Thompson enters the fray - finally

Fred Thompson announced last night, finally, that he will be running for President. He did this from the sofa of the Tonight Show with Jay Leno while his fellow Republican candidates sparred in a televised debate. In my view he should have declared about a month ago, which would have given him the chance to win or place in the Ames Straw poll. But never mind, he's in the thick of things now, at long last. And he's going to be a contender. Mitt Romney, who has risen to the top of the field because of his strong debate showings and his appeal to values-voters needs to be particularly concerned, since Thompson will also be running on 'back-to-basics' conservative values. I don't think Giuliani needs to be as concerned; Fred's official candidacy could actually split social-conservative voters, which would actually help Giuliani.

Of course, the other Republican candidates sniped Fred for skipping the debate. Here are some of the shots fired against Thompson at the debate, as blogged by the Fix:

Former Gov. Mike Huckabee: "I was scheduled to be on Jay Leno but I gave up my slot for somebody else because I'd rather be in New Hampshire with these fine people."

McCain: "Maybe we're up past his bedtime..."

Former Gov. Mitt Romney: "Why the hurry? Why not take some more time off?"

Giuliani: "I think he has done a pretty good job of playing my part on Law & Order. I prefer the real thing."
(Note: Giuliani was once a U.S. Attourney)