Fred Thompson

A few new excellent Fred Thompson video’s out today.

The second is about Marie Ragghianti, if you don’t remember her you should.

The more I read about this man the more I’m getting behind him.  As Allah at Hot Air said today:

he really is the most stalwart conservative among the big four, a point he
should be hammering at every turn.

and

He should stick to the “true conservative” stuff and start hitting the fact that
while Rudy and Mitt are throwing punches and Huckabee’s chattering about faith,
he’s rolling out one policy proposal after another.

What kind of policy proposals?

He has released seven white papers already including this one on his tax proposal:

1. Permanently Extend the 2001 and 2003 Tax Cuts. Tax relief enacted in 2001 and 2003 has proved critical to generating a strong economy that has experienced growth despite the war on terror, the collapse in the housing market, and other economic challenges over the last six years. Unless action is taken, every American taxpayer will see a massive tax increase after December 31, 2010. Allowing this tax hike will impose an enormous financial burden on American families, slow economic growth, cost America jobs, and make it more difficult to address the country’s long-term budget, economic, and security challenges. The Thompson plan ensures the following:

• Reduced individual income tax rates, saving every tax-paying family a minimum of $600
• Preserving the $1000 child tax credit, which was doubled from $500 per child.
• Protecting Marriage penalty relief.
• Retaining Education tax incentives, including Coverdell Education Savings Accounts, 529 college savingsplans, and deductions for higher education expenses.
• Reduced tax rates on capital gains and qualified dividends.
• Increased expensing of investment for small businesses.

Permanently Repeal the Death Tax. Current law provides death tax relief, but only through 2010. The death tax is inherently unfair. Under the Thompson Plan, the death tax would be permanently repealed, thus protecting millions of American families, including small business owners and family farmers, from double taxation at rates ranging as high as 55 percent.

Repeal the Alternative Minimum Tax. The AMT is a separate tax system that was intended to ensure that a few high income Americans could not use deductions and credits to eliminate their tax liability. However, because the AMT is not indexed to inflation, it is penalizing Americans it was never intended to affect. While in the U.S. Senate, Fred Thompson authored legislation that would have repealed the AMT. Consistent with that earlier proposal, the Thompson plan will eliminate the AMT as part of broader tax and spending reform. Until comprehensive reform is feasible, the Thompson plan would index the exemption amounts annually so that millions of middle class families will not become subject to this tax.

Reduce the Corporate Tax Rate. The United States has one of the highest rates of tax on businesses of the industrialized nations, second only to Japan. Even Japan is currently considering reducing its corporate tax rate. Economic studies suggest that the U.S. Treasury is actually losing tax revenue by keeping the corporate tax rate so high. In order to increase the competitiveness of U.S. companies in the global marketplace, the Thompson plan would reduce the U.S. top corporate tax rate (including the corporate capital gains tax rate) from 35 percent to no more than 27 percent, which is the approximate average of the world’s leading economies the nations of the Organization on Economic Cooperation and Development. This tax reduction will promote U.S. competitiveness, encourage companies to keep their operations (and jobs) in the U.S., and spur continued economic expansion and growth.

Permanently Extend Small Business Expensing. Small businesses create two-thirds of all new jobs in America, and employ nearly 59 million Americans — more than half of the nation’s private-sector workforce. Women own a quarter of all small businesses, minorities are nearing the 20% mark, and Hispanic Americans are opening their own businesses at a rate three times the national average. Current law allows small businesses to write-off purchases of equipment of up to $125,000 per year, rather than depreciating those assets over time. Making expensing of equipment and other small business items permanent will encourage greater investment and growth.

Update and Simplify Depreciation Schedules. The current depreciation schedules are outdated and in many cases do not reflect the realistic useful life of an asset. This is particularly true for investments in high technology. For example, computers must be depreciated over three years, even though they become obsolete in half that time. The Thompson plan would simplify and update these schedules to allow American businesses to make the investments they need to compete and create more high-quality jobs.

Expand Taxpayer Choice. The Thompson plan would give Americans greater choice about how to pay their federal taxes. This plan is based on a proposal developed by the House of Representatives Republican Study Committee that would provide taxpayers the option of remaining under the current, complex tax code or opting for a simplified, flat tax code. The simplified tax code would contain two tax rates: 10% for joint filers on income of up to $100,000 ($50,000 for singles) and 25% on income above these amounts. The standard deduction would be more than doubled to $25,000 for joint filers and $12,500 for singles. The personal exemption amount would be increased to $3,500. Therefore, a family of 4 would be exempt from income tax on the first $39,000 of income. The simplified tax code would contain no other tax credits or deductions. It would also retain the 15% tax rate on capital gains and dividends. This approach would dramatically simplify taxes for tens of millions of Americans. In addition, the larger standard deduction and personal exemption amounts will still provide significant tax relief to families with children. This proposal would serve as a stepping-stone to fundamental tax reform.

He has papers on his Border Security and Immigration plan, Revitalizing our Armed Forces, Saving Social Security and many more at his site.  I’m especially pleased at his position on the Second Amendment:

The Second Amendment does more than guarantee to all Americans an
unalienable right to defend one’s self. William Blackstone, the 18th
century English legal commentator whose works were well-read and relied
on by the Framers of our Constitution, observed that the right to
keep and bear firearms arises from “the natural right of resistance and
self-preservation.” This view, reflected in the Second Amendment,
promotes both self-defense and liberty. It is not surprising then
that the generation that had thrown off the yoke of British tyranny
less than a decade earlier included the Second Amendment in the
Constitution and meant for it to enable the people to protect
themselves and their liberties.

As Allah noted, the man is putting out alot of ideas.  Meanwhile the MSM and the political pundits in Washington have chosen to dismiss the man as lazy.  I don’t see it. 

I have delayed putting my support behind one candidate up to now because I wanted to get a feel for each candidate, listen and read their proposals, watch them on the stump and so on.  I’ve done a lot of that and thanks to Mike have even gotten firsthand accounts of their visits to his state (being in California doesn’t provide for a whole lot of handshaking time with the candidates).

But a week ago I made my decision and decided to wait until the right time.  I figure that time is now so, for those who care,

I support Fred Thompson for President of the United States.

No big deal really, I’m just one cog in the machine on a small blog but every person counts. 

Addendum – Mike, Word, Chris, Scott and Rob may support another candidate so don’t go thinking this is the blogs position, it’s just mine.  But from here on out until the primaries are over I will be doing what I can to support Fred.  But make no mistake about it, if he doesn’t become the nominee (and from the polls its looking like a long shot) I will support who ever is running against the Democrat opponent. 

But until then, I’m officially a FredHead.

His policies, his positions, and his principals lead me to this decision:

Individual Liberty . As Jefferson spelled out in
the Declaration of Independence, our basic rights come from God, not from
government, and that among these inalienable rights is the right to liberty. We
must allow individuals to lead their lives with minimal government
interference.

Personal Responsibility . The corollary to liberty
is responsibility. No society can succeed and thrive for any duration unless
free people act in a responsible way. All of us must take responsibility for our
actions and strive to improve our own lives and to contribute to building a
better society.

Free Markets . Free people are best equipped to
order their own affairs, and the common interest benefits from and is improved
by the aggregate success of all. We must reform our tax system, encourage
investment, support entrepreneurial spirit, open markets abroad to American
goods, and minimize burdensome government regulations to continue to expand the
economy and bring increased wealth to all Americans.

Limited Government . Government must be strong
enough to protect us, competent enough to provide basic government services, but
limited by the delineated powers in the Constitution.

Federalism . Our Constitution innovatively
guarantees our liberties by spreading power among the three branches of the
federal government, and between the federal government and the states. In
considering any action by the government, we must always ask two questions: is
the government better equipped than the private sector to perform the task and,
if so, what level of government (federal or state) ought to do it. Washington is
not the seat of all wisdom. (More on
Federalism)

Protecting our Country . The first responsibility
of the federal government is to protect the nation and the American people.
There is no more important task. We must have a strong and effective military,
capable intelligence services, and a vigorous law enforcement and homeland
security capacity.

Traditional American Values . A healthy society is
predicated on belief in God; respect for all life; strong families centered on
the institution of marriage–the union of a man and a woman; and self-respect and
tolerance of others. While we are all free to live our lives in the pursuit of
our own happiness, the government has a responsibility to respect the right of
parents to raise their children and to promote the values that produce the
strongest society.

The Rule of Law . We protect our liberty, secure
our rights, and promote a just and stable society through the rule of law. We
owe to ourselves and our fellow citizens our own adherence to the rules, but
tough law enforcement and punishment for those who do not. A free and
independent judiciary that interprets the law by adhering strictly to legal text
and respects its limited role in our system of government is essential to our
security and freedom, and we need judges who understand that role if we are to
preserve our republic and freedom.

Conserving Our Nation’s Resources . Each of us is
put on Earth for a limited period of time. We must always strive to ensure that
the resources we use to lead our lives are here for future generations to enjoy
and use as well.

So off to fight the characterization that the man doesn’t smile enough, or is too old, or is too tall, or whatever other complaint the pundits can find.  The man has a great record, solid conservative positions, and would make a great President.

UPDATE

California State Senator Tom McClintock has thrown his support behind Fred and is throwing him a dinner 25 miles from where I live this Saturday, and I will be attending. 

Come meet Presidential Candidate Fred Thompson

Come join California State Senator Tom McClintock and Orange County Assemblyman Chuck DeVore as they extend a warm Southern California welcome to former US Senator and Presidential Candidate

FRED THOMPSON

this Saturday in Laguna Woods at 9:00 AM.

Don’t miss this rare chance to meet Senator Thompson in a candid and fun rally.

FREE and open to all supporters.

Clubhouse 3 at Laguna Woods Village
24351 El Toro Rd Laguna Woods, CA 92637
(949) 597-4200

Clubhouse 3 entrance is off of Moulton Parkway

Hopefully have some pictures and the sort for you guys Saturday night.

Also, here he is on Mark Levin’s show yesterday:

and Sean Hannity today: