In case you hadn’t noticed, Ol’ Freddie Thompson’s campaign recently brought back the legendary red pickup truck he used to “drive around” during his two senate races in Tennessee. It’s featured prominently on his campaign website, and is being used as a fundraising gimmick. Here’s a screen shot of the ol’ pickup truck (from Blogs for Fred Thompson):
And here’s a campaign ad from his first senate race featuring the truck:
Shucks. How can you not vote for an ol’ fella who drives a nifty ol’ truck like that?
Only, he didn’t really drive the truck as much as he’d like you to believe. Back in May, Ol’ Kevin Drum unearthed a gem from Washington Monthly’s Michelle Cottle, discussing her experience with the ol’ pickup at a Fred Thompson campaign event in Tennessee in 1996:
Seated in the audience is a childhood friend of mine….My friend stands talking with her colleagues as the senator is driven away [in the pickup] by a blond, all-American staffer. A few minutes later, my friend gets into her car to head home. As she pulls up to the stop sign at the parking lot exit, rolling up to the intersection is Senator Thompson, now behind the wheel of a sweet silver luxury sedan. He gives my friend a slight nod as he drives past. Turning onto the main road, my friend passes the school’s small, side parking area. Lo and behold: There sits the abandoned red pickup, along with the all-American staffer.
Well, shucks, Ol’ Freddie, I guess you done fooled us once, but hopefully this time we’ll… uh…we’ll…uh…heck, what’s that ol’ sayin’ in Tennessee?
Right.
(Cross-posted at The November Blog)
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