a dream or a song: The La-Z-Boy Candidate

Thursday, October 4, 2007

The La-Z-Boy Candidate

Ah Fred Thompson and his "armchair" campaign really amuses me. I think I've mentioned on this site before how I think the "La-Z- Good Ol' Boy" Thompson would be out of the race by Thanksgiving, when he'd want to just kick back with a Cuban cigar and watch football, and so the article in today's NY Times really amused me. I'd like to think I would write something very similar if I was a campaign reporter
Titled " On Stump, Low-Key Thompson Stirs Few Sparks" it is focused on how while campaigning he is, less than inspiring and is not that dynamic "Reaganesque" figure that so many had pinned their hopes on.
Some highlights:
Iowans saw [in Thompson] a candidate who is subdued and sonorous, a laconic presence who spoke in soft monotone, threw few elbows and displayed little drive to distinguish himself from his opponents {jump ahead}
Mr. Thompson spoke in broad generalities about the conservative principles that he said had informed his political views... and led him to run for president....In the process, he often lulled audiences into the kind of stillness that engulfed the room when he finished talking at the “Lunch with Fred Thompson” in Marshalltown. {jump ahead}

Voters who came out to see Mr. Thompson as he traveled through Iowa, even while expressing admiration for his views and intense interest in his candidacy, said they were struck by how little energy or passion he appeared to bring into a room.
"I hope his campaign strategy works for him, but I’m not sure it will,” said Kay Odell, a retired child-abuse worker, who talked to Mr. Thompson as he campaigned at a coffee shop in Iowa Falls. “He comes across as very low-key.” {jump}
Mr. Thompson does not appear to share the taste of his some of his rivals for lingering at the rope line shaking hands; he tends not to ask many questions of the people he meets and tends not to make prolonged eye contact with them.

And the very best part of the article:
"Still, Mr. Thompson at times seems to be looking for his sea legs. In an interview with Kay Henderson of Radio Iowa on Wednesday, in talking about Iran, he referred to the “Soviet Union and China.” (Ms. Henderson, at the end of her blog post on the exchange, wrote: “No, I did not mistype. Thompson said Soviet Union rather than Russia.”)

Seems like Freddie is still hunting Red October. Wow this article actually made me laugh more than it should have. And when combined with this youtube video from an Iowa tv news (NBC-13) broadcast, it was too perfect, which I'm sure you could tell by the greatness of the headline: Fred Thompson Running From Reporters. Ah Fred, the only thing you should be president of is a country club, but keep on fighting-you're the only interesting suspenseful part of this race