Fred Thompson Joins Race via the Late Show & Website

Authored by Scott Goldberg on September 5, 2007 - 7:01pm.

Where else would an actor announce his candidacy for US President than Hollywood? Fred Thompson, former Senator of Tennessee, appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno this evening and declared, “I’m running for President of the United States.” Gee, Fred, thanks. We had no idea. Thompson also launched a website, Fred08.com, which included a new video describing his agenda (see it here). But before you cast him off, the Law & Order star, we should not forget, has had plenty of White House experience: he played President Ulysses S. Grant in the HBO film Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee earlier this year, and White House Chief of Staff Harry Sargent (fictional) in the classic In the Line of Fire.

And who can forget the epic leadership he displayed as Big John, head of NASCAR in Tom Cruise’s Days of Thunder?

Thompson skipped out on a Republican debate in New Hampshire tonight, something that didn’t go unnoticed by his peers. John McCain, looking for anything to grab onto at this point in his candidacy, said of Thompson’s absence, “Maybe we’re up past his bedtime.” Nice one, sir! Well played!

And Rudy Giuliani resorted to his own forms of compliments...er, condescension: “I think Fred is a really, really good man. I think he’s done a pretty good job of playing my part on Law & Order.” You don’t see the condescending part? Come on! He calls Fred’s Law & Order stuff “pretty good?” Blasphemy! The man is giving acting lessons, people. Pay attention.

You had to love Thompson’s own reason for avoiding New Hampshire: “I’ll do my share,” he said, “but I don’t think it’s a very enlightening forum, to tell you the truth.” Leno failed to press the issue by asking for clarification. By saying it wasn’t "a very enlightening forum," was he talking about the state of New Hampshire, or the debate?

But Thompson did offer some political insight on the night: “I know that reform is possible in Washington because I have seen it done. I do not accept it as a fact of life beyond our power to change that the federal government must go on expanding more, taxing more, and spending more forever.”

Is he joining too late, though? Probably not. Does anyone know a Republican that’s genuinely excited about the prospects for ‘08? Let him run!

Scott Goldberg

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