2008 Woodie Awards
'Law and Order' star campaigns
Rodrigo Diaz
Issue date: 9/24/07 Section: Politics
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Upon examination, every leading candidate in the GOP field has some unattractive qualities to voters. Presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani may not be conservative enough, Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney is a Mormon in a party of mostly Protestants and Sen. John McCain has been a strong supporter of an unpopular war.
Then there is Fred Thompson, the former senator from Tennessee and "Law and Order" star who has played a prosecutor, senator and a president on TV.
Thompson seems to evoke the comparison to Ronald Reagan more so than any other candidate. He is tall, easy going and a popular actor as well as a true Republican.
He opposes gun control, abortion, amnesty for immigrants and believes the next president should increase defense spending to make the U.S. and its borders safer.
But for all of the "A's" on his Republican report card, Thompson is still beset by nagging problems to his campaign.
To start, Thompson announced his official candidacy after months of unofficial campaigning on Sept. 6 on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," which was aired the same time as a televised Republican debate. This bothered many Republicans who believed it was unfair to keep himself so far removed from the attention and criticism that all candidates receive upon declaring their bids to run.
His late declaration caused him to miss several early debates, including the one in New Hampshire that took place during his appearance on "The Tonight Show." This irked many of the early primary voters in New Hampshire who have historically played a crucial role in the selection of each party's candidate.
Fergus Cullen, chairman of the New Hampshire Republican Party, said, "For him to then go on Jay Leno … while other candidates are having a substantive discussion on issues is not going to be missed by New Hampshire voters."
Thompson is also seen to have a shaky attitude towards abortion, even though he has publicly said he opposes it and his voting record in the Senate confirms that.
Then there is Fred Thompson, the former senator from Tennessee and "Law and Order" star who has played a prosecutor, senator and a president on TV.
Thompson seems to evoke the comparison to Ronald Reagan more so than any other candidate. He is tall, easy going and a popular actor as well as a true Republican.
He opposes gun control, abortion, amnesty for immigrants and believes the next president should increase defense spending to make the U.S. and its borders safer.
But for all of the "A's" on his Republican report card, Thompson is still beset by nagging problems to his campaign.
To start, Thompson announced his official candidacy after months of unofficial campaigning on Sept. 6 on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," which was aired the same time as a televised Republican debate. This bothered many Republicans who believed it was unfair to keep himself so far removed from the attention and criticism that all candidates receive upon declaring their bids to run.
His late declaration caused him to miss several early debates, including the one in New Hampshire that took place during his appearance on "The Tonight Show." This irked many of the early primary voters in New Hampshire who have historically played a crucial role in the selection of each party's candidate.
Fergus Cullen, chairman of the New Hampshire Republican Party, said, "For him to then go on Jay Leno … while other candidates are having a substantive discussion on issues is not going to be missed by New Hampshire voters."
Thompson is also seen to have a shaky attitude towards abortion, even though he has publicly said he opposes it and his voting record in the Senate confirms that.
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