Wake Forest, NC:

On a stunning spring day on the campaign trail in North Carolina, I chatted up Fred Thompson who was on the stump for the first time since dropping out, campaigning for John Mccain. McCain was giving a speech at Wake Forest University on judicial conservatism (see earlier post.)
When I asked Thompson if he experienced any ‘crash’ or difficulty readjusting to the pace of a slowed down normal life after his campaign, he paused, grinned and with a twinkle in his eye said:

“That’s one of the advantages of the way I campaigned”

He winked and joked that you don’t have to make that many adjustments.

I laughed out loud, and reminded Thompson that he and I have history together with him dissing his own candidacy in front of an open mike, he laughed and barked amiably:

“Who cares?”

Back before the NH primary as Thompson and I waited for FNC to take our interview live after his remarks to the famed “Politics and Eggs” breakfast, I joked to the producers that we were keeping the ‘next president’ waiting too long and we should go live quickly.

Thompson quipped for all to hear that HE too had a busy schedule.

Reporters took it as proof that Thompson was not a serious candidate.

In fact, Thompson both then, and again today, was attempting a self deprecating joke. It’s funny in all sorts of ways.

John McCain came to Wake Forest University in North Carolina hoping to grab a headline during Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama’s protracted duel. He tried to gain the upper hand on a key presidential issue: The picking of federal judges, 3 Supreme Court justices are over 70 years old and hundreds of positions are open for federal judges. The next president will likely have the ability to shape the bench.

“Senators Obama and Clinton have very different ideas from my own. They are both lawyers themselves, and don’t seem to mind at all when fundamental questions of social policy are preemptively decided by judges instead of by the people and their elected representatives”

McCain will reaasure conservatives he’ll appoint strict constructionist judges who, as he says, will apply the constitution rather than create new law in their courts.

“My nominees will understand that there are clear limits to the scope of judicial power, and clear limits to the scope of federal power.”

Though McCain helped get Chief Justice John Roberts & Justice Samuel Alito (both conservative!) confirmed, some Republicans didn’t like that he led a gang of 14 moderates to broker the deal.
He calls Roberts and Alito models for the kind of judges he’d nominate, and rips Clinton and Obama for having voted against both!

“Somehow, by Senator Obama’s standard, even Judge Roberts didn’t measure up. And neither did Justice Samuel Alito. Apparently, nobody quite fits the bill except for an elite group of activist judges, lawyers, and law professors who think they know wisdom when they see it — and they see it only in each other.”

While McCain expresses respect for the federal bench, his disdain for activist judges for being arrogant and dangerous is most pointed.

“Some federal judges operate by fiat, shrugging off generations of legal wisdom and precedent while expecting their own opinions to go unquestioned. Only their favorite precedents are to be considered “settled law,” and everything else is fair game.”

The next president could see as many as three (Stevens, Kennedy. Ginsburg) Supreme Court seats open up.

Though abortion politics can dominate such debates, McCain makes no mention of it in his prepared remarks. Like most Republicans, and unlike most Democrats, he has long promised he won’t have any abortion litmus test. He challenges Democrats to stop making confirmation hearings a partisan game of obstructionism and gotcha.

“Always hanging in the air over these tense confirmation battles is the suspicion that maybe, just maybe, a nominee for the Court will dare to be faithful to the clear intentions of the framers and to the actual meaning of the Constitution, and then no tactic of abuse or delay is out of bounds.”

Fred Thompson makes his first appearance on the trail with McCain since Thompson dropped out of the race. Thompson served as sherpa to both Roberts and Alito during their confirmation hearings, accompanying both men around the Hill as they courted senate confirmation votes.

Thompson has ruled out being both Vice President and Attorney General in a McCain administration.

Back in March of 07 at the CPAC convention in DC several former Fred Thompson Congressional staffers told me Fred Thompson was thinking about a run. Some of his Tennessee cronies had been talking him up too.

I reported first that he was eyeing a White House bid. At the time several insiders told me OFF THE RECORD that it was largely a trial ballon to guage his popularity and float his name as a possible vice presidential nominee. I was sworn to silence.

Those insiders have now lifted the conditions on our conversations. From March to August of 07 through postponed announcement days, staff changes, firings, resignations and general disarray the Thompson camp was stunned by the incredibly positive response and didn’t really know how to manage it. The trial balloon soared mighty high and he found himself being dragged into a race that he was not even sure how to run.

He took third in Iowa and Third in South Carolina, after which his aides openly suggested the #2 slot on the ticket. The circle has been closed, and Fred Dalton Thompson is waiting to see if he gets the call from the eventual nominee.

He has not said who he will endorse. He is friends with John McCain. But if he doesn’t throw his support behind anyone …it makes it easier to be picked by everyone.

Update: Fox News has learned exclusively that Human Events, an iconic conservative publication has endorsed Fred Thompson. (per Serafin Gomez, Fox News Embed Producer)

To find out more about Human Events go to their website, click here

He won’t spill! Sean Hannity tried to pry it out of him to no avail. Taking calls for almost an hour Fred Thompson and Jeri Thompson were on Sean Hannity’s radio show today. While many of the candidates practiced and prepped for tonight’s debate, Thompson took questions from callers and Sean Hannity and played coy regarding a major endorsement he will receive tomorrow.

He said he thinks he has “a fair chance” here in South Carolina. He went on to say “South Carolina is where I stand.” He said he had a strong conservative consistent record which plays well here. “We have to do well here without any question.” He runs fourth in the South Carolina polls at 9%. Saturday, 19th will be the day of reckoning.

Tune into Fox News Channel 9pm tonight to see the final republican debate before South Carolina votes.

The Thompson campaign put out an official release minutes after the debate ended this afternoon. The e-mail wasn’t touting Thompson as the winner, (that came later); instead it was questioning Romney’s pro-life position. It says that under Romney’s Massachusetts health care plan that people have access to abortions for a co-pay of $50.

The release cites several press articles, including an Associated Press report from April 12, 2006 that says Romney vetoed the expansion of dental benefits to Medicaid recipients, but did not veto the abortion co-pay.

Romney is running as a pro-life candidate, but when this initially came up over a month ago it didn’t really cause a stir. So why is the Thompson campaign bringing it up again? Romney Communications director Matt Rhoades told me that it is because we are so close to the Iowa caucuses, “we are down the stretch and it is go-time so a lot of campaigns are using a lot of misinformation.” Rhoades also said that the attack was an old one, “Governor Romney is very proud of his health care plan in Massachusetts and the attack from the Thompson campaign is using is an old attack that has been refuted before and we want to focus on the issues.”

At the time the Romney campaign released a statement trying to refute the claims. The campaign re-sent it to me today and it explains that the health care benefits package was, “developed By The Connector Authority – An Independent Body Separate From The Governor’s Office.” The release continues to say that, “under state law and court precedent, if the state is funding health care benefits it cannot refuse to provide abortion coverage.” The campaign is saying that essentially the Governor’s hands were tied.

The Thompson campaign responded saying the Governor has to take responsibility for all parts of the plan:

“Romney vetoed numerous parts of the health care plan, but allowed specific parts to remain, he can’t take credit for some of it and not own all of it.”

(Click below to hear Romney Communications  Director Matt Rhoades respond to the Thompson camp accusations)

(more…)

Alan Keyes has spent most of the debate insulting his Republican rivals lumping them all together. He went after them again during a question about global warming. Thompson interrupted saying answer the question about global warming. Keyes says we need to get rid of the hot air in Washington! More laughter from the press room!

In response to a question posed by Des Moines Register Editor Carolyn Washburn asking for a “show of hands,” on who believes global warming is a serious issue.

Fred Thompson refused to raise his hand, instead asking for 60 seconds. It caused laughter in the crowd and the press room. The candidates won, each getting 30 seconds to talk about climate change

 After Governor Romney answered a question about taxes, Thompson jabbed Romney saying he wants to get into the situation Mitt is in, digging at his wealth. Romney poked back saying, “I would like to get into your situation!” Thompson wins by biting back, Well, you are starting  make a pretty good actor, actually! The press room erupted in laughter.

Fred Thompson’s campaign is asking you to add the presidential candidate to your Christmas shopping list. In an e-mail sent to supporters Tuesday afternoon titled “Fred’s 12 Days of Christmas,” the campaign asks supporters to “add Fred to your list and make sure that he has a Merry Christmas and a happy primary season.” Taking after the popular holiday carol “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” Thompson has a dozen requests for the holiday ranging from $20 for “ten signs a waving” signs to $2,300 for “two planes a flying.”

The email concludes, “take a look at Fred’s wish list and give his campaign a Christmas present that will help carry Fred to victory!”

Here it is:

-12 Yard Signs Posted - $35
-11 Vols a Calling - $50
-10 Signs a Waving - $20
-9 Cell Phones Ringing - $200
-8 Flags a Flying - $100
-7 Mailers Mailing - $250
-6 Emails Blasting - $25
-5 Town Hall Meetings - $750
-4 Ads Playing - $500
-3 Nights Lodging -$350
-2 Planes a Flying - $2,300
-1 Bus Tour Rolling - $1,000

See full email after jump: (more…)

Fred Thompson made his first public appearance at a church on Sunday–addressing a congregation of over 2,000 at the mega-church Iglesia El Rey Jesus in Miami, Florida. In an attempt to emphasize his conservative credentials and appeal to Hispanic voters, Thompson spoke about such issues as the sanctity of life and his belief that marriage should be between a man and a woman.

“I grew up in the Church of Christ in my little town in middle Tennessee, and my mother saw to it that I was in church three times a week,” Thompson was quoted as saying. “It was not always my will. And I didn’t always behave as I should have. She would be very pleased to see me here today, but surprised that I’m on this side of the pulpit.”

Although Thompson has stated he’s not a regular churchgoer in the past, his appearance at the service was well-received by the congregants, many of whom applauded his speech and gave him a standing ovation as he left the church.

The senator’s decision to reach out to the Hispanic community comes at a critical time. For Republicans, some predict that a tough immigration policy will alienate a demographic they cannot afford to ignore: Hispanic voters. In the last two elections, their vote proved critical in a victory for Bush. Five of the swing states he carried in 2004 were heavy in Hispanic votes. If the Hispanic electorate now turns to the Democrats in this upcoming election (as many strategists have predicted), it may affect the Republicans’ chance at victory.

Click to watch: