Freddy for action

Fred Thompson's leading man looks give him an obvious edge over the other candidates.

I've been slow to warm to the charms of Fred Thompson, but when I see statements like this, I see the error of my ways. It's little wonder he's captivated the imagination of Conservative America:

In his first interview since declaring his presidential candidacy, Fred Thompson repeatedly warned against the perils of a "weak and divided" nation, raised the specter of unspecified terrorists with suitcase bombs, and expressed a willingness to employ nuclear weapons against Iran.

"If you're politically committed against this war and to do something to further harm the president, the way the Democrats seem to be in Congress, then anything [in the Petraeus Report] that's a mixed message is going to be seized upon in a negative way," Thompson told Fox News on Thursday.

"If we look weak and divided in this country, we're going to pay a heavy price for it in the future," he went on. "We're living in the era of the suitcase bomb. And they're not going to go away. They're here now, they're armed and dangerous, and they're trying to get weapons of mass destruction."

Our President believes his legacy will be a freedom-loving and democratic Middle East, albeit one where cars explode with an Old Faithful-like constancy. For me, however, the most enduring contribution of his administration will be equating criticism of his war with helping the terrorists. The chance of four (or if we're lucky, eight) more years of branding dissent as treason is Morning in America as only Our President could envision it: by starting off the day with a stiff screwdriver. I'll drink to that. Praise Him!