Conservative Credentials

Chris Davis at the National Ledger asks the question: Does Fred Thompson Exhibit Conservative Principles? His answer is "Yes" and does a very nice job of explaining his answer. There was one quote that is very meaningful to me:

Analyzing these principles means that the conservative electorate should look at the body of conservative candidates that are running today. They should also remember true conservative leaders will never have to decide when they should or should not be a conservative.

This is the real problem that I have with Mitt. It may well be that he is a conservative guy that will govern in a conservative manner. But if so, it will be because he is abandoning his prior experience. This is also true of Huck and Rudy, but they are not really being put forward as the total conservative package as Mitt is.

Chris does a nice job at the beginning of the article defining the conservative movement.