Be prepared for Fred Thompson

Fred Thompson, former senator from Tennessee and current Law & Order D.A. Arthur Branch will be the GOP presidential nominee in 2008. Why do I think this is true?  And why am I concerned?

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It started on March 11, 2007 with Thompson's appearance on Fox News Sunday

This day and time, it doesn't take long to learn what people think. I have never beaten down a lot of doors in my life, but occasionally doors have opened to me, and I had sense enough to see that they were opening, and I would walk through them, and they've always turned out well for me.

Think about that for a minute: "occasionally doors have opened to me..." The question in my mind was who is opening the door? And I believe the answer to be the real power in the GOP.

Moving forward to just last week, we have Chris Matthews gushing over the possible Thompson run

Hillary and Mitt lead the fund-raising race, but bigger news buzzing here in the nation‘s capital.  Red state senator Fred Thompson may enter the presidential race.  Will the star of "Hunt for Red October" be the answer to the Republican‘s hunt for a red November?

Tweety goes on to interview Lamar Alexander about a potential Thompson campaign and here is what Sen. Alexander had to say

MATTHEWS:  Welcome back to HARDBALL.

Many Republicans are not satisfied with their current crop of 2008 candidates for president.  Will former Senator Fred Thompson, currently an actor on NBC‘s "Law & Order," jump into the race?  And, if he does, will he win?

Here to shed some light on it is Senator Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, a friend of Fred Thompson‘s.

Well, sir, can use to shed some light on the thinking of Fred Thompson?

SEN. LAMAR ALEXANDER ®, TENNESSEE:  Well, not much, Chris.

He‘s thinking about it.  He‘s seriously considering it.  But, to me, the more interesting thing is, so many other people are.  This is the closest thing to a genuine draft I have seen since I have been in politics.

MATTHEWS:  Well, who is behind it?

ALEXANDER:  I‘m not sure.  I hear it everywhere.  I hear it on the plane flying from Tennessee to Washington.  I hear at Washington cocktail parties.  I hear people across the country talking about it....

Matthews actually asked a good question, and Alexander was coy but exposed his hand with the "Washington cocktail parties" slip. So I wonder who might be influential in the Washington cocktail party circuit? Does William Kristol hear the same things?

And former Senator Fred Thompson, a serious potential challenger, is in a way the most manifestly Reaganite of all. In the two weeks since the Thompson boomlet began, many times I've heard conservative friends consider Thompson's merits (which are real) and then--chuckling, but almost dispositively--add, "The last time we nominated an actor, it didn't turn out badly."

This past Sunday I watched Meet The Press and the Fred Thompson topic came up in the discussion. Tim Russert had posed a question to Chuck Todd about the Thompson entry, and the effect it might have on the GOP front runners (Note: while Todd was speaking, the background shot was of Kate O'Beirne shaking her head negatively)

MR. TODD:  Well, look, Fred Thompson—the, the entire 2008 Republican primary feels like the 2004 Democratic primary in some ways.  You have—nobody’s happy with the field, nobody was happy with the field in ‘04.  They’re desperate to just find somebody who can win.  That seemed to be the desperation with the Democrats before.  And they sit there and flirt about.  You remember, in 2004, there was a candidate like Fred Thompson in here, this sort of unknown potential savior for the party.  It was Wesley Clark.  And he got in, he raised a bunch of money and fell flat.  Fred Thompson to me has that same feeling.  This is—the fact that Fred Thompson’s being considered the savior, he’s not been a sort of pillar of the Republican Party in years past and yet he could come in and raise $20 million immediately.  There’s $20 million that wasn’t raised by these three front-runners that’s sitting there of Bush money. And I have no idea what kind of candidate he’d be.  He has never run a really tough race, and conservatives better be careful.  They might buy into this quickly, and he could just fall flat on his face.

Russert then asked O'Beirne about Fred Thompson and her response was

MS. O’BEIRNE:  Look, I think—I think conservatives are looking for someone who can put together that coalition, all kinds of conservatives, that has helped win five out of the last seven presidential elections.  And so far the three top runners in this field have had trouble doing that.  Hollywood casting agents had it right.  Fred Thompson looks and sounds presidential, and he’s a talented politician, you know.  I mean, he has run—unlike Wes Clark—he’s run and won office.  He won the largest—by the largest margin ever in the history of Tennessee.  It’s a good state to be from, as you know. No, he’s a serious—he’s a serious candidate, I think.  I think he’s possibly serious about a run.  He has a conservative voting record from the Senate, and he is potentially a person, with that kind of record, who could put together the economic, national security and social conservatives.

O'Beirne was positively gushing with enthusiasm. Kathryn Jean Lopez is also on the bandwagon and Rich Lowry seems encouraged.

So, what do we know about Fred Thompson? He has an 85% pro-conservative voting record, was the manager for the John Roberts confirmation, and is an ardent Scooter Libby sympathizer (not to mention promoting Libby's defense fund). While James Dobson might have raised a question on Thompson's Christianity it was quickly countered by another evangelical leader Richard Land.

Just an actor; nothing to see here, right?

Beware of the real movers and shakers in the GOP. They're allowing the press to gaggle on the Giuliani/McCain/Romney charade while subtlety positioning their puppet. The next actor to take their direction (and fool the American public) is Fred Dalton Thompson.