San Francisco Chronicle
Republican presidential hopeful Fred Thompson - who has played the hard-charging district attorney on TV's "Law & Order" - found a much tougher role Tuesday during his debut at a televised presidential debate, where he turned out to be more of a lethargic bit player than a shining star amid a cast of GOP presidential candidates.
The former senator and actor stumbled through the first question, appearing nervous and hesitant - though his performance markedly improved by the end of the two-hour debate in Dearborn, Mich., broadcast on the cable news networks CNBC and MSNBC.
The gathering of the nine Republicans, which dealt primarily with economic issues, was dominated by fireworks between former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. The two leading Republican candidates attacked each other over tax policies and spending as much as they attacked Democratic front-runner Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Barbara O'Connor, professor of political communication at Cal State Sacramento, said Thompson faces many of the same challenges as fellow actor Arnold Schwarzenegger did early in his political career.
"He's well known and his name ID is largely positive, because of his TV exposure. So (voters) think they know him - in the same way they do Arnold," she said. "You'd have to be splendid to meet expectations."
Thompson, 65, served as a senator from 1994-2002. His entrance into the race had been urged by many leading conservative Republicans, who have quickly panned his performance on the campaign trail since last month when Thompson officially joined the contest...........
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