The American Spectator

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COLUMBIA, SC -- I landed in the Palmetto State this afternoon and stopped at a Thompson event this evening in Orangeburg. Thompson is a notably uneven speaker. He'll go for a few minutes at a time saying "uh" way too much, then he'll get rolling and you'll be watching Arthur Branch, then he'll fall off his game again. But he did fill the room (I'd say there were around 100 people there), and from eavesdropping I got the impression that he won some votes. Thompson spokesman Jeff Sadosky, chatting with reporters afterwards, said that fire marshalls have closed several of their events due to overcrowding. Of course, at least so far, Thompson's bounce seems to have come only at Huckabee's expense, thus widening McCain's lead. If he can't also convert some McCain supporters, it's hard to see how Thompson can win or come in a strong second, which I think he needs to do to remain viable.