But he was on that TV show, so he oozes credibility.

And Hilary changes the way she talks depending on the audience, don't forget that!!!

Wasn't Hastert caught doing a similar thing awhile back? I believe that he drove away from a photo op at a gas station, and then a block away got into a limo.

Now all he has to do is rent an abandoned pig farm call it a ranch and start 'clearing' some brush.

My impression of Thompson from some of the speeches I've seen:

Dick Cheney, with 10% less evil, and a looser fly.

How about that fake ranch in Texas Karen Hughes bought for Bush a year before the New Hampshire primary?

Somerby is willfully missing Sheiber's point. First off, Scheiber never said that Thompson's truck would be criticized in the press corps, only that it would be mentioned. His main point, though, was that, even if the truck were criticized, that criticism would fall on deaf ears. His essay was an attempt to explain why.

Now nine times out of ten I disagree with what's written in TNR. But that doesn't mean I won't go into each article with an open mind.

Somerby's hobbyhorse is what happens when the press falls down on the job. That doesn't mean that all stories in the worlsd are relevant to that interest, though.

Scheiber made a good and novel argument about the American psyche, but Somerby'd rather pick nits on some tangent.

Can we talk about Scheiber's theory about the American people's ideal candidate instead of rehashing tired but true lines about what's wrong with the press? Surely discussion of the second point doesn't need to obviate the first.

Fred Thompson was elected!? To the US Senate!? I thought he got himself appointed after some old fart Senator died to do research for a role. He was actually elected, huh? Imagine that.

The "old fart's" seat that Fred won belonged to Gore.

Apropos to nothing, James Kirchick over at TNR and The Plank has to be the biggest, useless asshole this side of Debbie Howell at WaPo. He is giving high fives to The Weekly Standard for their whimsical take on McGrivey, religion, Gays and Goebells. What a fucking hoot.

Its a disease...Hastert had it too. Remember the hybrid car stunt?

"Basically, he just drove the thing the final few hundred feet before each campaign event, and then ditched it for something nicer as soon as he was out of sight of the yokels. Quite a man of the people, no?"

Republican rank and file will eat this sh*t like it's ice cream.

Re. Disputo on May 7, 2007 at 9:24 PM |:
Just missed that comment. Schreiber's point seems dubious to me. So Schreiber says regular folk, working and middle class Americans, want to be rich, but want to be amiable, folksy regular-guy rich who have not forgotten their down-home roots?
But Reagan, Bush II and Fred Thompson were rather patent and obvious phonies at this. If you go along these lines then seems to me either
1) many very gullible people in the US
2) people really want to be high class high-consuming sophisticated rich, but who are phonies pretending to retain their down-home regular guy tastes, habits and roots.

Here's another idea. Maybe people in the US don't want to feel inferior to smarty pants politicians in office, so they vote for candidates who put on inept and obviously phony shows. They see the stupid show and figure, "that guy's pretty simple, I can figure him out." That's about as convincing as Schreiber's story.

I grew up on a farm, I've worked on a ranch. What the heck did Bush ever do outdoors there except endlessly clear brush around the house, and dress up in some get-up that looked like Kennebunkport tennis-pastels and ride his mountain bike? Man, that is some real he-man ranchin' there, ain't it?

The "old fart's" seat that Fred won belonged to Gore.
Posted by: Disputo on May 7, 2007 at 9:24 PM |:
-----
I know, I was making a dumb joke. Sorry.

Fred Thompson = Larry "Lonesome" Rhodes

Basically, he just drove the thing the final few hundred feet before each campaign event, and then ditched it for something nicer as soon as he was out of sight of the yokels. Quite a man of the people, no?

Kind of like wearing a codpiece flight suit and jet-landing on an aircraft carrier that says "Mission Accomplished"

Thompson is a natural.

Who?

The real question is, will we hear that he spent 18 years working as a lobbyist?

Is this more important than the fake reasons for the Iraq war?

As much as I think that this blog is one of the best, I don't believe that I have ever seen a post here that was entirey devoted to the more disastrous fakery.

If the blogs keep pushing the fake-pickup story, it will eventually get picked up by the mainstream press. THe question is whether blogs run by intelligent people can bear to devote themselves to such idiotic trivia for long enough to get it into the mainstream. It's also somewhat difficult to get stories like this told right now, when Thompson is still part of a big undifferentiated pack. Wait till it's really down to 3 or 4 candidates and it might make a difference.

Incidentally, how many people are noting that this is the first election in which neither side has a presumptive nominee since probably 1952?

If a Democrat did this, it would be wall-to-wall clucking on the Sunday morning talk shows.

If a Republican does it, all you'll get is a clip of Chris Matthews smirking while he compliments the candidate on his mastery of "smart retail politics".

Republicans don't just condone this crap, they cultivate, admire, and demand it.

Hollyweird actor, dubious "Christian", lobbyist, phony on the campaign trail, and serial monogamist.

I don't know but maybe we should back this guy. At least we could we WON the culture war.

He's an actor. The pickup is a prop. It's a tool of his trade.

Would we be so quick to judge if he waved around a plunger, then gave it to someone offstage to place in a special, fur-lined, plunger case, a true hallmark of the professional craftsman, who has respect for his tools?

If this story gets wider play, it might start a few more people thinking about Georgie's erstwhile pig farm, his endless war against the native bushes, or even Ronnie's recreational logsplitting (for those who can remember that far back).

On the other hand, the fact that Bush is afraid of horses has never caught on, so this is most likely an unrealizable epiphany.

Bias causes an intelligent guy like Kevin to: (1) try to make this into a significant issue; and (2) take one incident where a person observed Thompson leaving an event in a different car as the basis to assert " he just drove the thing the final few hundred feet before each campaign event, and then ditched it for something nicer as soon as he was out of sight of the yokels." Anyone see a lack of factual basis for Kevin's assertion?

But all politicians use props to some extent. I remember hearing Pat Caudell [sp?] saying that President Carter used to cary an empty luggage bag as his man of the people prop in the 70's.

The poster above has it: if a Dem did this, it would be heard around the world the next day, and every day after. And the "liberal" commentators would jump on board with their predictable "What was he thinking?" lines.

---
But all politicians use props to some extent.
---

Maybe like, ummmm, I dunno... you got a spare aircraft carrier or blow-torched turkey?

The truck in question is a 1990 Chevy, which the famed statesman-thespian rented during his maiden Senate campaign in 1994.

Don't take it out on the truck... Poor "ol' baby" was simply-too tuckered out after hauling "Ol' Fred" around day after day--and needed some well-deserved R&R after each of his appearances.

Someone should ask Fred if he plans on nominating "ol' baby" for a cabinet position.

typical hollywood elite bullshit...or something like that.

What's the problem here? Do you really expect a presidential candidate to drive himself around? That would be like expecting President Bush to pilot the plane himself when he landed on USS Lincoln.

The red pick-up was simply a symbol, like a flag on the speaker's podium. Are you against the flag too?

Hey! Clinton had a pickup, too. He did it first, so why are you picking on Thompson?

Because they are hypocrits, jrw.

---
Clinton had a pickup, too.
---

You are mistaken; that was a van.

Shag carpet, custom heart-shaped windows... the works.

Basically, he just drove the thing the final few hundred feet before each campaign event, and then ditched it for something nicer as soon as he was out of sight of the yokels. Quite a man of the people, no?

I think you just described the MO of every politician in the world.

For instance, replace "big red pickup" with "anti-war platform," "Fred Thompson" with "Democratic candidate," and "sweet silver luxury sedan" with "all the fucking money you want to wage an illegal war," you get basically the same result.

I think Thompson probably has a fair chance of being elected president, if the health issue does not hurt him (or knock him out) and nothing significant surfaces about his past. He is smart and likeable, with a great voice and good presence.

He also has a pretty good take on immigration, explaining that the broken borders are a terrorist threat that needs to be handled first before we decide how to treat the illegals in the country. That issue is waiting for someone to effectively address it, and I think that is the way to do so. He also should be generally well received in the battle ground states.

Could you imagine how he would likely beat Hillary in a debate at 6'5" and his voice articulating reasonable conservative positions against short Hillary and her voice defending liberal positions? He probably would pick up a point or two just by the photograph of him standing next to her.

A good debate would be the two southern boys, fast talking Edwards and slow talking Thompson. I think the "winner" there likely would be totally subjective based on your pre-debate biases.

Anyone seen Dick Cheney's ego lately? 'cuz it sounds like it just imploded:

---
Astronomers reported today that they had seen the most powerful stellar explosion ever recorded.
---

link

Nothing left but a cold black cinder. Oh, wait! That's Lynne Cheney, not a cinder! Sorry; hard to tell them apart sometimes.

He also has a pretty good take on immigration, explaining that the broken borders are a terrorist threat that needs to be handled first before we decide how to treat the illegals in the country.

I like it. Build a wall across our border with Canada, THEN round up the illegals.

I feel safer already.

Al's flag

Thompson (and Hagel, and Gore) are like persons in an Ames room: they look huge as long as they're off in the corner, but get smaller the closer they get.

If Thompson steps in, he'll quickly sink like a stone: less charismatic than Romney and Giuliani, much dumber, and lazy. (Also, he has no money.)

If Gore gets in, it will be like throwing dry newspaper on a fire: a huge flareup, lots of crackling and noise, and then it all dissipates in a cloud of smoke. Remember the Gore of 2000? He hasn't changed.

And Hagel - did you read in Raw Story that he's open to running as an Independent? Whoo hoo! Run, Chuck, run!!!!

Kevin,

OK, so Thompson can be a phony.

You know what? If he has a decent philosophy of governance and can run the government, I just don't give a damn about his carhopping. For that matter, Rudy can dress like Liza Minelli at a state dinner, Edwards can get a million-dollar haircut, and Clinton can get his carrot waxed while phoning in airstrikes in Bosnia. All is forgiven if that someone we elect won't start a phony war, will make sure my food is edible, will do something about global warming, will honor the rule of law, will be fiscally responsible (etc).

From what I've read (e.g., donating to the Scooter Libby defense fund) there's plenty to dislike about Thompson regarding his professional responsibilities, and I'd welcome reading more material on this.

Tom

Reminds me of the second run for the Senate by Slade Gorton of Washington - Lost the previous election - was told that he had been considered too aloof, too aligned with the power structure and not the common man in the rural areas.

So, Slade, who lived in the tony section of Magnolia, looking out over Elliot Bay towards downtown Seattle, and who was very "Brooksie" in dress, chose a new path. Now, it did help that his Democratic opponent was an African-American from the government in Seattle - Slade toured the small ag and timber towns of the state wearing Pendletons and chinos and railed against "those big city folk in Seattle". Well, it worked for, at least one term. He lost King County, but swept the rural vote. Once he won, it was back to "Brooksie".

What is it about Tennessee Senators and faux populism--Thompson and the red pickup and Lamar Alexander and the plaid shirt (in New Hampshire). You'd think one would have learned from the other. Maybe they'll go to the corner store and try to pick up milk.

Rereading all the comments, there seems to be a theme. Damn it, people! He's not a f****g actor! He didn't just play a lawyer on TV--he really was one, once upon a time. Yeah, he was a lobbyist and a really lousy actor too. But can't we at least get the story straight?!

The guy is lazy like a fat toad on a cold day. He's not going anywhere, no matter what the polls say.

third paul --- are you from the Puget Sound area too?

And one more:

The red pick-up was simply a symbol, like a flag on the speaker's podium. Are you against the flag too?

Was Al trying to make a joke? Do I sense a note of sarcasm? Doubt it!

jcrickett,

Lived in Seattle for several years - Jim McDermott was my Representative.

Live in Portland, OR, now in Earl Blumenhauer's district.

smedley,

You miss the political appeal of his immigration position. Virtually everone thinks it is ridiculous that we cannot control our borders, but many are hesitant to be very aggressive against the illegals already here. So Thompson plays both sides of the issue and prospers, tying controlling the borders into terrorism for added traction, and indicating a willingness to be nice down the road to the current illegals.

Re Skade Gorton - He was the only politician I knew who wore contacts with his glasses. Evidently he couldn't get contacts powerful enough to correct his vision, but wore the strongest ones he could get so his glasses wouldn't look like the bottom of Coke Bottles.

Re Hillary using a different accent in the south - anyone who follows politics knows Southern politicians (and Hillary did live in Arkansas for several years) turn up the accent when they are in the south and turn down the accent when they are in the north. This applies to everyone from Jimmy Carter to Trent Lott, it's only news when Hillary does it.

We can call him Fony Fred. Or is that Phony Phred.

So, faux populist senators from North Carolina who build 28,000 square foot houses, trash their less wealthy neighbors, and get 400 dollar haircuts are ok with you, but the red pickup is a problem? Mr. Thompson would have to go quite a way to be phonier than Edwards.

Or you.

Incidentally, how many people are noting that this is the first election in which neither side has a presumptive nominee since probably 1952?
Posted by: mattsteinglass on May 7, 2007 at 10:14 PM

I noticed there were a bunch of Dems and it seems very similar to 1992 in that regard, however, I can't recall a *bunch* of Repub contenders ever running, even without an incumbent President or VP running (like Nixon in 1960).

C.S.: "So, faux populist senators from North Carolina who build 28,000 square foot houses, trash their less wealthy neighbors, and get 400 dollar haircuts are ok with you, but the red pickup is a problem? Mr. Thompson would have to go quite a way to be phonier than Edwards."

By your extraordinarily arbitrary and dubious standards, Franklin Roosevelt and his wife Eleanor were both faux populists, too.

I think I agree with Kenji. You're the fraud here, masquerading as an informed voter.

My girlfriend dated Thompson for a while about 10-15 years ago. He let her drive one of his other cars. I think it was an Avanti or something like that.

It was really sleek and mod. Looked like something the Avengers would drive.

I didn't think anyone could be as big a phony as chickengeorge with his "ranch" and his fake Texas drawl.
Hollywood Fred is getting there, though.
Is his accent at least real?

I've never understood the idea that a man with a big house couldn't be a populist. "Populist" doesn't mean "ascetic". Edwards didn't trample on anyone to make his money. He didn't break any strikes. He didn't force people onto Medicaid. He's rich.

Thompsonm may be a phoney about the pickup truck, but what will cout in the end with the people is his experience as a hard-workin', straight-shootin' big city DA . . .

i think the people on this thread are too hard on mr. thompson.

every pres. candidate (rep. or dem.) should be asked one quest.: have you ever driven a stick
shift pick-up truck? if the ans. is no then you should resign from the campaign immediately.
possibly thompson is the only one who could ans. in the affirmative.

i once owned a pick-up truck (a 1939 ford half ton pick-up(*)---god i loved that little truck).
i think every five year kid ought to have an irish setter and every 25 yr. old kid ought to have a 25 yr. old pick-up truck(**)

(*) to see a pict. of this model go to wikipedia
and type in ford motor co. and then scroll
down the page three quarters of the way.

(**) i also believe that when
people finish college
their starting salaries
should depend on one and
only one thing: how many
advanced undergrad. math
courses they took-----
(my liberal arts friends
friends characterize me
as even crazier than phil
spector).

The red pickup truck was a grand homage to that auteur filmmaker, Mel Brooks.

Do you remember to end of "Blazing Saddles" when Sherrif Bart rides off into the sunset on his golden palomino, gets off the horse, and then is driven off in a limo?

Fred Thompson - a true man of the people, er, ah, cinema.

What could be phonier than a Tennessean as a NYC DA?

This sounds like the time Jimmy Carter carried his own suitcase off Airforce One.
Or the time the Clinton's were "accidentally" caught on tape dancing on the beach after the Monica blow up.
Or the way in which Obama is never caught smoking on camera.

Serious issues.

Shocking how Fred Thompson pulls a PR stunt! What an outrage!
I know liberals hate it when their tactics are copied by Republicans. It means their mind-numbed followers might be fooled into voting for someone else. Liberal sheep are hard to keep happy.

Where's the thread on the outcome of the French elections?

Where's the thread on the outcome of the French elections?

which has absolutely naught to do with Yankeedom or Yankee-dumb's weird and perverted conservatism. Why is everything always so self-referential with you nits? (cause it's all you fucking know).

Actually, there's something I can't quite figure out-- why is it that so many low-level politicians (and, really, every politician starting with Senators without a committee chair on down is "low-level") refuse to drive their own darn cars?

And not only that, why is it that they never hire a car service? Why are they always pawning this job off to an aide or campaign staffer as a means of "working one's way up" in politics? Why the heck should a legislative director's most important qualification be that he used to be some congressman's driver?

Shocking how Fred Thompson pulls a PR stunt! What an outrage!

The outrage will be when the press hails his red pickup truck as a sign of his authenticity.

thompson's gym is fitness first in tyson's corner. next i see him there, i'll make a point to stick around to watch him drive off in a red pick-up.

Yes, yes, but how much does he spend on his hair??

The red pickup truck was a grand homage to that auteur filmmaker, Mel Brooks.

The red pickup truck was an homage to the ground-breaking African-American salvor, Fred Sanford.

The red pickup truck was an homage to the ground-breaking African-American salvor, Fred Sanford. and through this route an homage to the British rag and bone man Albert Steptoe. Wait, something's not adding up here.

Schreiber's point seems dubious to me. So Schreiber says regular folk, working and middle class Americans, want to be rich, but want to be amiable, folksy regular-guy rich who have not forgotten their down-home roots?

I think it's actually that regular folk want to be rich, but they also want to believe that rich people think that regular working folk are really the salt of the earth, and that even though they are rich, they *wish* they could be as authentic as working class folks.

Of course, these rich folks wouldn't be playing dress-up if they didn't know they could fool us working class folks - too many of us are easy to sucker.

Fred Thompson and his silly pickup truck is not the problem.

The problem is Barack Obama and Black Rage.

You'll see.

Orwell: "Serious issues."

No serious issues involve the mass murder of thousands of Iraqis and American soldiers for the vanity of one man and his greedy cronies. You are one of them, and you chose your name well--although "Traitor" would have been even more apt.

lol, republican campaign ploy of old red truck = "Hey look I am a cracker just like y'all."

If Fred Thompson is so frickin' great, why the hell did he serve only one full term in the Senate?

…he would likely beat Hillary in a debate at 6'5" and his voice articulating reasonable conservative positions… brian on May 8, 2007 at 12:14 AM

…liberals hate it when their tactics are copied by Republicans. . …G.W. Orwell at 8:56 AM

…Barack Obama and Black Rage…. TruthSpinner at 10:30 AM

The red pickup truck was an homage to the ground-breaking African-American salvor, Fred Sanford.

LMAO.

Brilliant.

If Fred Thompson is so frickin' great, why the hell did he serve only one full term in the Senate?

He couldn't take the pay cut.

The job didn't come with a car.

"...have you ever driven a stick shift pick-up truck?... i once owned a pick-up truck (a 1939 ford half ton pick-up(*)---god i loved that little truck)..."
Posted by: wschneid25 on May 8, 2007 at 8:38 AM

I had to use a 1953 Chevy to drive 3 miles down a dirt road to meet a school bus every morning when I was fourteen/fifteen. The quaint weirdness about it wasn't the 4-speed kerchunker, it was the vacuum operated windshield wipers that would quit moving when climbing a hill in a downpour.

LMAO!!! What a silly thing to whine about! You people are pathetic! If this is the biggest fault you can find with the man, things are looking up for Fred. Get a life!

Kind of like flying to every global warming event in a provate jet and then showing up at the event in a hybrid car, huh?

I wonder if that "blond All-American staffer" is the current Mrs. Thompson.

Have you seen her? She's a real Hollywood trophy wife, which is to say, beneath all the phony tinsel is the real tinsel. People who thought Teresa Heinz-Kerry wasn't up to First Lady standards should get a good look at Mrs. Thompson.

I know absolutely nothing else about her, so she may be a Harvard Ph.D., but if so, she certainly dresses down to bimbo level.

Re comparing the $400 haircut to Phony Phred's pickup truck, at least Edwards didn't get a $5 cut in the chair at Bubba's Barber Shop before he went off to have it touched up by the Hairdresser to the Stars.

I think Edwards has gravitas problems, AND I don't like his hair, but at least he's honest about how much it costs to get it to look like that.

Your problem with Fred Thompson is that he rode to a campaign event in someone elses pick-up truck?

Haha, liberals. Every hour I'll repeat the same inane mockery. And you can't stop me!

Wow, you are really impressive. It's soooo funny to watch Americans die while you strut your stuff on the playground. Now can we have our lunch money back?

I think it's actually that regular folk want to be rich, but they also want to believe that rich people think that regular working folk are really the salt of the earth, and that even though they are rich, they *wish* they could be as authentic as working class folks.

Exactly, which is why being "fake" is actually appealing to these voters. Pretending to be working class or pretending to be a southerner is actually a plus for these voters because it demonstrates that the politician is showing "respect."

He also promised to raise as much as 4-5 million for the Scooter Libby defense fund, what with the whole trial being a travesty and all...

yet another piece of work republican.

How is this any different than a good lib wagging a finger at the rest of us to drive those econo-box vehicles to protect the environment, then they hop in ther SUVs which wisk them off to their private charter jets so that they can travel around the country telling us all how harmful we are to the environment?

How is this different from Al Gore taking a caravan of vehicles across a small distance in order to attend the Cannes premiere of his movie last year?

How is this different from John Edwards opining over "two Americas" while he's eating up more electricity in his new compound than half of the state of North Carolina?

How is this any different from Hillary or Barak suddenly discovering southern accents when they are speaking to an African American group, but quickly ditching it when they're done pandering and stuffing their coffers with Hollywood dollars?

I couldn't care less what Thompson drove to a campaign event, but then again, I actually bother to think about what's being said and not how it's being presented to me.

Apparently, to libs, it's all about HOW they shove that spoon in your mouths rather than what's actually in the spoon.