It's Official: Fred Thompson Drops Out

Comments (32)

Why not wrote on January 22, 2008 2:30 PM:

At the next democratic debate

Barack or Hillary should ask that any republican who supports George Bushes policies

should wear a white ribbon on their lapel

byebyefred wrote on January 22, 2008 2:31 PM:

We'll miss you Fred. Thank you for your integrity. You made it through the entire campaign without compromising your head with any "silly hats."

benja wrote on January 22, 2008 2:38 PM:

Yeah, you really brought a lot to the table Fred...like little bits of stale food from your last meal that fell off your face, because during your last meal you fell asleep with your face in a pile of mashed potatoes. Good effort!

I can't wait to see you on geriatric scooter commercials next. You'll really knock them dead.

Kucinich for prez wrote on January 22, 2008 2:38 PM:

Fantastic. The only thing worse than a president who's a bad actor is one who's a good one, like Thomson

Yard[D]og wrote on January 22, 2008 2:42 PM:

Hey, I liked his as an actor ... but now that I know where he stands ... I'm not going to watch him there either.

I'm Muldoon, HE'S Toody! wrote on January 22, 2008 2:47 PM:

Gone but not remembered.

theWalrus wrote on January 22, 2008 2:49 PM:

I thought he was supposed to be the balding, portly, filthy-rich conservative man's great white hope...?

What will they do now and what will Cris Matthews do for his acqua-velva fix?

See ya, Freddy.

ArkPanda wrote on January 22, 2008 2:49 PM:

I like the idea of Fred running for McCain's VP slot. He'll be the most dynamic vice president since William R. King.

Michael A wrote on January 22, 2008 2:52 PM:

Was he ever in the race? I thought he dropped out months ago.

JimS wrote on January 22, 2008 2:54 PM:

To paraphrase Dorothy Parker on the death of Calvin Coolidge:

How could they tell?

CT Voter wrote on January 22, 2008 3:00 PM:

Those space shuttle shoulders belong to Mitt Romney...Geez. Can't you keep your manly men candidates straight?

mattstan wrote on January 22, 2008 3:01 PM:

I like the idea of Fred running for McCain's VP slot. He'll be the most dynamic vice president since William R. King.

That's a good one, though I think William A. Wheeler is also an apt comparison.

jeffgee wrote on January 22, 2008 3:24 PM:

When Fred Thompson quits, it's called a withdrawl speech.

Anonymous wrote on January 22, 2008 3:25 PM:

I think that Fred's departure will irritate some of the dyed in the wool GOP. I was surprised to see the support at FreeRepublic in their poll. It will be interesting to see the write-in vote tally in FL for Fred, or those whom will vote for him irrespective.

But on the other hand, his candidacy showed that he has support in a segment of the GOP, that by leaving early and not being labeled as an unrealistic loser, that Fred remains relevant in GOP circles.

Watching the FreeRepublic polls will give some idea of 2nd contender support.

I bet there is a significant Fred vote and that that illustrates a dissatisfaction with the GOP contenders.

Michael wrote on January 22, 2008 3:28 PM:

It should also be noted that Fred is a man of many manly scents.

Gold star for Mr. Sargent for this excellent snark.

Greg wrote on January 22, 2008 3:28 PM:

Guys, we corrected the erroneous reference to Thompson's shoulders. Thanks for the help.

Dan wrote on January 22, 2008 3:34 PM:

Campaign Diaries's analysis explains why this should be a boost to Mitt Romney -- though McCain could limit the damage once Thompson endorses him.

Redshift wrote on January 22, 2008 3:40 PM:

Actually, it's even creepier than that -- Matthews was swooning over what he imagined Thompson would smell like. Ick.

NCSteve wrote on January 22, 2008 3:41 PM:

Alas that the writer's strike prevents SNL from writing the obit.

RightSaidFred wrote on January 22, 2008 3:50 PM:

>>It should also be noted that Fred is a man of many manly scents.>>

With no common scents to speak of.

One thing's for sure: Jeri's not putting out tonight. Which is just fine with Fred. More quality time to spend with the Sandman.

BronxInTN wrote on January 22, 2008 3:51 PM:

The New York Times was terribly unkind to my former Senator. There were quotes like "Of late, Mr. Thompson cast himself as a country boy who would bring truth to Washington (in fact, he resides across the Potomac River from the capital, in McLean, Va)." and "His speaking style swung between folksy and laconic to the point of sleepy." If such factual reporting eventually becomes the rage on the campaign trail, there is no telling what damage will ensue to various candidates.

Dave J. wrote on January 22, 2008 4:00 PM:

The ultimate in Fred worship, however, comes from CBN's David Brody (who has appeared twice on "Meet the Press"), who wrote:

So Fred, are you in or not? The answer is obvious but this political dating game has gone on long enough. Thompson is playing this thing like the cool, handsome jock in high school who teased all the girls who wanted to go out with him. You know the guy I'm talking about. The one with the smooth line where he says, "Hey baby, I'll check you later. Maybe we'll hang out".

LongTom wrote on January 22, 2008 4:11 PM:

Oh, well, I guess not enough people wanted a Playmate first lady. Now if only fewer people wanted an ex-president first "lady"...

The closer McCain gets to the Republican nomination, the less frantic we'll have to be about the possibility of Hillary being nominated. After all, a loss to McCain won't be as bad as a loss to Romney, Giuliani, or Huckabee. McCain's the closest thing to a human being the Republicans have. His nomination will make Hillary's certain loss far less calamitous.

Dee Illuminati wrote on January 22, 2008 4:23 PM:

Freepers lining up to get a drink of Koolaid in a tropical climate (over 900 posts).

If you see somebody leaping off a BLDG. it is probably a Freeper and not a stock broker.

I think personally what Fred did was smart, unlike Rudy he retained his integrity and will not be branded a loser as a result of poor finances and little organization.

But, I think that his endorsement will not carry that much weight unless he actively makes appearances for a candidate.

He has however raised name recognition considerably and craeted a organization for other offices.

grover_rover wrote on January 22, 2008 4:50 PM:

It should be noted, that Thompson is (was) widely considered to have been sapping votes from McCain, so with him officially gone, there is a good chance McCain will get a boost from this.

And if we nominate Hillary, then hello President McCain! (And bye bye Congress)

Anonymous wrote on January 22, 2008 5:44 PM:

"I hope that my country and my party have benefited from our having made this effort"

What "effort" would that be, Fred?

za wrote on January 22, 2008 5:44 PM:

"I hope that my country and my party have benefited from our having made this effort"

What "effort" would that be, Fred?

CranialRectalLoopback wrote on January 22, 2008 5:51 PM:

John, dead man walking, McCain will not be elected. He's married to Bush and the Clintons will let the people know.

polaris wrote on January 22, 2008 6:31 PM:

ever wonder if Fred was a spoiler for McCain from day one ? No enthusiasm for campaigning, late getting into the race, no real message......

Helena Montana wrote on January 22, 2008 8:07 PM:

Shorter Fred: Sure I wanted to be president, but not if I had to, you know, WORK for it.

bearclaw wrote on January 22, 2008 8:32 PM:

"Either way, we stand by our original assertion that the whiff of manliness that Matthews detected around Fred just didn't get him very far as a candidate."

Obviously, Fred should have been running "scratch and sniff" campaign ads. A manly smell doesn't get you very far in the age of televisions and the intertubes. When your tv can convey smells, Fred will run again.

Arun wrote on January 23, 2008 7:26 AM:

Next, the Freudian analysis of why Republicans rejected a manly candidate...

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