Kinder: "Fred Thompson is the Man"

More on the story in Missouri

Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder endorsed former U.S. Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tennessee, for president - a marked departure from the state's top Republican officeholder.

Kinder provided his rationale in an editorial to the Cape Girardeau-based Southeast Missourian. Kinder served as the associate publisher and frequently wrote columns on governmental affairs for the paper throughout his political career.

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Trust me, fellow Republicans, when I say this: Fred Thompson is the real deal, the closest thing to a natural we’ve had (or are likely to see) since Reagan.

Begin with this: Sen. Thompson is a conservative solidly within the mainstream of his party in a country that still wants to be governed by a center-right coalition. That is, if we Republicans can prove ourselves once again worthy of the trust of Americans who became progressively more disgusted with congressional Republicans through 2006. Thompson, who left Washington four years ago, is untainted by the debacles of 2005-’06.

Courtesy of Jason Rosenbaum blogging at the Columbia (Mo) Tribune

The article amplifies how this is more than a bit unusual for Missouri politics.