Fred Thompson: I'm Not Dropping Out

This morning the Politico had the story, quoting unnamed GOP sources, as saying that Fred Thompson is prepared to drop out by this weekend if he doesn't do well in Iowa. He'd then endorse John McCain, his old friend, for President. Shortly afterwords, the Thompson campaign came out and vigorously denied it.

This "drop out" story, along with similar stories on Thompson that I've already posted on, are problematic for me. They seem to be designed not to accurately portray what's happening with the Thompson campaign, but to bury his run for the GOP nomination. Thompson doesn't like the fact that the 2008 Presidential race has turned into the equivalent of a giant "American Idol", devoid of substance and meaning. The blame for that lies with the media first, followed by the parties themselves. And Thompson has been very generous with his criticism of the media. He's been the only candidate on either side that's come out with workable, well thought out solutions to the growing problems we face today, especially with Social Security. The other candidates' proposals pander to needed special interests, and will evaporate once the race is over. The media's response to substance over style? Let's get him out of the race.

The media doesn't appreciate anyone who refuses to play the game their way, and in their coverage of Thompson, it shows. The most infamous case of this happened a few weeks ago, when the Politico's Roger Simon reported on a personal appearance made by Thompson at an Iowa fire station. Simon claimed that it went terribly. Unfortunately for Simon, someone had videotaped the appearance, and let's just say that Simon must have been 'mistaken' about both how Thompson handled himself and the reaction he got.

I primarily view this article in today's Politico, Thompson may drop out, back McCain, as some sort of a payback for Thompson embarrassing Simon. Or, less likely, it could be just crap thrown out by an opposing candidate that was welcomed by the Politico for the same reason. In either case, it's unfortunate, since the Politico is one of my favorite sources for political info. Thompson, and the real political process, deserve better.