Frederick of Hollywood's Speed Bump

There are now billing records confirming that Fred Thompson did abortion rights lobbying back in the 1980s. This comes after he repeatedly denied the story. It's of course not the act of flip-flopping itself here, but the fact that he denied it so vociferously KNOWING that there were surely billing records and documentation, that calls into question this guy's judgment under pressure. It's Bush-league in all senses of the term.

The National Review appears to be off the reservation:

But the picture is cloudier than it should be, because Thompson has been less than forthcoming about the evolution of his views. In April, he said that he was baffled that anyone would have thought he had been pro-choice. But debate clips, questionnaires, and constituent letters from the mid-1990s all establish that he was indeed pro-choice. And even his recent statements do not settle whether he shares the view of President Bush that abortion should be illegal with exceptions for rape, incest, and threats to the mother’s life [...]

Millions of Americans have changed their minds about abortion over the same years in which Thompson appears to have changed his. He should not hesitate to represent these voters.

Yet hesitate he does, because he knows that lying is the path to the nomination.

The words Not Read For and Prime Time come to mind...