Thompson Struggles As Launch Looms

Actor/Politician May Have Waited Too Long To Enter Presidential Race

(The Politico) 
Not much ado about running
For the interview, Thompson sported a navy three-button, pin-striped suit without the tie he’d don later for his address to the Midwest Republican Leadership Conference. He was friendly enough in offering a seat -- “We got it all warmed up for ya” -- but didn’t seem overly enthusiastic when answering the obligatory questions about his state of affairs. He wasn’t overly defensive in tone, but neither did he seem to get terribly animated about much of anything.

Asked about the departure of some top aides before he’s even announced, including the person initially tasked with running his organization, Thompson called them “normal organizational developments,” arguing that it was only natural that there would be some initial stumbles given the demands of putting together a national campaign on the fly.

There has been a spotlight focused on his every move since first acknowledging he was considering a bid in March, Thompson noted, observing that he now lacked any sort of “solitude.”

“Everything we do is under intense scrutiny. And that’s fine,” he said with a shrug.

Some of that scrutiny is coming from his own sympathizers.

Glenn Reynolds, the influential University of Tennessee law professor who blogs as “Instapundit,” wrote of the campaign-in-waiting last week: “Looking shaky? They've had a rough summer; it'll be interesting to see how they do over the next month or so.”

Randy Pollard, chairman of the Fayette County, Ill., GOP, the head of the state’s group of county Republican chairs and a likely “Fred-head,” said Thompson’s moment hadn’t passed. “I think it is passing, though,” Pollard said outside one of the meetings here.

Rep. Gresham Barrett (R-S.C.), Thompson’s top supporter in a state that is key to the campaign’s early-state strategy, “sighed audibly” when asked by a reporter from the Greenville News about his would-be candidate’s indecision.

"Yeah, I admit to that; I've got a little frustration," Barrett told the paper in a Sunday article. "I've wanted him out sooner, but he's working.”

Team Fred's follies
Another Capitol Hill backer, Rep. Steve Buyer (R-Ind.), conceded that there had “been some little hiccups” this summer.

But in a chat following his presentation to Thompson of a shiny-blue Colts hat to wear for a photo op and before introducing his candidate at the dinner, Buyer argued the Tennessean was well-positioned for “the sprint” that lies ahead. The advantage of holding out, Buyer argued is that “he’s being courted.”

At the same time, Thompson must settle internal turmoil.

A Thompson source, requesting anonymity to speak candidly, voiced concern that Team Fred is still not ready for a the pressure cooker of a presidential campaign.

"There is no question that from a political standpoint, the testing-the-waters committee is right where it needs to be,” this person said, “but from a personnel standpoint, it's a completely different story."

"You have some gaping holes in the communications shop and in the overall management at the committee.”

Thompson fired his communications director Linda Rozett, a former chamber of commerce official, last week, displeased by her lack of campaign experience. Thompson’s spokeswoman, Burson Snyder, resigned two weeks ago, unhappy with a diminished role and uneasy about the disorder in the campaign structure. And Thompson's first campaign manager, Tom Collamore, was viewed as lacking the necessary political chops for a White House run and forced out.

Asked if the installation of Bill Lacy, Thompson’s close friend and the strategist from his first Senate race, had brought order to the operation, the Thompson source said, “It hasn’t yet.”

One person familiar with the day-to-day operation indicated that there could be belt-tightening measures taken to curb the outbound flow of cash from Thompson’s testing-the-waters committee.

After raising just under $3.5 million in June -- about a million-and-a-half less than his advisers initially predicted they’d haul in -- Thompson indicated that the financial report he’ll file along with the other presidential hopefuls at the end of third quarter in September may not dazzle the doubters.

Asked if he was happy with where he was financially, Thompson quickly replied, “Never.”

Urged to elaborate, he said, “Because there’s more to be done.

“You can never be satisfied financially. Realistically, are we where we ought to be? Yes, I think we are.”

Waiting on a date
Shadowing all this is the main question: When, finally, will Thompson actually get in the race?

“We’re coming to the conclusion of that,” he said. “We’ll be making a statement as to our intentions in the not-too-distant future.”

Asked if it would be just after Labor Day (Sept. 3), he said he didn’t “want to narrow it down too much” but allowed that he “wouldn’t be shocked if you turned out to be right.”

But previous indications that he’d announce the day after the holiday to participate in the Fox News-sponsored GOP debate in New Hampshire on Sept. 5 now appear to be inoperative. One Thompson source wouldn't reveal exactly when the launch would come but conceded that Thompson's presence at the forum was "very unlikely."

[zmurgatroyd]

Is this an entertainment piece or a political piece? Do we care how many buttons he has on his coat? Or whether he wore a tie? Do we really want to know the opinions of an "insider" who is critical of how things are being run? Perhaps Thompson''s reported lack of enthusiasm for the interview had as much to do with his accurate expectation about the resulting story as it did his enthusiasm for the campaign. The story is light on facts and figures, and heavy on fashion analysis, speculation, and anonymous doubts.

[cfin5]

With the current state of affairs in the GOP, which they have done to themselves, I understand why the conservative base is impatient. Dems are deluded in thinking we''ve went over to them when in reality it was the GOP that left us constituents so we were confused on how/who to vote.....This is why Fred is so popular to us because his words are always put into "lowest-common denominator" sentences that are easily understood. He talks well for a country boy and I like that. I think Fred is just watching his health and I wish him well.......For now, it''s Ron Paul the un-socialist in ''08!

[over4ty]

This article is titled Thompson Struggles yet failss to state what he is struggling at. Then the reporter goes on to say that Thompson has "suffered through a summer of stumbles". What struggles? How has he suffered? It simpley amazes me that the executives at CBSNews allow this type of journalism to be printed with their name attached.

Wouldn''t it be more honest to just print the truth. If CBSNews printed that they hate this guy, and every other republican candidate, then that would be OK, but to make up some sort of mis-direction of the facts to make him, or any other candidate, look like they don''t have a chance to win is shoddy reporting.