April 25, 2007

Texas Official Counts 50 State Legislators
as Current or Future Fred Thompson Fans

By Mike Hailey
Capitol Inside Editor

Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson said Tuesday that 50 Republican state lawmakers have indicated that they'd back Fred Thompson for president or be inclined to support him if the actor and former U.S. Senator enters the race for the White House in 2008. And that's not counting the undisclosed number of Democratic legislators who've said they might vote for Thompson if he's on the ballot without going public with such a decision.

Patterson entered the day with the names of 35 legislators on his list of probable Thompson supporters - and he'd added 15 to it before the House adjourned after darkness had settled into the Capital City on Tuesday night. Patterson suggested that the list of Texas lawmakers that are Thompson supporters or leaning his way could top 60 by the end of the week.

Patterson, who was on the chamber floor when the House broke for the day, said the lawmakers on his list fell into three basic categories. Some legislators are ready to endorse the ex-senator from Tennessee now in the race for the Republican nomination for president. Some have indicated that they will support Thompson's campaign if he decides to run for the White House. Others have given the impression that they will probably get behind a Thompson campaign for president if it materializes but are not ready to commit to a particular contender in the contest yet.

Thompson, who served in the U.S. Senate for more than eight years, has been contemplating a bid for the Oval Office while an effort to draft him for the race unfolds in Texas and other states. The 64-year-old actor and ex-Senate member has picked up support from Railroad Commissioner Victor Carrillo and Republican National Committeewoman Denise McNamara of Dallas - and a number of GOP political consultants in Texas expect to get on the Thompson bandwagon if he joins the field of contenders hoping to replace President George W. Bush.

While Republican candidates such as former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and U.S. Senator John McCain of Arizona have a big jump on fundraising and other aspects of a 2008 White House campaign, Thompson has a face and persona that many Americans recognize as a supporting actor in movies that have been box-office hits and his current role as the district attorney on NBC's weekly drama Law & Order.

One of his co-stars, Sam Waterston, predicted Tuesday that Thompson will seek the presidency in 2008. NBC officials haven't said if they plan to renew Law & Order for another season. Thompson has been competing with former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney for third in recent national and state polling on the Republican contest for president even though he's not a candidate.