Frederick of Hollywood Announces His Announcement

September 6, he's letting loose and sprinting walking briskly sauntering riding a golf cart to the starting line.  Feel the Fred-citement!

It's an interesting date he's chosen -- one day after a big GOP debate in New Hampshire, so why, you might wonder, would he skip it?

Follow the math and the regulatory hopscotch:

• From the date of the formal announcement, Thompson has 15 days to declare his candidacy officially with the Federal Election Commision.  Takes us to September 21, 2007.
• From that date, Thompson has 10 more days for his official campaign committee to register with the FEC.  Takes us to October 1, 2007.
• And what's so special about October 1?  It's the start of a new FEC reporting quarter.  

By delaying the filing of his organizational papers until books have closed on the third quarter of 2007, Thompson arguably will not have to file any disclosure reports with the FEC until January 31, 2008, after the Republican primaries/caucuses in WY, IA, NH, NV, FL and Lord knows who else at this point.

Got that?  Frederick of Hollywood's shadow campaign can raise millions and spend millions without having to disclose to the public a single contribution raised or disbursement made over a six-month span -- and while his opponents have been consistently doing so -- delaying disclosure until after at least five Republican primaries have been held.  And it's deliberate, too, just like his (failed) coy attempts to walk the tightrope on "testing the waters" activity.

How does finally declaring his candidacy affect Lane Hudson's FEC complaint?  Not at all.  The offense has already been committed, and it's just a question of when and how much the punishment will be.  As Cenk Uygur put it on the Young Turks last week, "Just because Lindsay Lohan was driving sober today doesn't make her DUI arrest go away."  

•  FYI

  Jennifer Rubin of Human Events was the first to work out the math, noting, "That may allow Thompson to have the best of both worlds -- a fully operational campaign with little or no public scrutiny."

  by Adam B on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:23:08 PM PDT

  •  Frederick of Hollywood, eh?

    Here's hoping he bumps into Craig in a public restroom.

    by Melody Townsel on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:26:10 PM PDT

    •  Haven't you heard about his glamorous trophy wife

      She looks like Britney Spears' great-aunt after a three-day bender.  Class with a capital K.

      by Dallasdoc on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:29:30 PM PDT

      •  re

        glamorous trophy wife / campaign manager

        by cookiesandmilk on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:36:11 PM PDT

        •  Eh.

          That his politics are noxious and his adherence to the law is minimal (at best) are all I need to criticize him; I could care less about his personal life.

          by Adam B on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:39:38 PM PDT

          •  re

            But he's mixing both have you not heard?

            Seems like she is grabbing more power in the campaign and there are people leaving because of it.

            That is public.

            by cookiesandmilk on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:40:49 PM PDT

            •  re

              Novacula:

              http://www.humanevents.com/...

              She has been intimately involved in the planning of her husband's campaign, including last week's staff shakeup. When Tom Collamore left as Thompson's campaign manager, he told CNN that he was "very respectful of the desire of Fred and Jeri to make some changes as they move to the next level." Those comments generated whispers in the political community that whoever ran this campaign would have to answer to the candidate's wife.

              by cookiesandmilk on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:42:20 PM PDT

            •  I thought that was Rudy!'s wife

              You mean both of them are whipped?  

              I can't wait for Basset to get in the race.  Just to watch Michael Moore follow him around calling him a coward for refusing to debate him.

              by Dallasdoc on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:45:28 PM PDT

            •  Split the roles.

              Whether she's a good campaign manager is newsworthy.

              Whether she's an good wife or an attractive woman isn't.

              by Adam B on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 05:01:57 PM PDT

      •  Ouch....

        Your mean. And she's doing such a great job pretending to run his campaign.

        by eastvan on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 06:49:38 PM PDT

      •  Jeri Thompson

        is quite simply not first lady material.

        Shady personal past, held herself out as married when she wasn't, a trail of unpaid debts...

        and then latching onto Frederick of Hollywood as he was getting old and desparate.

        She's going make the wingnuts long for Hillary.

        by trillian on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 07:07:11 PM PDT

    •  "Frederick of Hollywood," Is Funny!

      And, so is, Fred Flintstone!  You must agree, we have not even started to explore the possibilities with that one.  The similarities, are quite eerie, too! Freddie Thompson/Freddie Flinstone.  What was his wife's name?

      by leonard145b on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:37:46 PM PDT

      •  Wilma!

        Do you think there will be any alledged Democrats supporting this cretin?  After all, Fred Flintstone had his Dino, so why can't this Lawless & Disorder refugee have his own "DINOs"?

        by Randall Sherman on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:45:21 PM PDT

      •  Wilma!

        by David in Burbank on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:45:40 PM PDT

      •  Willard! n/t

        by HenryVane on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 07:46:59 PM PDT

  •  Avoiding FEC reports is hardly important

    Nobody's paying attention to who's giving to whom anyway, otherwise we'd never have elected Bush and Cheney.

    If Fred's numbers are embarrassing, that'll be more than obvious in the runup to Superduper Tuesday, whenever that'll be by then.  If he can't raise more than a few handfuls of millions, all the Aqua Velva in the world won't hide that stink.

    by Dallasdoc on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:28:13 PM PDT

    •  seems to matter who gives to Democrats

      pubs don't get the same scrutiny. At least they don't seem to. Maybe everything is aboveboard and legal with publicans. Maybe they're honest beyond reproach. Maybe I'm actually a space alien from Tralfamidor.

      by dougymi on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:56:28 PM PDT

      •  That is because we all know.

        Republican Money comes from their real "base", those that they have consistantly supported since their creation as a political party, Big Business...from the railroads and shipyards of the 1800s to the Oil and Pharmacutical industries today

        by David Nichols on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 07:06:25 PM PDT

  •  Wonder if he'd run his Presidency

    the same way as he is runnning the campaign- with little to no transparency? Typical Repug.

    by cwaltz on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:28:51 PM PDT

    •  The only thing transparent about Fred

      is his skin.

      by citizenx on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:29:39 PM PDT

      •  is it?

        i thought that cryptkeeper granite gray coloration he's got going was his skin. you telling me it's the next layer down?

        by zeke L on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:43:26 PM PDT

  •  However much the disclosure affair plays itself

    out, it still won't absolve him from having an actual policy position. On something. Anything.
    And won't deflect any questions that will inevitably arise such as "And where were you while this was going on?"

    Not to mention that he may wish to purchase more teflon when this accounting of his date games gets more attention. Is he not the slightest bit aware that one of the reasons the GOP is so badly in the crapper is because of shitty little games like this?

    by eastvan on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 06:47:56 PM PDT

•  Ol Bassett Hound

  is now on the trail.  

  by givemhellHarryR on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:23:37 PM PDT

•  Thompson = Reagan re-tread

  Fred is an attempt at creating another Reagan. But, I knew Ron Reagan and Fred is NO Ron Reagan.:)

  by Blutodog on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:26:24 PM PDT

  •  Plus - Regan did Hollywood first -

    then politics.  Thompson's done it backwards

    by David in Burbank on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:43:42 PM PDT

•  Or Fred can hide the fact that

  Frederick of Hollywood's shadow campaign can raise millions and spend millions

  he was unable to raise or spend millions.

  by whenwego on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:26:43 PM PDT

  •  Stephanopoulos says.

    On ABC's World News Tonight, George Stephanopoulos said that Thompson's years as a lobbyist will be scrutininzed by rivals, Republican as well as Democrat. I just hope they give the Barefoot Boy of K Street the attention they're promising.

    by Judge Moonbox on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 06:32:20 PM PDT

•  I'm so sick of Fred and his announcements.....

  The only thing I like about him is his wife.

  by State Department on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:27:21 PM PDT

  •  While looking for pictures of his wife

    I found this site....yikes

    http://osamalovesobama.com/

    by David in Burbank on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:42:51 PM PDT

    •  That is the goofiest

      website I've seen all day! That guy is way out in left field! er. right field.

      by jamesia on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 05:07:33 PM PDT

  •  Wife

    She is reportedly involved in the campaign and is interfering with and hurting Freddie's campaign management staffing.
    So I guess there is that something else to like about her as well...

    by homerun on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:58:18 PM PDT

•  Gotta Give Him Credit.

  Hey, as a former Republican Senator, Fred Thompson is showing a lot of class and respect for Republican Senatorial traditions, by selecting for the venue of his announcement the men's room at the airport in Nashville.

  You go, Fred.

  by Kargomania on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:27:39 PM PDT

•  Just seeing the man

  makes me remember that I haven't bought a cemetary plot yet.

  by citizenx on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:28:04 PM PDT

  •  ROTFLMAO n/t

    by cwaltz on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:29:47 PM PDT

  •  Grave mistake!

    You dig?

    by JeffW on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 07:33:56 PM PDT

•  Frederick of Hollywood? Frederick of Hollywood?

  

  Hey, pal, work your own
  side of the street.

  by GOTV on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:29:35 PM PDT

  •  I can't believe...

    ... the current field of Republican candidates.

    I mean, I don't want to jinx us by saying this, but they are so lame.

    Rudy doesn't even do well in drag!

    by Plutonium Page on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:32:06 PM PDT

    •  Well, one does what one can

      with what one has.

      But, I agree.  Say what you will about the Dem contenders, has the GOP ever been this lame?  Maybe Alf Landon?  Shit, this is bad for them.

      by GOTV on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:37:16 PM PDT

      •  At least Alf Landon had his youthful health

        He lived another 51 years after his landslide defeat.

        by jfern on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 06:00:17 PM PDT

    •  I think that's why Newt

      is still hoping he can ride in like a white knight and save his party by offering himself.
      Gag.

      by homerun on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 05:01:48 PM PDT

      •  Can he make up his mind?

        I think that's why Newt
        is still hoping he can ride in like a white knight and save his party by offering himself

        Does he really think he can do both? Oh, yeah, that's right. He has done some pretty crazy things in his time.

        by Judge Moonbox on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 06:35:41 PM PDT

      •  Please Newt

        join them!  Get testy at the debates!

        by HenryVane on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 08:01:16 PM PDT

•  Fund Raising for Republicans

  isn't scrutinized in the same way as it is for Democrats. I doubt republican voters really care where their candidates get there money.  

  by David in Burbank on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:29:49 PM PDT

  •  it's the media that does scrutiny

    and they certainly don't want to scrutinize GOP filings the same way they do for democrats.

    after all, their bosses wouldn't be happy having their names exposed like that.

    by zeke L on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:34:10 PM PDT

•  Where is the recommend button???

  Oh yeah...

  Great post (and funny, too).

  Thanks Adam, and GO (cart) Grandpa Fred!

  by Plutonium Page on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:30:23 PM PDT

  •  As I was writing this ...

    ... I had no idea that I was jumping right on top of Markos' post.  Yikes.  Spent the afternoon at one of the best baseball games of my life, and am just now catching up on the news.

    by Adam B on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:31:44 PM PDT

    •  Adam - great diary - you're so funny!

      by annefrank on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:33:27 PM PDT

    •  automatic geek alert

      On me, that is.

      I don't know anything about basketball, but I hope you had fun!

      And I know what it's like to be behind on the news.

      by Plutonium Page on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:34:42 PM PDT

    •  I once saw a pre-steroid Barry Bonds get hit,

      charge the mound and tackle the pitcher. Both benches cleared, and he got thrown out of the game. This was a shame, because it was only the 5th inning or so and he was a double away from hitting for the cycle.

      by DemocraticLuntz on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:39:29 PM PDT

•  12:01 am eastern

  gotta love that he's planning to hit it right down to the minute, just to make it crystal-clear to everybody that he's thumbing his warty nose at the whole concept of disclosure of campaign funds.

  of course, if he cuts it too close, he might be getting a bit too clever for his own good, as i pointed out on another thread, but i'm going to hold off here. something we should nail him on after he pulls his little "screw you" trick.

  by zeke L on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:30:36 PM PDT

  •  Repubs are always seeking loopholes

    to avoid going through usual procedures the common folk follow.

    by annefrank on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:35:24 PM PDT

  •  Perhaps someone...

    ...could accidently tamper with the timer of his computer to make the time read say five minutes fast?  (Accidental-like of course.)

    by Randall Sherman on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:51:27 PM PDT

•  As Tweety says....

  ....There's something about an Aqua Velva man.

  by Hillbilly Dem on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:33:27 PM PDT

  •  Or was it Hai Karate?

    by Hillbilly Dem on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:34:24 PM PDT

  •  It's all...

    ...to cover the stink of the big sack `o' shit, y'know.

    by JeffW on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 07:36:38 PM PDT

  •  Aqua Velva Conservatism

    

    "you're my kind of guy.........
    I want you so.......
    baby, everything about you is go-go-go!

    There's something about you...
    and our romance began.........
    cuz you're an aqua velva maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan...
    My aqua velva man!"

    by jmknapp on Fri Aug 31, 2007 at 06:06:25 AM PDT

    •  A beauty!

      by Hillbilly Dem on Fri Aug 31, 2007 at 11:43:35 AM PDT

•  & he smells of fine leather

  & quality tobacco.
  memo to chris matthews: don't do any interviews "with a loaded gun."

  by rasbobbo on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:33:35 PM PDT

•  Soooooo... wonder if the other...

  .. Repub candidates are up for taking advantage of this info?

  by highacidity on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:35:07 PM PDT

  •  Well, it's a bit hard for them

    Except for McCain, it'd require demanding enforcement of laws they don't much care for.

    by Adam B on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:38:43 PM PDT

    •  True.

      But that may not matter if it gives them any leverage against the others. Looking out for number one and all that.

      It's not like these guys are actually principled or anything...

      by highacidity on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:45:50 PM PDT

•  I like "Fire Alarm Fred" because his

  speeches can clear a room faster than a fire alarm.  

  by alfredo on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:38:32 PM PDT

  •  How about "Drop Dead Fred"

    He's a figment of a Little Girls Tweety's Imagination

    by JML9999 on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:44:11 PM PDT

    •  Stick around...

      ...I'm betting he actually does drop dead, before too
      long.

      by JeffW on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 07:38:07 PM PDT

      •  He doesn't look too healthy

        when you see him without makeup.  The bags under his eyes could point to heart trouble, or a host of other less scary causes like allergies or genetics.

        His cancer is supposed to be in remission, and when out of remission it is of a slow growing variety.  

        With the demands of modern campaigning, it has become a young man's (or woman's) game. With the inability to run around the country day in and day out like a younger person, there will be the rumors of bad health, and maybe the reenforcement of the "lazy" image he's cultivated.  

        by alfredo on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 08:09:26 PM PDT

        •  Understatement of the week...

          He doesn't look too healthy

          by JeffW on Fri Aug 31, 2007 at 09:20:24 AM PDT

          •  My wife finds that endearing.

            by alfredo on Fri Aug 31, 2007 at 02:50:54 PM PDT

            •  Clarification

              She finds my ability to understate endearing, not Fire Alarm Fred's unhealthy looks.

              by alfredo on Fri Aug 31, 2007 at 02:52:18 PM PDT

•  Can I buy one'o those shiny bras from him?

  The ones with the pointy cups?

  

  

  Or does this Frederick of Hollywood only sell pointy cups of nectar that hypnotizes people into thinking Reagan's come back from the great beyond?

  by Iddybud on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:42:14 PM PDT

  •  These are gateway images........

    to hardcore porn and sleazery of unimaginable dimensions.

    And you could put an eye out with some of those brassieres.

    Isn't Frederick of Hollywood just a perfect nickname?  I really like that.

    by Johnny Double Adams on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 08:05:29 PM PDT

•  Pop some corn.

  We don't even have to lift a finger to make this one a regular part of the media commentary on Grandpa.

  The other GOP candidates and their Faux News water carriers will make this a big deal every time Fred shows up.

  by pat208 on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 04:46:33 PM PDT

•  It makes you wonder.

  Why he's the only one who has worked the law to his advantage.

  by devtrash on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 05:08:27 PM PDT

  •  It's stagecraft

    There's a lot, stylistically, that binds Thompson '07 to Wes Clark '03:  someone who waited for everyone to get a little sick of the field and appear as a "white knight," on whom folks projected a lot of idealized notions as to what their candidate should be as compared with the disappointing field that they saw.

    by Adam B on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 05:19:47 PM PDT

•  Doesn't really matter

  He's way behind the curve on this. He only raised 3 1/2 million last time, his organization is a wreck and he is too lazy to accomplish much, anyway. No way will the republicans just anoint him St Ronnie the second, especially after Bush II was such a disappointment. One thing it might do is split the money, so there is less for Rudy and Mitt. I would say right now, his entry hurts the republicans and helps the dems.

  by corwin on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 05:18:08 PM PDT

•  Fred For President!

  

  by David in Burbank on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 05:25:20 PM PDT

•  Un peu d'Hagelesque, n'est-ce pas?

  Fuck this Stupid Fucker.

  by revenant on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 05:37:47 PM PDT

•  Very funny with your caption, ...

  ... but, at least he's running.
  http://osi-speaks.blogspot.com/...

  by KYJurisDoctor on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 05:38:18 PM PDT

•  Why is he called Frederick of Hollywood?

  Is he a crossdresser like Giuliani?

  by pkbarbiedoll on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 06:11:01 PM PDT

  •  He's a thespian!

    Let's see the big hunk `o' crap deny that!

    by JeffW on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 07:41:13 PM PDT

•  Fred's wife looks like a whore.

  Dennis Kucinich's wife looks like a high fashion model.  I saw Miss Elizabeth and Dennis at the Detroit Metro Airport last night.  She's a genuine redhead.  Stunning.

  by Johnny Double Adams on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 08:07:37 PM PDT

  •  Really.

    That's not appropriate language to describe any woman.

    by Adam B on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 08:23:03 PM PDT

    •  it is certainly a rude expression

      but would it actually be inappropriate language to apply to a woman who accepted cash for sexual favors, and dressed the part? Or even just a woman who dressed the part?

      Years ago, my mom was visiting my aunt, and was pretty shocked to see Susan, my 16 year old cousin, walking out the door to go to high-school in extremely provocative attire. My aunt had had words with her daughter, and been ignored.

      My Mom is neither mean nor prudish, but she does speak her mind. My mom's exact words to Susan were "you look like a whore". Susan has always been a good friend of mine, but she is very pretty, enjoys attention, and as a teenager (and beyond) was rebellious. I have no reason to doubt that the phrase was accurate.

      Since that kind of language was so unusual for my Mom, it also proved effective - Susan went and changed into something (relatively) more demure before going to school. It seems to me that those words were exactly appropriate in that situation.

      by Brecht on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 09:39:09 PM PDT

•  This guy is a remarkable hypocrit.

  He doesn't want to appear as a beltway savvy candidate, ala King George, yet his tactics are so calculated that no one in their right mind could call Thompson anything less than a semi-shrewd politician.

  He stated on Leno's show that he doesn't "...crave the presidency, but I want the powers a president has..". Does this mean he wants the powers of a president sans the responsibility of said powers? Sounds like it to me.

  We've been down this road for the past six and a half years, and I think the record speaks for itself as to just how ineffective and counter-productive this attitude is towards government. Which last time I looked was By the People, For the People.

  Thompson is pathetic, and anyone that buys into his schtick is equally vacuous, if not more. This man is a poison pill.

  by SpiffPeters on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 08:12:07 PM PDT

•  Great analysis, but Thompson is 'ELECTABLE'

  Adam's analysis is dead-on, but it misses the real point. Thompson is ELECTABLE. That's what's scary. Democrats need to really look at WHO can win in the swing states in November 2008, because Thompson can be a unifying force for the Republican party. We need to think long and hard about how to win OHIO, MISSOURI, WEST VIRGINIA, NEW HAMPSHIRE, IOWA, COLORADO, NEVADA, NORTH CAROLINA, and TENNESSEE. Democrats need to ask: WHO can win Purple State America? And, who will have coat-tails?

  When Democrats simply attack the opposition without understanding how to BEAT the opposition, we lose.

  And Thompson is the toughest and most likely opponent who Democrats will face.
  http://www.politicalbrandwagon.com

  by Peter S Cohl on Thu Aug 30, 2007 at 08:46:15 PM PDT

•  Republicans most be desperate

  Won't they try to portrait ol' Fred as the new Ronald Reagan? Both mediocre actors, both conservatives, both "manly" who only played manly roles.
  The republicans are getting desperate, I agree with Rachel Maddow that the current field is very weak. Will Thompson make it stronger? I don't think so, but, we'll see.

  by Liberal viewer on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 10:29:02 AM PDT