Fred Thompson: front-runner?
Updated on 14 June 2007
First there was no front runner. Now there are three. According to the latest polls - former New York mayor Rudi Giuliani is still just about ahead - although his chances could be scuppered by all the social conservatives threatening to boycott the Republicans if he's the nominee: one prominent activist warning 'we're not going to vote for a pro-choice candidate, period.'
So who else? Perhaps Mitt Romney.
He's ahead in the latest Iowa straw poll - and as the New York Times reports, he's ramped up his media advertising spend to $2m last month alone, concentrating on New Hampshire and Iowa, and now South Carolina, focusing on his conservative credentials and trying to get a few more people to realise who he is.
Although get this from Democrat congressman Barney Frank - he's just dubbed Romney "the most intellectually dishonest human being in the history of politics." Ouch.
But enter the wild card - a man with no trouble getting his name recognised - Fred Thompson.
The actor-turned-sentator who pronounced himself disillusioned with Washington and returned to the 'realism and sincerity of Hollywood' is now expected to add his name to the lacklustre GOP list next month.
Mr Thompson, as I reported a month ago, is being touted as the new great hope of the Republican Party. With the current cast of White House hopefuls failing to set anyone alight, it seems someone - anyone - else will do.
He's already set up an exploratory committee and has attracted some of those all-important big donors - and last night he landed a spot on Jay Leno's Tonight Show, that well known venue for major political announcements. Thompson didn't quite go that far, but the hints were strong enough.
"I've never craved the job of president, but I want to do some things that only a president can do", he admitted - and found time to plug his campaign website and criticise the Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton.
So what exactly is the draw for a man who went straight from a few years in the Senate to the glitzier surroundings of hit prime-time show Law and Order? His face fits, first of all - he's a man who somehow looks like he could be a President.
He reminds Republicans of their much loved Gipper - President Reagan.
His face fits, first of all - he reminds Republicans of their much loved Gipper, President Reagan.
And - most importantly - his conservative views, which couldn't be more reassuring. No worries about him backing gay rights or abortion - like Mr Giuliani. No history of flip-flopping, like Mitt Romney. This is a man who voted down the line for restrictions on abortion, against higher taxes and for public spending cuts.
But Fred Thompson is no Ronald Reagan - he has the lines, but not the delivery. He hasn't held a fundraiser or taken part in a debate - or faced any really tough questioning.
A wannabe President - certainly. But a candidate who has earned the right to more than fifteen minutes in the spotlight, who has the stamina and the political toughness to make it through? Better get ready for your next close-up, Mr Thompson.
This is the role of a lifetime - and it's sure to be a real cliff hanger.
This article originally appeared on the Newsroom blog
