The Man Who Wasn't There

Sept. 6, 2007 - Last night's debate in New Hampshire, the fifth meeting of Republicans thus far in the 2008 campaign, produced several possible story lines. John McCain had perhaps his best debate performance of the year, finally showing viewers at home the ease and confidence he has on the stump in places like Iowa and New Hampshire. Rudy Giuliani revealed a significant vulnerability, leaning too heavily on talking points about New York City in nearly every answer—including one about his personal life. And Mitt Romney failed to catch fire—a blown opportunity to generate some momentum, given that the debate was held in the former Massachusetts governor's back yard.

But those plot lines were overshadowed by the man who wasn't there. About an hour before the Republican forum began, Fred Thompson was finally announcing his bid for the presidency on a soundstage in Burbank, Calif. Even though he was thousands of miles away, the former senator somehow managed to suck most of the oxygen from the proceedings.

Of course, Thompson's rivals knew this coming in—and arrived well armed with one-liners about the former Tennessee senator's decision to skip the debate in favor of an appearance on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno."

Maybe they should have spent a little more time on their punch lines. Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee joked that he had given up his Leno slot for Thompson and compared the senator to "No Show" George Jones, the country singer legendary for missing gigs because he was drunk. McCain said that perhaps they were all up past Thompson's bedtime. (Stop, you're killing me.) And Romney suggested that Thompson think a little longer about getting in the race, and wait until maybe January or February to get in. Don't quit your day job, governor.

Thompson was able to dominate the picture in part because the debate participants broke little new ground during their sparring—just as Thompson's team had hoped. Asked by Leno why he skipped New Hampshire, Thompson shrugged. "I'll do my share, but I don't think it's a very enlightening forum, to tell you the truth," he said. "I'm certainly not disrespecting them, but it's a lot more difficult to get on 'The Tonight Show' than it is to get on a presidential debate." That one-liner appealed to an audience already weary of the seemingly endless rounds of multicandidate sessions.

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