Fred Thompson Needs a Spine

Fred Thompson has been teasing conservatives for over two months now.

On March 11 during an interview on FOX News Sunday, Thompson declared that he was considering running for president in 2008.

Question to Thompson:

HAVE YOU DECIDED?

I'm sick of the dance. Thompson should jump in NOW if he's serious about getting in the race.

With each day that passes, I think he's losing credibility. He appears more like publicity addict Donald Trump than a presidential contender.

Enough with the teasing!

It's certainly getting him a lot of attention. Since he dangled his hat above the ring, the media and the public in general care about what he has to say.

His reaction to the immigration bill is news rather than just another column.

The same goes for everything else that he's commented on since he suggested the possibility of a 2008 run.

In my opinion, this uncertainty has gone on for way, WAY too long.

At present, Thompson isn't acting like a leader. He's acting like a publicity hound.

He's acting like Newt Gingrich!

The "I'm not a presidential candidate; I just play one on TV" act isn't working.

This interminably long audition that Thompson chose to let drag on and on should be history.

My advice to Thompson:

START RUNNING OR GET OUT OF THE WAY.


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More from Thompson.

So, I hear you all have been talking about me.

Good grief.
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In Sunday's The Washington Post, Liz Garrigan discusses the Fred Thompson allure.

She draws on what she calls a "boosterish book" by Steve Gill, The Fred Factor: How Fred Thompson May Change the Face of the '08 Campaign.

Gill, whose book argues that Thompson is the only candidate who could beat Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, predicts an announcement in June or July and says that Thompson is "moving toward" making the run. Thompson's recent announcement that he has lymphoma and is in remission is strong evidence that he's trying to head off any concerns about his health. "I don't think it's foregone. I think it's still just making the decision and engaging the prospect of whether he can win," Gill says.

Should Thompson announce, his general-election advantage is that he's not divisive. He doesn't evoke the kind of vitriolic hate that many other conservatives inspire. He's the kind of guy who could broker peace between Donald Trump and Rosie O'Donnell, someone who would bring red-state and blue-state America together.

Moreover, Thompson wouldn't be tarred with the Iraq war, and his many film and TV credits would buy him enough recognition to mitigate the fundraising disadvantage he would start with.

Of course, first he'd have to get through the primary. And as Cooper points out, that's the tough part: "He comes from the Howard Baker tradition, which is so moderate that they have had a tough time getting elected." And the rap on Thompson is that he's lazy, that he never worked as hard as his colleagues in the Senate. Even some of his supporters concede that's true. But what he lacks in that respect, even some Democrats say, he makes up for with his people-pleasing ability -- the Reagan factor -- and almost Clintonesque communication skills.

Gill believes that Thompson hasn't made a decision yet about running, though he thinks that Thompson will announce in June or July.

BUT--

"I don't think it's foregone. I think it's still just making the decision and engaging the prospect of whether he can win," Gill says.

Yeah, take your time, Fred.