The Democrats fear Mitt Romney.  Or so I judge from their endless attempts to fearmonger his Mormonism and smear the “religious Right” as being bigoted against him because of it when it is they who seem to harbor the revoltingly robust prejudice.  Or their endless attempts to try to “Kerryize” him as a flip-flopper.  Or this scatological attempt to gutterize him as an animal abuser, with which Ed had so much fun that I’ll leave (almost) all the tasteless puns to him.  Rank hath its privileges, and all that.

The Dems, I think, fear Fred Thompson more, because they’re sh….er, doing a doodle on him about dabbling occasionally in lobbying over the space of nearly twenty years before his first run for the Senate.  Which is, for a successful attorney, not unlike Jacques Cousteau making occasional visits to the kiddie pool at Munchkinland.

Thompson’s retort is part & parcel of why he is emerging as the frontrunner for the GOP nomination before he’s even officially in the race:

While we’ve been out on the trail, though, I’ve recently learned some interesting things about myself. Apparently I brought down the Savings and Loan Industry single-handedly and supported Carribbean dictatorships. The Democrats, it looks like, have chosen a fella that’s not even in the race yet to launch their attacks again. I don’t know when I’ve been so complimented.

But they point out that in thirty-five years or so of law practice, I had a dozen or so lobbying clients. They don’t mention my latest when Judge Roberts was nominated for the Supreme Court, President Bush asked me to lobby on his behalf to get him confirmed…

I’d just say, keep it up guys. These are the same things you tried back in the 1994 campaign when I first ran, and it got you within twenty points of me.” 

It’s one thing to ignore the abuse, as George W. Bush has for six and a half years, to his political detriment and his supporters’ maddening frustration.  It’s another to always be responding to it, which makes a president look defensive and brings him down to his detractors’ level.  But the best tack is to laugh at it and thus highlight just how small they are and how little chance they have of getting in your way.

It’s what Ronald Reagan did back in the day.  It’s what Fred Thompson is doing now.

The Dems never could touch the Gipper.  If they’re smart (which they’re not), they’ll reconsider this “strategery” before they parley it into front-row seats at Arthur Branch’s inauguration.

And that’s no….well, you know.

UPDATE: Romney’s retort to to PETA:

“PETA is not happy that my dog likes fresh air.”

Nicely done, Governor.  Be sure to bring him along on your next visit to Time’s offices.  It’ll make a priceless photo-op.