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The Spectacle Blog

Holy Toledo, all of the "instant analysis" about long-term effects of campaign blips is really getting out of hand. The things being written about Fred Thompson's soon-to-be campaign right now are eerily similar to the criticisms and doomsaying from critics concerning Rudy Giuliani in the months before the former mayor announced. Somehow, all of those breathless pronunciations didn't keep Giuliani from standing firmly at the top of the polls. I have a suggestion: Instead of all the horse-race, who's in/who's out punditry, how about paying attention to what the candidates actually say and do, and to their actual voting records -- in short, to real substance? Look, the campaigns are aimed at primaries and caucuses that are still six months away. What we know is that Giuliani has a large base, Thompson has sat in solid position for four straight months even without an announcement, Romney has shown organizational abilities and strength in the traditional first two states, and McCain is McCain, for better or worse. And other candidates, such as Duncan Hunter, deserve far more respect and support than they are getting. None of that will change. Thompson isn't imploding. He has surrounded himself with smart people, and he is a very good communicator who is a proven mainstream conservative. He's gonna be very, very much in the mix, and he is well positioned to win the whole thing.