages of decline. We've heard this malaise talk before.

Of course Iraq is a large part of it. Not only is it tough going, but the effort is besieged on all sides. From those playing the most crass kind of politics with it at home to criticism from around the world.

Even at home, as we enjoy the benefits from one of the best economies we've ever had, people seem uncertain; they raise concerns about global competition or a growing economic disparity among our citizens.

These are challenges. But how we react to them is more important than the challenges themselves. Some want us, to the extent possible, to withdraw from the world that presents us with so many problems, in the hope they will go away. Some would push us towards protectionist trade policies. Others see a solution in raising taxes and redistributing the income among our citizens.

Wrong on all counts. These are defensive, defeatist policies that have consistently been proven wrong. They are not what America is all about.

Let's talk about the issues here at home, first. A lot of folks in Washington suffer from a big misconception about our economy. They confuse the well-being of our government with the wealth of our nation. Adam Smith pointed out the same problem in his day, when many governments mixed up how much money the king had with how well-off the country was.

Taxes are necessary. But they don't make the country any better off. At best they simply move money from the private sector to the government. But taxes are also a burden on production, because they discourage people from working, saving, investing, and taking risks. Some economists have calculated that today each additional dollar collected by the government, by raising income-tax rates, makes the private sector as much as two dollars worse off.

To me this means one simple thing: tax rates should be as low as possible. This isn't anything ideological, and it really isn't some great insight. It's common sense arithmetic.

That's why the economy booms when taxes are cut. When the Kennedy tax cuts were passed in the 1960s, the economy boomed. When Reagan cut taxes in 1981, we went from economic malaise to a new morning in America. And when George Bush cut taxes in 2001, he took a declining economy he inherited to an economic expansion -- despite 9-11, the NASDAQ bubble and corporate scandals.

The Democrats, of course, want to raise taxes. They only want to target the rich, they say. A word of advice to anyone in the middle class -- don't stand anywhere near that target. Wouldn't it be great if, instead of worrying so much about how to divide the pie, we could work together on how to make the pie bigger?

On globalization -- we're not afraid of it. It works to our benefit. We innovate more and invest in that innovation better than anywhere else in the world. Same thing goes for services, which are increasingly driving our economy. Free trade and market economies have done more for freedom and prosperity than a central planner could ever dream and we're the world's best example of that. So, why do we want to take investment dollars out of growth, and invest it in government?

I'd say cash flow to the government is already going quite well. Over the past year our current tax structure generated record levels of revenue for Washington. In fact it's time to seriously consider what we're getting for our "investment" in government.

For many years, several functions of the federal government have been descending into a sorry state of mismanagement and lack of accountability. I published a 68-page report on government's waste, duplication and inability to carry out some of its basic responsibilities. That was back in 2001 before 9-11, and it got little attention. Now the government's shortcomings are affecting our national security and are getting a lot of attention.

The growth of government is not solving these problems; it's causing a lot of them. Every level of new bureaucracy that is created develops a level of bureaucracy beneath it, which creates another one. Pretty soon there is no accountability in the system. A new head of a department or agency comes in from out of town and, after a protracted confirmation fight, wants to spend his or her few years in Washington making great policy and solving national problems, not fighting with their own bureaucrats. So they just let well enough alone. Then you start seeing the results. Departments that can't pass an audit, computer systems that don't work, intelligence breakdowns, people in over their heads.

Yet people in both parties continue to try to federalize and regulate at the national level more and more aspects of American society -- things that have traditionally been handled at the state and local level. We must remember that we have states to serve as policy laboratories for innovation and competition. That's how we got welfare reform. Our system also allows for the diversity of our large country. Our attitude should be, let the federal government do what it is supposed to be doing -- competently. Then maybe we will give it something else to do.

The government could start by securing our nation's borders. A sovereign nation that can't do that is not a sovereign nation. This is secondarily an immigration issue. It's primarily a national security issue. We were told twenty years ago if we produced a comprehensive solution, we'd solve the illegal immigration problem. Twelve million illegals later, we're being told that same thing again. I don't believe most Americans are as concerned about the 12 million that are here as they are about the next 12 million and the next 12 million after that. I think they're thinking: "Prove you can secure the border and then people of good will can sit down and work out the rest of it, while protecting those folks who play by the rules."

Speaking of reforms and our economy, there is nothing more urgent than the fate that is awaiting our Social Security and Medicare programs. The good news is that we are living longer. However, we don't have enough young working people to finance these programs from their taxes.

People say the programs are going bankrupt. They won't go bankrupt. Even as these programs sap every dime of the government's revenue, the folks in Washington will raise the taxes necessary to cover the problem. At this rate the federal government is going to wind up as nothing more than a transfer agent -- transferring wealth from one generation to another. It will devastate our economy.

Sometimes I think that I'm the last guy around who still thinks term limits is a good idea. The professionalization of politics saps people's courage. Their desire to keep their job and not upset anybody overrides all else -- even if it hurts the country.

So the entitlement problem gets kicked a little further down the road. This action is based on the premise that our generation is too greedy to help the next generation. I believe just the opposite is true. If grandmom and granddad think that a little sacrifice will help their grandchildren when they get married, try to buy a home or have children, they will respond to a credible call to make that sacrifice -- if they don't think that the sacrifice is going down some government black hole.

I am going to quote my friend, Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma. I don't think he'll mind, even though it was a private conversation. He said, "People talk a lot about moral issues, but the greatest moral issue facing our generation is the fact that we are bankrupting the next generation. People talk about wanting to make a difference. Here we could make a difference for generations to come."

It's clear with close numbers in the House and the Senate we need bipartisanship to have any chance at real reform in any of these areas. And there are many responsible people who are willing to try to make it happen. But the level of bipartisanship needed for real progress can only be achieved when politicians perceive that the American people are demanding it. That's why leaders of reform and hopefully our next President, will have a mandate to go directly to the American people with truth and clarity.

These days in Washington, there's an awful lot of talk about the need for conversation -- that we should talk more to our nation's enemies; that we should speak "truth to power." However the speakers are usually turned in the wrong direction. Instead of talking to each other, leaders need to be speaking more to the American people.

The message would be simple: "My friends we have entered a new era. We are going to be tested in many ways, possibly under attack and for a long time. It's time to take stock and be honest with ourselves. We're going to have to do a lot of things better. Here's what we need to do and here's why. I know that, now that you're being called upon, you will do whatever is necessary for the sake of our country and for future generations. You always have."

When the American people respond to that, as I know they will, you will have your bipartisanship.