Making Room for Fred

It almost seems as though the GOP '08 field has decided they're not worthy of the nomination and are now doing everything they can to make room for Fred Thompson. Let's see what the top three have been doing lately:

1. Rudy Giuliani - says he'll invite his wife to cabinet meetings, has reconfirmed his support for government funded abortion, and did a Vito Corleone impersonation at a California fundraiser.
2. John McCain - is fighting off the accusation that he considered a party switch in 2001, and is currently battling John Kerry regarding who asked who to join the presidential ticket in 2004. He took it in the shorts in the Q1 fundraising numbers and many Republicans (including this one) just don't trust him. In addition, he's lost his biggest fans - the press, mostly over the issue of the current situation in Iraq. While that doesn't bother me at all, it means he won't be getting the glowing coverage he used to get.
3. Mitt Romney - the great Mitt hunter is accused of padding his sporting resume ala Al Gore and John Kerry and keeps coming up with new explanations which just don't look good to intelligent people. He has flip-flopped on other conservate issues (or has "grown" as they like to say) which leaves voters wondering if #1 he can be trusted, and #2 what he really believes.

Meanwhile, the Fred Thompson campaign train is idling nearby ready to pull out onto the mainline:

Fred Thompson, the “Law & Order” actor and former senator from Tennessee, has moved beyond pondering a bid for the White House and begun assembling the nucleus of a campaign should he decide to run, according to people involved in the effort.

Thompson has not yet decided to seek the Republican presidential nomination. But “he is getting more serious every day,” said an adviser familiar with Thompson's plans.

Thompson’s coming-out as a candidate-in-waiting will be a May 4 appearance at the 45th annual dinner of the Lincoln Club of Orange County in the heart of Ronald Reagan country in Southern California. The invitation was widely sought by aspiring Republicans, and his advisers expect considerable media attention around the visit. But there are no plans now for an announcement then.

The GOP is going to be very ready for somebody like Thompson following the antics of the top 3. Some pundits suggest that Thompson's campaign is already crippled because most of the top campaign staffers have already been signed to other candidates. However, should Thompson emerge and suddenly find himself favored in voter polls, he won't have any trouble rounding up campaign talent. They'll be bailing out on the losers as fast as they can.