I started off early this morning through the cold and fog for Ames, Iowa, home of Iowa State University. I wanted to get out of the 400,000 person metropolis of Des Moines (Tom Clegg, one of its favorite sons, is quick to add that Des Moines serves the retail/industry needs of 3.5 million people so you get the big city feel without the congestion - a bit of Chamber of Commerce hype, but he loves his city) to experience campaigning on the road in small town America. My hope was to find a little coffee shop (with free wi-fi) on Main St. within walking distance of the Old Brew House where in an hour or so Fred Thompson will do a meet an greet.
Upon entering Ames, I discovered that this was not a small town, but a small college town. Retail on the outskirts has grown to include Panera Bread, Target, and all the suburbian establishments a college kid needs to survive away from home. After spotting my fall back for a decent cup of coffee, I made it to Main St where I pleasantly discovered "Cafe Diem - a privately owned coffee house" (they are proud of that here in Iowa) across the street from Thompson's venue of choice.
One of the important skills of a political blogger/tourist is eavesdropping on other people's conversations without being noticed. Immediately upon entering and finding my table I overheard to guys talking about Pakistan in relation to Presidential politics (see my earlier post this morning to know why that is a small confirmation of my theory). The coffee shop has filled up since I have been writing, probably because I am not the only one looking for my personal staging area before the event.
Fred Thompson has been somewhat of an enigma in this campaign. He was the Republican savior as long as he wasn't really running. His John Wayne stature and attitude (along with his post-Senate, small screen endeavors) remind most GOP faithfuls of Ronald Reagan and they hoped for a rerun. But he has, upon moving out of exploration of the idea of being Commander (Actor)-in-Chief, been called lazy, lethargic, and not "really" interested in the rigors of campaign life. He has been rising slightly in the polls as Huckabee has been retreating. It seems as if any concerns about Huck's foreign policy potential has flowed to Thompson being the only other candidate that can actually claim conservative values and background. And you have to respect that when Fred was asked "What are you thankful for this holiday season?" he responded, "I am thankful for my trophy wife."
I am not quite sure what to expect in this, my third official campaign stop. Following the Old Main Brewery, I will make my way back to Des Moines to see Bill Richardson be interviewed by one of my favorite Presidents, Jed Bartlett (aka Martin Sheen) then a small break for food again before the rally for Obama. Huckabee canceled this morning's church appearance (probably a dispute over the percentage of the offering he got to keep - just kidding) so I hope to try and squeeze him in today or tomorrow morning before I retreat to a warmer climate.
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I love Fred Thompson. He was my solid second choice. I'm a bit of a policy wonk, and as I evaluated Romney v. Thompson, I felt like Governor Romney had worked harder to earn the nomination. I do think Fred Thompson would be a better general election candidate, but Mr. Romney has earned my support.
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