Will Fred Show Up?

30 August 2007 |permalink | email article

An editorial in the conservative Manchester Union Leader, New Hampshire’s largest and most influential newspaper, has tired of Fred Thompson’s long tease without declaring his presidential candidacy. So it laid down a challenge: take part in the Granite State’s Republican debate on Sept. 5.

The former Tennessee senator has said he will announce around Labor Day so the Union Leader is adamant that if he does so before the debate voters will expect him to be at the debate at the University of New Hampshire with other declared candidates.

If he does not announce until after the debate, if will appear to some that he has timed the announcement to duck the New Hampshire debate in a crucial early primary test. “A no-show will be counted here as a snub.”

The newspaper correctly opines that “Thompson’s main weakness right now is his commitment to the race. Republicans are starting to think that his heart is really not in it, and they are getting tired of the teasing.”

Read “Thompson: Bang the Drum, Slowly,” my Aug. 28 blog on his unorthodox approach to running, tepid fundraising and chaotic organization..

 

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