According to David Bossie’s Washington Times op-ed, that’s who Fred Thompson is. Here’s what Mr. Bossie says on that matter:

Yet while Mr. Thompson is strongly conservative in word and deed, he is moderate and reassuring in bearing. When New York’s Sen. Hillary Clinton unleashes the Clinton attack machine against him, and she will, those tactics will fail. Mr. Thompson will rise above the stale negative politics of the 1990s. Americans immediately know Mr. Thompson is a man they can trust, and people of good will sense in him a firm and abiding character.

I have worked in the conservative vineyards for more than two decades. I have seen sham conservatives and ambitious hucksters come and go. I know how to tell the real thing. Fred Thompson is the real thing: a leader, a conservative, a man of honor and, of utmost importance in facing the combination of Mrs. Clinton and a leftist media, a communicator and, absolutely, a winner.

As more people get to know Sen. Thompson’s positions on the issues and the thought process that brought him to those positions, people will warm up to him. When they find out that Sen. Thompson is an old-fashioned Goldwater libertarian/conservative, people will flock to him. When they find out his strong belief in strict constructionist justices like John Roberts, movement conservatives will get excited about him. When they find out his plans for undercutting Iran’s mullahs, Lieberman Democrats will take a long, hard look at him.

One thing I know is that Hillary isn’t capable of running a forward-looking, positive campaign. That doesn’t fit her personality. She’s best suited for the role of traditional hatchetman VP candidate. The more America sees of her scorched earth campaign style, the more they’ll remember the hyperpartisanship of the Clinton-Gore administration.

That comparison will be even more dramatic when they contrast that with Thompson’s new course in dealing with Chavez, Castro, Ahmadinejad and Kim Jung Il. They’ll love his no-nonsense approach to enforcing the immigration laws already on the books. They’ll appreciate his beefing up the USCIS so that people that overstay their visas will be rounded up and sent home.

Here’s the best explanation I’ve heard on why Fred Thompson is leading in the polling:

Unlike the other front-runners, Fred Thompson need not pander, flip-flop or re-invent himself. Conservative voters know Fred Thompson is undeniably one of them, just by listening to him. When they hear candidates waffle, they hear Mr. Thompson talk straight. When others are vague, Mr. Thompson is direct. What voters hear from him, straight and direct, is solid conservatism, unvarnished, unapologetic and, most importantly, full of common sense.

I still think back to Peter Robinson’s interview of Sen. Thompson because, for me, it said everything I needed to know about his policies and his philosophies. Those aren’t the only qualifications needed for president but they’re a real fine starting point.

At this point, Fred is my hands down favorite of the candidates, with Rudy in second and Romney in third. He’s a true movement conservative. He’s a pro-growth, tax-cutting economic conservative. He’s got a strong libertarian streak. He’s also a strict constructionist, states rights person in terms of who he’d pick for Supreme Court justices. I was impressed with his mentioning that John Roberts has a good chance of becoming the greatest Chief Justice in the Supreme Court’s history. That’s winning him points with conservatives whose biggest issue is replacing activist judges with strict constructionists.

Finally, I thought that this op-ed was a perfect roll-out of the Thompson for President campaign. I definitely think that that’s what this is. I don’t have any insider information into this but I’m thinking that Sen. Thompson will announce later this week.

Technorati Tags: Fred Thompson, David Bossie, Barry Goldwater, John Roberts, Strict Constructionist, Rudy Giuliani, Mitt Romney, Election 2008

Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog

1. [...] Cross-posted at California Conservative Categories: The Constitution, National Security, Immigration, Hillary, Conservatism, Taxes, Judicial Nominees, Election 2008, Giuliani, Fred Thompson, Libertarianism | [...]

   Pingback by Let Freedom Ring » Blog Archive » Fred Thompson: Winner — July 8, 2007 @ 8:44 pm

1. I believe Fred is the only possibility left for true ‘Conservatism’. I also believe he has the tenacity to set things straight once again. I cannot wait until election day so that I may vote out the imbeciles in office currently and replace them with people who will stand against the socially ill Democratic party.

   Comment by John Houghton — July 9, 2007 @ 7:01 am

2. If, per chance, Thompson were to become President, it wouldn’t make a dime’s worth of difference if we, the people, don’t have other real fiscal and social conservatives to replace the pit of vipers now running congress.

   If you want change in Congress, you’d better be working for it now to replace the jackasses of both parties in the primaries. The general election will be too late.

   Comment by Carlos — July 9, 2007 @ 7:24 am

3. Hell to the No on Fred Thompson and his gold digging wife! he is the last thing the country needs. A lobbyist for abortion? Are you kidding me? get the hell out of here!

   Comment by RepublicanWomenAgainstFredThompson — July 9, 2007 @ 8:43 am

4. Yes, RWAFT, I can see where electing Billary, or Rudy, or even Mitt would salve your anger. They’re all solid pro-life, right?

   If Thompson has a libertarian streak in him, I would guess, in relation to the abortion issue, it has to do with the belief that abortion is a states’ right issue, and I would agree with that 100%. If he is pro-abortion then he has a flat-out problem with the conservative base and it will come down to once more voting for the lesser of two evils.

   In the meantime, it may be wise to acknowledge that ANY donkey in the White House is worse than any of the Republicans, including Rudy. I see Rudy as more of a Lieberman RINO who happens to be correct on the WOT, and Mitt as one who no one knows for sure where his true beliefs are. Either one is dangerous, but not as dangerous as a donkey.

   Face it, the only perfect person for the job is God, and he ain’t runnin’. Just hope that it doesn’t come down to who is less bad (or evil).

   Comment by Carlos — July 9, 2007 @ 6:53 pm