An Ol’ Broad’s Ramblings
Fred’s non-Campaign Campaign
WAITING FOR FRED
Steve Gill
Over the past several weeks the Fred Thompson non-campaign campaign for President has gained momentum with top flight advisors coming on board, impressive poll results in key primary states, and enthusiastic crowds in Alabama, Texas and California urging him on. Yet, an increasing number of political pundits, media types, and Thompson supporters (known sometimes as “Frednecks,†“Fredheads,†or “Frederalistsâ€) have questioned why Thompson is delaying his “official†entry into the race. Some have even speculated that he is having second thoughts about running at all. While other candidates clamor for attention, it seems that most eyes are turned expectantly toward Fred.
There were early news reports that his campaign would begin on July 4, but that date was never seriously under consideration by the Thompson “testing the waters†operation. In fact, many “delays†in the Thompson announcement have been based on erroneous dates tossed about by those who were not actually “in the know.†It now appears that Thompson’s campaign for President will officially get underway sometime the first week in September.
Unlike all of the other presidential campaigns, which formed long before the national media was paying attention, the Thompson campaign is being assembled under intense scrutiny. Every staff addition, exit or change is the subject of detailed analysis and second-guessing. Anybody who doesn’t get the job they want, or doesn’t keep the job they had, can create controversy by making a few “background†calls to reporters starving for a story.
The modern media environment is a twenty four hour a day monster that constantly demands feeding. A front-running presidential campaign that doesn’t provide the ravenous “beast†something to eat on a regular basis will soon find itself being gnawed upon. That is part of the challenge that Thompson currently faces. Interest in the impending Thompson campaign is extremely high. Currently there are no regular policy statements being issued by the campaign because there is not yet a policy team. No regular campaign events are scheduled because there is not yet a full advance team or event schedule in place. All the other trappings of a campaign are missing because there is not yet a campaign.
Instead, there is a giant vacuum that will eventually be filled by the Thompson campaign. In the meantime, reporters assigned to cover the Thompson non-campaign campaign are expected to report something even while there is not really anything to report…yet. That is why we read stories about disgruntled staffers, Jeri Thompson’s cleavage, and political experts questioning each other about “what is taking Thompson so long to enter the race?â€
Much of the media obsession with the “delay†in an official announcement is a function of overlooking the reality of what it takes to put together a national campaign. Some of the “delays†in rolling out a full Thompson campaign structure are simply a matter of key individuals having to complete the jobs they currently have before they move onto the campaign payroll. The bottom-line is that it takes a bit of time to recruit and deploy a national campaign staff of policy advisors, fundraisers and political operatives while simultaneously pulling together organizations in key early primary battlegrounds like Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Florida, etc. It is a large and complicated task; but a process that takes time is not one that is necessarily “delayed.â€
All of the stories of the past few weeks, and in the month to come, will soon be meaningless as the Thompson presidential campaign officially gets under way and starts dishing out enough “meat†to keep the “beast†well fed. In the meantime, the other candidates already traveling down the presidential campaign highway should be aware that a certain large, looming figure in their rear view mirror is much closer that it appears.
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