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FROM RUSTIC TO RUSTY. Powerline's Paul Minrengoff was at a dinner with still-exploring, potential G.O.P. presidential contender Fred Thompson last night and pronounces him a bit rusty. His impressions:
First, Thompson exudes the same great presence and ease of manner in person that he does on television. He's likeable and quick with the good one-liner.Sounds like the G.O.P.'s white knight may look a little more tarnished once people start getting up close and personal. The Politico's Jonathan Martin flags a poll that shows the Thompson boomlet on the wane, though today's announcement and Thompson's eventual formal entry into the race could pick his numbers back up.Second, Thompson's instincts are, with the notable exception of campaign finance reform, soundly conservative. This was certainly true on the issues he wanted most to talk about -- the war on terror, economic growth, entitlement reform, and immigration ...
Third, on the evidence of last night, Thompson needs to sharpen his message and his presentation skills. Some of his answers were crisp, but others were rambling and a bit unfocused. Moreover, he was better on generalities than on specifics. If I'm not mistaken, Thompson has only run twice for public office, and his last race was in 1996. In addition, he's not held public office for a while. He may be rusty.
--Garance Franke-Ruta
