Thompson is lazy

At least that appears to be the early media narrative.

The former senator turned "Law & Order" actor, who launched an exploratory committee last week, has been dogged by rumors that he doesn't have the work ethic for a long campaign. "The book on him is he's lazy," David Keene, president of the American Conservative Union, said last week. The criticism seems fed by Thompson's time in the Senate, where he maintained a less rigorous schedule than his colleagues and was known to duck out of late-night debates. Of the 90 bills he introduced during his eight years in the Senate, only four became law [...]

His 2008 competitors have privately questioned his endurance, with one rival consultant (anonymous so as not to reflect badly on his own man) telling NEWSWEEK, "I doubt he has the fire in the belly to compete."

How much of this is spin, and how much of it is reality remains to be seen. But one leading indicator is the notion, stated by Thompson, that all he has to do is exist and millions will pour in through the internet. He apparently believes that saying he's going to be popular online actually translates into being popular online. He thinks that claiming he's the Howard Dean of 2007 actually makes him the Howard Dean of 2007.

In other words, there's lots of talk about being an internet sensation, but none of the indications that this might become a real-world phenomenon. Just saying doesn't make it so. And it's not as if the wingnutosphere has proven any ability to be electorally relevant. Making it happen requires real work. And we'll soon see if Thompson has that fire in the belly -- and the right staff -- to make it happen.