Fred Thompson, the Hardest-Working Man In Show Business

12.12.2007

Okay, Fred Thompson is really serious now. Time to buckle down. No more slacking. The Washington Post reports that Thompson "has decided to campaign 'nonstop' in Iowa for the next three weeks."

But wait, when you read on, it turns out that "nonstop" means something slightly different for the Thompson campaign:

The campaign plans to launch a bus tour of Iowa starting on Dec.17 and will take a few days off for the Christmas holiday before returning to Iowa for another bus trip, which will continue until the beginning of the new year.

Let me get this straight. They're waiting five days to start this nonstop tour. Then they're going to break for three days in observance of a holiday that I (as an admitted non-Christian) understand to be one day, maybe a day and a half. Then they're going to go for the rest of the week--which is what, three or four days?--and knock off for the New Year. That's dedication.

--Jonathan Chait

Posted: Wednesday, December 12, 2007 3:48 PM with 6 comment(s)

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thejauntyboulevardier said:

You gotta think that right now, working on the Thompson "campaing" is the easiest gig in politics. Lots of time for blogging, snarfing stale doughnuts, watching endless Law and Order reruns...

Though I expect the gig will be up in about a month...

December 12, 2007 11:34 AM

Rhubarbs said:

It's things like this that have me wondering, "What's his motivation?" Fred can't seriously believe that the level of effort he's putting into the race, nor the substance of his campaign, are remotely sufficient to win the nomination. Surely he knows what it feels like the play to win, and he knows that's not what he's doing. So why give up his cushy, high paying "acting" job to run a campaign that he doesn't intend to win? Is this some kind of audition for the VP slot? Is he trying to get Aaron Sorkin to give him a call for his next TV series? Is his wife really as much a Lady MacBeth as has been whispered? (And if so, what kind of actor is Fred if he doesn't know how that all worked out for Mister MacBeth?)

December 12, 2007 11:37 AM

The Plank said:

Yesterday, Mike mused about whether a last-minute Ron Paul surge in Iowa, perhaps fueled by out-of-staters

December 12, 2007 11:46 AM

teplukhin2you said:

What are the GOP's rules concerning where a candidate's delegates go if he's disappeared mid-race by, for example, his wife?

December 12, 2007 2:39 PM

adaglas said:

Fred Thompson's campaign just got endorsed by the Maytag repairman, the International Hackeysackers Association, and the punter for the New England Patriots - so don't think this hard-charge into semi-activity isn't for nothing.

December 12, 2007 3:03 PM

Political Animal said:

THE ACCIDENTAL CANDIDATE....It's not exactly a secret that Fred Thompson's presidential campaign isn't going well. By some measures, that's a surprise -- he's plenty conservative; he's never flip-flopped on key issues; and he's not a member of a religious

December 30, 2007 11:09 AM