Britain and America

Fred Thompson's London Speech in Full

This is the full video of the speech Fred Thompson gave in London yesterday:

Town Hall has a text version.

Fred Thompson in London

Fred Thompson was in London today - the day on which one opinion poll made him the frontrunner in the Republican race for the White House.  BritainAndAmerica was present when he spoke at the Policy Exchange think tank.  TownHall.com has the full text.

Four video extracts from his Q&A are posted below:

• Video 1 is about his view of Iran - in which he suggests a blockage might be necessary.
• Video 2 focuses on Iraq and he warns against leaving without stabilising the country - because US forces might only have to return
• In Video 3 he identifies his American political heroes as George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan.
• In Video 4 he pays tribute to Margaret Thatcher - who he'll meet tomorrow.  He is also due to meet Tory leader David Cameron.

VIDEO ONE: THOMPSON ON IRAN

VIDEO TWO: THOMPSON ON IRAQ

VIDEO THREE: THOMPSON ON HIS AMERICAN POLITICAL HEROES - GEORGE WASHINGTON, ABRAHAM LINCOLN AND RONALD REAGAN

VIDEO FOUR: THOMPSON ON HIS SCHEDULED MEETING WITH BARONESS THATCHER

Time for another actor in the White House?

Donal Blaney is the Chief Executive of the Young Britons’ Foundation and a presenter and pundit on 18DoughtyStreet.com.

The most successful US President since World War II, Ronald Reagan, began life as an actor. Reagan became a conservative during the 1964 Presidential election when he memorably delivered a powerful speech endorsing Barry Goldwater’s doomed run for the White House. Until then he had been familiar as President of the Screen Actors’ Guild and a spokesman for General Electric.

While much coverage of the race for the Republican Party’s nomination has centred on Senator John McCain or Mayor Rudy Giuliani (or, for those with a penchant for outsiders, Governor Mitt Romney, Senator Sam Brownback or Speaker Newt Gingrich) there is increasing interest in the putative candidacy of another actor – Fred Thompson.

“Fred who?” I hear you cry, as you rack your brains. Well this actor has also had the advantage of holding national political office in the same way that Reagan served two terms as Governor of California before he ran for the Presidency in 1980. Thompson’s film credits include the likes of Cape Fear, Die Hard 2 and the intriguingly titled Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World.

Who is Fred Thompson?

As the date for the US elections draws nearer, another Republican has declared his interest in the Presidency. What do we know about this man?

Former Senator Fred Thompson was born on August 19, 1942. He is a twice married actor with four children and five grand children. He trained as a lawyer and was once appointed minority counsel to the Senate Watergate Committee. He also served as a Senator representing Tennessee between 1992 and 2002. His acting career began around 1972 where he played himself in a movie about the cash for clemency scandal which rocked Tennessee. Since retiring from the Senate in 2002, he has returned to acting with a regular role on the NBC series ‘Law and Order’ and was appointed by President Bush as an informal advisor to Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts. His interview with Fox News offered insight into the policies he will adopt if he decides to run for President.