Tommy Thompson's Exit From GOP Race Has Some Important Messages

Certainly Tommy Thompson lacked charisma as far as potential presidential candidates go. But he was also a serious mainstream conservative with decent credentials who sought to offer some serious and workable proposals on issues such as health care compared to the single issue fringe candidates of the far right who ran almost solely against abortion or illegal immigration. The Republican Party candidates for president will have to seriously look at where they want to bring their party this year. Do they want to foster a group of single issue candidates and spur and harvest these type of voters and prove that they are incapable of being serious candidates for president, or do they want to prove that they could actually rule the country if elected?

Certainly the major candidates such Giuliani, McCain and Romney are running better quality campaigns that the smaller fringe issue candidates such as Huckabee, Brownback or others who seem to be running only issue pro-life campaigns, antiGay marriage, or others with anti-illegal immigration campaigns. But the message to the larger group of all voters is that many of the candidates in the GOP race are not really ready for prime time and make the average lower tier Democratic campaign by even the likes of Dennis Kucinich look like a professional and broadbased issue effort by comparison.

The GOP must seriously consider where they want to define their party by appealing largely to fringe single issue voters this year. But some are not well serving their party very well at this point by attracting the wrong type of voters to the party. And Tommy Thompson's exit is that of one serious candidate in a mostly foolish field.

Serious issues like health care, Iraq, terrorism, etc. all require serious answers and serious candidates.