Flopping Like a Fred

George Will is thoroughly unimpressed with the newest republican presidential candidate:

Sean Hannity, who is no Torquemada conducting inquisitions of conservatives, asked Thompson: "When you look at the other current crop of candidates -- Republicans -- where is the distinction between your positions and what you view as theirs?" Thompson replied: "Well, to tell you the truth, I haven't spent a whole lot of time going into the details of their positions."

Sean Hannity is a complete hack who is actively running interference for non-conservative candidates, while attacking the only legitimate candidate in the field: my boy, Ron Paul. Hannity, and people like him, is the reason Republicans will receive a well-deserved beat-down in the '08 elections. But I digress.

Fred doesn't really make sense as a candidate. He is running because the Republicans are still searching for the next Bob Dole, someone who the party rank and file will tolerate, but who is not a genuine threat to Hillary's assured and anointed rise as Queen. Thus it is interesting to see that while Rudy McRomney can no longer be taken seriously, it appears that Fred is too incompetent to even play his assigned role. This, of course, begs the question: who will the party nominate? It may not be too late for Newt to enter the race.

He also is unfamiliar with the details of his own positions... Thompson said he had advocated McCain-Feingold to prevent, among other things, corporations and labor unions from "giving large sums of money to individual politicians." But corporate and union contributions to individual candidates were outlawed in 1907 and 1947, respectively.

This isn't a good sign. You can be ignorant of many things and still gain the presidency, witness George W. Bush's continued mistakes in foreign policy. But you have to be able to convince the people that you know enough to deserve their trust. That Thompson doesn't know anythin about the bills for which he voted is appalling. Unless he cleans up his act, and soon, Fred has no shot at either the nomination or the presidency.