Is Thompson edging closer to an announcement?

The TimesOnline adds to the speculation that Fred Thompson is planning to enter the presidential race:

Thompson, a good ol’ Southern boy with bags of charm to match those under his eyes and chin, is already known to millions as a tough district attorney in the hugely popular TV series Law and Order and has appeared in films such as In the Line of Fire, with Clint Eastwood, and The Hunt for Red October with Sean Connery.

A national poll last week put Thompson, 64, in second place behind Rudy Giuliani, the former New York mayor, and three points ahead of Senator John McCain — and he hasn’t even declared yet that he is running or spent a cent on campaigning. It suggests that he has the potential to be frontrunner in the Republican field.

“I never thought about my dad running for president, but once I did it made absolute sense,” said Tony Thompson, 47. “It’s been quite amazing for me to watch this happen to him.”

Five months after his daughter’s death in 2002, Thompson — single for almost 20 years after his divorce from his first wife — killed off his reputation as a play-boy by marrying Jeri Kehn, a glamorous Republican political consultant 25 years his junior. They now have a four-year-old girl and a six-month-old son. They would be the youngest children in the White House since John F Kennedy was president.

“Jeri is terrific and smart. She makes Fred smile and the kids are beautiful,” said Bob Davis, a former Thompson staffer who is chairman of the Tennessee Republican party. “If he runs, he’ll sling them on his shoulders on the campaign trail — and he’s got pretty big shoulders.”

The signs are that Thompson is preparing to enter the race. He has been dining conspicuously on Capitol Hill with leading Republican organisers and will be meeting key congressmen in Washington this week.

The speculation is that he will announce his candidacy in May, when he is scheduled to give a lecture in the heart of Ronald Reagan country in Orange County, California, and will be appearing on Jay Leno’s late-night television show.

Having young children could be a definite plus for Fred. The image of a loving involved father would have great appeal to the soccer moms and just might have some attraction for the young single women who are looking for government to fill the role of a husband as security and provider. After all a father figure can be even more comforting than a surrogate husband.