AP: SC lawmakers urge Thompson to run
Published May 30th, 2007 in The Crew.
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Jim Davenport is reporting that a small group of SC Lawmakers are joining Congressman Gresham Barrett in supporting a potential bid for the Republican nomination. Those lawmakers held a press conference today led by State Senator Larry Grooms.
From the AP:
Joining Grooms at the news conference Wednesday were state Sens. John Hawkins and Ray Cleary and Reps. Michael Thompson, Brian White, Eric Bedingfield and Jeff Duncan.
Also, a change of plans for the Thompson announcement?Â
We brought you a news item from Politico.com about a Fourth of July announcement from Thompson. Now the politico appears to have had that wrong.
The National Review online is reporting:
Just talked to a Thompson source I’ll call “TA3″ (Thompson Associate 3). Much more coming shortly, but the first word was, there will not be a presidential announcement from Fred Thompson on July 4.
(The Politico got it wrong, it appears.)Â
As state lawmakers rally behind Thompson, there seems to be a continued confusion about when/if his bid will actually take place.
Read the SC AP story below.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) _ A handful of South Carolina legislators on Wednesday urged
FredThompson toward a formal presidential candidacy and said groundwork for a
campaign was being laid in this early voting state.
State Sen. Larry Grooms said conservative voters in South Carolina are looking
for something more than what the current field of Republican candidates has to
offer.
”They’re all good guys, but there’s something lacking in every one of them,”
said Grooms, who was flanked by six other legislators and U.S. Rep. Gresham
Barrett, R-S.C., at a Statehouse news conference. ”I think FredThompson is the
type of candidate that many people in this state are looking for.”
People close to the former Tennessee senator and ”Law & Order” actor say he
will form a ”testing the waters” committee that will allow him to raise money
and that he plans a campaign swing through various early primary states in late
June before an official campaign launch around July 4.
Barrett said the supporters were simply trying to build excitement for Thompson
in South Carolina.
”We know he’s behind the 8-ball and he’s got a lot of ground to make up,”
Barrett said. This will ”help him establish kind of a skeleton crew so when he
does announce that we’ve got some people in place that he can build on.”
Barrett said he did not know of any planned visits by Thompson to South
Carolina.
Other presidential candidates have been raising money and soliciting support in
South Carolina for months. Arizona Sen. JohnMcCain enlisted a majority of
Republican legislators here earlier this year for his exploratory campaign.
But some, like state Rep. Mike Pitts of Laurens, have said they are considering
taking their endorsement elsewhere. Pitts was particularly upset because of
McCain’s support for the illegal immigration bill now being debated in the
Senate.
Joining Grooms at the news conference Wednesday were state Sens. John Hawkins
and Ray Cleary and Reps. Michael Thompson, Brian White, Eric Bedingfield and
Jeff Duncan.
Thompson, White, and Duncan are all doing whatever Gresham wants so they can scrap over his Congressional Seat.
You girls seem scared by big bad Fred. I wonder why when Romney rolled out his legislative team you girls made it out to be the greatest thing ever. Fair and balanced, ha. Go Fred!
Uh Oh,
We are fairly impressed by Thompson’s ability to rally these endorsements, and I don’t see where in this post we make it out to be otherwise or act “scared”. But he is still way behind Romney and McCain in the endorsement battle.
The fact of the matter is the only reason I didn’t come out and cover this event myself is because I didn’t find out about it until it was too late.
And when Thompson makes a cool YouTube video like Team Romney did showing off his S.C. endorsements, we will be sure to post it on the Chaser.
And one more thing uh-oh. Its been our headline all day. So get a life. Come back after you’ve taken your happy pills.
So what if it’s been your headline all day. If anything that just shows you girls at Romney HQ AKA The Shot have been busy trying to counter the instant Mo’ Big Fred brings to the race.
Your arguement makes no sense. Go home, take a blood pressure pill, and then come back when you can be a little nicer. Also, take a courage pill too and put your name on your post.
And by the way…we like Thompson just like we like Rudy, Romney, and Huckabee.
And when will you folks over at 1600 begin to realize that we know your IP address?
1600? You mean 1600 Pennslyvania Avenue? Where Fred Thompson will be living in about two years?
Thompson would be a wonderful President. We like him.
I look forward to leaving confusion and anxiety behind me regarding the existing GOP Presidential Candidates. When Mr. Thompson comes into the race, I will have a clear heart and mind as to where my energies will be directed. Mr. Thompson is the only hope we have at this point to advance conservatism.