Blog P.I.

This morning on Fox News Sunday, Fred Thompson delivered an Obama-like confession that he was thinking about running for president. Pressed to explain how he’ll decide whether there’s sufficient interest for him to get into the race, Thompson said:

This day and time, it doesn’t take long to learn what people think.

Very true. So what do people think about him as a potential candidate? Though the really interesting responses so far come from the left, let’s start with the right, whose support he would actually need to get the nomination.

Mark Kilmer, RedState:

The portion of the transcript with his answers to Wallace’s “lightning round” questions … looks pretty good. He gives some specifics and explanations, and others would have to come, but some conservatives might be about to find their man for 2008.

Falcon, Hang Right Politics:

If Thompson does decide to enter the GOP field, as a mainstream southern conservative, he would instantly become the front runner.

Rick Moore, Holy Coast:

Thompson was very, very good, and this interview could help kick start a move to get him in the race. If he got in, he would be the most solidly conservative (and consistently conservative) candidate in the field and would be a very strong candidate.

Liberally Conservative:

Thompson is a viable candidate who won’t have to backtrack and change positions on his voting record or positions, will be able to withstand scrutiny and is articulate enough to present his stand on issues in debate. Thompson may be what the Conservative base is looking for in a candidate and will be able to sufficiently challenge others.

If you want a Draft Fred Thompson sticker for your blog, Gribbit’s Word has one for the taking.

And how is the potential candidacy being received on the left? Without a doubt, Thompson seems to be the candidate they respect and fear most:

Cenk Uygur, The Huffington Post:

I have to admit that I was impressed by Thompson. Sometimes when you meet someone you get a sense of whether they are real or fake. And sometimes you are taken in by an amiable, charming person you might not otherwise agree with.

Room Eight:

Lets not kid ourselves, Fred Thompson is a Tennessee version of Ronald Reagan, he’s a winner. The GOP gets Mr. Law and Order to run and they have somebody who can get elected President. He’s one guy Hillary, Obama and Edwards don’t want to have to debate on tv, because he’s– like Reagan– trained as an actor. As a democrat, his potential candidacy worries me like no others.

WoodyG’sGuitar, a commenter at Eschaton:

fred thompson is a logical candidate for somebody, given his ubiquity through the L&O series as the ultra-conservative, real-politiking, pragmatic DA… if they put him up, he’d be hard to beat, in the media-saturated culture of the age, with his senatorial experience, and his name recognition…

Quentin Compson, from the same thread:

Fred Thompson on Faux Noise looks like he lacks the health and vigah required for a presidential run. Good, probably.

Indeed, this wasn’t Thompson’s best appearance — and his appearance wasn’t the best, either. His hair was thinner and some of his answers were oddly abrupt. Shouldn’t a television actor be more charismatic than this? The picture at right comes from NBC’s official “Law & Order” site; I’d say he seems to lack “vigah” in that one as well. If you only read the transcript, chances are you thought better of the interview.

Meanwhile, Influence Peddler argues that he should be getting in now, while Romney and McCain are stumbling, and late last week Tom Bevan questioned whether Thompson wanted to challenge his good friend McCain, and whether really wanted to do the work necessary to win. Thompson himself said today:

One advantage you have in not, you know, having this as lifelong ambition is that if it turns out that your calculation is wrong, it’s not the end of the world.

And just last month Marc Ambinder reported:

A source close to Thompson said that Thompson will not run for president, period.

If all this seems like it’s coming fast, maybe it seems like that inside Thompson’s camp as well. But if all that stands between Thompson and a presidential campaign is the determination of interest, it seems like this question has already been answered.