Des Moines Register
08-09-07
Fred Thompson to mingle in Iowa
By THOMAS BEAUMONT
The Des Moines Register
DES MOINES, Iowa — Former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson plans to make
his first Iowa trip as a presidential prospect next week, a development that is
expected to reset the Republican field in the leadoff caucus state in the wake of
the GOP straw poll in Ames on Saturday.
Thompson is scheduled to visit the Des Moines area on Aug. 17 and meet with
state legislators and social conservative activists before attending the Iowa State
Fair, always a ‘‘must’’ on the summertime campaign trail in Iowa.
The schedule is a sign that Thompson, one of the Republican Party’s favorites in
Iowa and nationally, would compete in Iowa’s 2008 caucuses, Iowa political
observers and Republican strategists said.
Thompson is expected to officially announce his candidacy for the GOP
nomination in September. He is not planning to be in Ames on Saturday, when
eight of the Republican field’s other candidates and thousands of Iowa GOP
stalwarts will be on the Iowa State University campus for the nonbinding straw
poll vote.
Iowa Republicans planning to meet with Thompson said there is still time for the
actor-politician to gain a foothold in Iowa, where the 2008 caucus campaign is
seven months under way.
‘‘I don’t think he’s too late at all, because from my perspective, I’ve seen less
gravitation of people, especially social conservatives, around one candidate,’’
said Steve Scheffler, president of the Iowa Christian Alliance. Scheffler said he is
undecided about who he will back in the caucuses.
Thompson plans to meet with Scheffler and other politically active evangelical
Christians, the Iowa GOP’s most mobilized bloc of voters.
Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and U.S. Sen. John McCain of
Arizona also plan to skip the Ames straw poll, which has thrown into question the
relevance of the event as an early test of candidates’ campaign strength in Iowa.
Thompson’s decision to come to Iowa in the immediate aftermath of the straw
poll could blunt the momentum of candidates who are expecting to perform well
on Saturday, especially former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, said University
of Iowa political science professor Peverill Squire.
‘‘I think they are probably trying to maximize the amount of time Thompson has
to do well in the caucuses without having to place anything at risk in the straw
poll,’’ Squire added.
Thompson, known for his portrayal of soft-spoken but tough characters in film
and on television, has risen to the top tier of Republican candidates in early polls
of caucusgoers in Iowa, as well as in surveys of Republicans nationally.
A Washington Post-ABC News poll of Iowa Republicans published Sunday had
Thompson with support from 13 percent of likely caucusgoers, trailing Romney,
who was the top choice at 26 percent, and Giuliani, who was in second place
with 14 percent.
Thompson has already made two key trips this summer — to New Hampshire,
home of the leadoff primary, and to South Carolina, home of the first Southern
primary.