Those folks who gave Romney $23m, Giuliani $15m, and McCain $12m are not waiting for

[Czolgosz]

an actor who wowed us all in "Curly Sue" and "Baby's Day Out" to allow his highness to be persuaded that the Repub party needs and loves him and will falter without his participation in the upcoming race.

The ship has left and Fred Thompson was not on board. It's not too late for Hagel or Gingrich to jump on board at the last minute because they have already begun the groundwork, but Thompson hasn't (and it probably is too late for Hagel or Gingrich to win if they decide to jump in late).

More importantly, Focus on the Family founder James Dobson has looked at Thompson's mixed record on abortion and concluded "I don’t think he’s a Christian."

That doesn't mean shit to me or to you or to anyone with two brain cells to keep each other company, but it means a hell of a lot to someone who is already two strikes behind in the count and is just now mulling over whether or not he's interested in swinging at the last pitch.

It is too late for Thompson to get into the race, and he was never much of a candidate anyway.

Get over Fred now. Romney is the clear and present danger.

[Bluedogvoter]

1. Wishful thinking, but Thompson will run.

He will also raise money faster than you may hope.

[Czolgosz]

4. Who is Fred Thompson's constituency (other than the media)? There is none. The corporatist neocons

have settled on Romney. They have written the check. The goods are bought and cannot be returned. That deal is done. They are not looking for another candidate.

Those suburban "Repub terror moms" who care more about winning than social issues and who care more about having a candidate who will promise that no dirty 9/11 terrorists will interrupt their soccer carpools have chosen Giuliani. They are not swooning for Fred.

The Christian Dominionists? Some like Brownback and some like Huckabee. Some maybe even accept that Mormonism is a form of Christianity and will not balk at Romney. They are not looking for an actor with a hot wife young enough to be his daughter's younger friend.

The Repubs who want a phony maverick? McCain and Hegel have that vote locked.

The quasi-Libertarians? They already have Paul.

The immigration Nazis and "Minutemen" have Tancredo.

The dimwitted freepers who want a handsome but brainless Reagan-quote-a-matic have Hunter.

The field has been cut. There is no slice of the Repub voter pie left for Fred Thompson to nibble on. He's a news story. He's a never-was candidate for bitter grapes Repubs to moan about as we start the second term of the Edwards/Obama administration with no real hope of a Repub seeing a half decent chance at the nomination until 2020. Fred Thompson may be a lot of things, but he not the Repub nominee this go 'round.

[AshevilleGuy]

14. His constituency?

"Regular" white males by the millions, who don't know or care a whole lot about politics, but vote anyway. These are guys who are not comfortable with gays, immigrants, liberated women, welfare recipients, New Age religion, and/or anything else outside of the cultural 'boxes' in which they live. Sorta like the people Nixon called his Silent Majority. And it's not so much about religion, either.

And they live everywhere in the US, even New England; they are mostly rural, might or might not drive pickup trucks, and are not necessarily poor. Romney would be too effete or 'citified' for them, as would Rudy. McCain would be more their style, but he is busy making himself look like a halfwit right now. This guy (Thompson) is the Real Deal to them, if he runs, God forbid.

[Bluedogvoter]

16. Yup.

I couldn't agree more.

These people vote and they vote for people they can relate too and who say the right things. This is Thompson.

[Ninja Jordan]

6. Exactly right.

[Raven]

2. Boy, do I ever agree with you! Forget Fred and hope that Mitt

gets the nod because he will never be elected, never. The freepers don't trust him and he's just too pretty. I also don't think the right leaning repubs are ready for a Mormon. Lots of folks will just stay home if he's on the ballot.

[lyonn]

3. Romney's coffers will be kept full by the church, I have no doubt

They are rich!

[Czolgosz]

5. Romney's money is not in any substantial degree from Mormons. Romney has the biggest share of the

Bush money machine on his side. Those guys are not Mormons, they are not Baptists, they are not Jewish -- they pray to a green god with coins for eyes and a mouth that spews cash like an ATM -- they pray to a god called Mammon.

[Alamom]

9. "You hit the nail (squarely) on the head". n/t

[flpoljunkie]

10. Doro Bush co-chaired a big fundraiser for Mitt in DC and he's hired many of Jeb's former staffers

McCain has been rolled by the Bushies--and after all he's done to try and prop up Dubya.

[lyonn]

18. Hmmm, does sound like Romney is the "chosen one"

Isn't that how we got bush to lead us? He will be groomed, prepped and primed, like they did for george. Oh, forgot the shielding part where we hear or see no evil from their candidate. Do not think it will work with the masses this time. Have you heard Romney speak? Boring

Hagel would worry me. But he will be ignored as he would not be a good yes man for the corporations. I'm guess, but since he has spoken out against the policies in Iraq that is not a good sign for the neo-cons.

[Ninja Jordan]

7. Burying your head in the sand doesn't make Thompson go away.

He will be very formidable should he decide to enter.

[jcrew2001]

8. Rudy is more dangerous in the general election

IMO.

[flpoljunkie]

11. Yes, but can he make it out of the Republican primaries? I doubt it.

[jcrew2001]

12. Yes, because they only care about winning

and Rudy can win. The Repub issues are - Iraq, Terrorism, and Economy.

Religion is a red herring.

[AshevilleGuy]

13. Winning the nomination for Thompson would be harder than winning the general.

I still say that Fred is going to run - for VP. I do not see him being their nominee, never did. On Rudy's ticket he would smooth the way for Rudy in rural areas in the South, Midwest and West.

With Mitt? Maybe - it would be VERY hard for Romney to win the Deep South, being a Mormon from MA. Fred could wink and nod him through all that.

[Vulture]

15. VP slot

Thompson is nearly ideal for a VP slot, and would add some serious ticket depth to someone like Giuliani who is already popular.

In fact, given the apparent Republican field, I would call that the '08 Ticket From Hell: Giuliani-Thompson. There is a hell of a lot of broad-based popularity contained in that ticket and no dead weight -- moderate appeal in spades, like it or not. Democrats would need a very solid ticket or serendipity to take that on effectively IMO.

[Czolgosz]

17. Agreed! Fred would be a pretty good VP, and would balance Giuliani OK, but Giuliaini most needs

to pacify the Christian Dominionists with his VP choice, and Fred doesn't fit that bill very well. I see Texas Governor Rick Perry as Giuliani's best running-mate.

[lyonn]

19. I think the pre 9-11 Giuliani will hurt him

He didn't seem that popular before 9-ll, with the marriage breakup hitting the front pages and the way he treated his wife and kids, his relationship/business dealings with Kerick (sp?). There is some uglies that can come out if they decide to do him in.

Edit: Watch out for Newt, the creep. He is strutting and flexing his imagined brilliance before any camera that will zoom in on him.

[Czolgosz]

20. Burying my head in the sand? How come when a Democratic Senator runs, you get a chorus of thousands

who say "you can't get to the Whitehouse from the Senate" but when the Repub ex-Senator who was the mean guy from "Curly Sue" shows even a remote interest in running, the same chorus anoints him king when he hasn't got an exploratory committee, hasn't raised a nickel, and doesn't have a single campaign staffer.

The Fred Thompson meme is just a news cycle. Reports about the actor "maybe considering running" is just filler to plug the gaps between the results from the paternity test for Anna Nicole's baby and Britney's latest rehab shenanigans.

Fred Thompson is not real news, and he is not a real candidate.

There are facts which distinguish real candidates from FauxNoise "maybe he's considering running" filler stories. If you are wondering what those factual distinctions are, ask yourself these questions: (1) where is his campaign exploratory committee? (2) who is coordinating his fund-raising? (3) where are his issue papers? (4) how many times has he been to Iowa and New Hampshire? (5) where is his list of endorsements? (6) where is his campaign headquarters?

Fred Thompson is not running, and if he changes his mind and does run, he won't win the nomination (in fact, he wouldn't come in better than fourth if he ran for the nomination, and he would probably not finish as high as fourth). At most, Fred Thompson is a possible VP candidate (just like every Republican governor and senator who has served over the past decade and has a picture of himself shaking Reagan's hand).

[cadmium]

21. Republican pundits are saying

that the major benefit to Romney of his fund race victory will be to make the speculative candidates like the Thompsons and Gingrich disappear from serious consideration.