Fred Thompson Hometown Story

The Thompson Mansion - Fred's boyhood home

Here is a link to one of my favorite newspaper background articles on Fred Thompson, the man who will be the next President of the US. From the Tennessean, it is a bit of a puff piece, but the writers pull no punches. They don't leave out how Fred came to marry his first wife: she was pregnant and he wanted to 'do the right thing'.

In sleepy Lawrenceburg, few claim to have predicted the fame and stature that lay ahead of him. They remember Freddie as the class clown — he was likable and smart, though not studious.

They also say he matured quickly and deeply after becoming a young husband and father. They describe him as a genuine and decent man with a knack for being in the right place at the right time.

"He had a way of making you like what he was saying even if you didn't agree with him at first," said childhood friend Jan Clifton, gesturing toward a lamppost on the square. "He had a way, if I didn't think I could climb that pole, of convincing me I could do it."

As for the presidency, Lawrenceburg folks think this is Fred's right time.

"He comes across as so sincere," said Tommy Beurlein, one of Thompson's high school classmates. "He's not trying to answer some way to be popular at the minute."

How can you not like this cat for President? Maybe you think Ron Paul is cool, but this cool? I know cool; the generation Fred and I belong to invented the modern usage of the word.

High School Freddie - 1960 Lawrence County High School His Dad was a used car salesman and a Democrat.