Fred Thompson Gives Away Surprise

Thompson's media dance, the likes of which would impress Baryshnikov, might be played out before it ever begins, but just try and follow our lead.

Yesterday the Drudge headline barked, "Fred Picks Leno Over FoxNews Debate," referring to the presumed Republican candidate Fred Thompson's scheduled appearance this evening on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, during which he's expected to announce what everyone already knows: He's officially in the '08 race. The appearance is timed to air right after his debut campaign ad—which should show up during the FoxNews debates he's skipping (just as he's skipped others). He is slated to do FNC's Hannity & Colmes Thursday night, a plan which hasn't been thwarted by a snipey little item about the Law & Order actor and former Republican Senator on an FNC website today.

An "insider" tells FNC's the Daily Read that former FoxNews employee Jim Mills "was recruited and hired by the candidate and his wife," then let go a month later. "They did not have the guts to let him go themselves. They have wrecked his life and it's totally wrong," the insider says. (Wonder who that source could be.)

Of course, none of this may matter. The ad identifying him as a 2008 candidate (above) has already hit YouTube.