Senator jumps in to GOP lineup

TUSTIN — Thank goodness former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson is officially in the 2008 presidential race — it gives David Ellis and his friends something to do.

Ellis, a political consultant, and businessman Morgan Davis, both Newport Coast residents, and real estate investor Larry Smith of Big Canyon are all early supporters of Thompson’s presidential exploratory committee — and they’ll be thumbing through their Rolodexes for possible donors, now that there’s a campaign.

“We’re just excited that he’s finally in, because lots of people were sort of waiting to take a position till they found out if he was really in or not,” said Davis, who co-hosted a Thompson fundraiser with Ellis in July.

The three met at Ellis’ office Thursday to watch Thompson’s official webcast announcing his candidacy, which went online just after midnight Wednesday. Thompson, a Republican and well-known actor, had considered a White House run for months, even as other candidates have raised millions.

He may have put some people’s fears to rest with his formal announcement, but Davis, Ellis and Smith said they never doubted Thompson would jump in.

They appreciate his communication skills and while other candidates have been out stumping, Thompson has been reading up on issues so he’ll know what to say about them.

“If you were to say what do I like about him, he’s not a career politician,” Davis said. “Some people have criticized his work ethic, but my perception is he was in his office researching, studying.”

Smith pronounced Thompson “solid, not slick,” but there’s a certain degree of polish to his presentation — Ellis noticed during the webcast, “If you watch him in ‘Hunt for Red October,’ you’ll see the same head motions.”

The newest GOP candidate didn’t hurt his chances by missing debates with other contenders, Smith said. At the fifth one, on Wednesday night, candidates spent several minutes discussing Thompson, Smith said.

“I think it was quite obvious they were concerned about him, and that itself gives him legitimacy,” he said.

How does Thompson’s entry change the race? For Davis, it means “[Rudy] Giuliani finally gets some real competition.” Recent polls put Thompson in second place, behind the former New York mayor, in the Republican field.

And now Ellis and his cohorts plan to get serious about raising money. How?

“I go start making calls as soon as you leave,” Ellis said.