Not the kind of headlines that an aspiring candidate desires

Fred Thompson raised a lot of excitement when he first intimated that he might jump in the race. He had a few interviews with conservative outlets and wowed people with his youtube quick response to Michael Moore. And it's been downhill from there. Almost every other story coming out about his campaign has been a distraction: aides leaving, his wife, his disappointing performances before friendly audiences. And while his delay in formally announcing until after Labor Day might make sense, it also has meant that the other candidates have appeared in the arena engaging each other on issues. They've had time to shake out some of their weaknesses and get used to talking off the cuff on a variety of issues before most people are paying any attention. They've been able to hone their skills off-Broadway so to speak.

Now, as Thompson prepares to jump in, he's in a situation where every mistake will be magnified and so he'll have to run a near-perfect campaign as the spotlight will focus on him. He'll be debuting on Broadway with the TV cameras rolling on his every move.

And the previews have not been promising. He was disappointing, apparently, in his speech before the VFW, an audience disposed to love him. If he can't wow people before such an audience, when is he going to catch fire?

Jonathan Martin of Politico looks at Thompson's campaign and the headline really says it all.

Thompson struggles as launch looms

Ouch. He can't afford for stories to keep focusing on all the mistakes his campaign has been making.

With his summer-long windup to a presidential campaign finally nearing an end, actor-politician Fred Thompson defended his late entry into the race and said the continued interest in him is a reflection of Republican dissatisfaction with the rest of the field.

But, in a Politico interview, Thompson also served notice that at least one measure of political strength -- fundraising -- is likely to look a bit wan when the next disclosure reports are released, reflecting a sluggish summer.

“I imagine we will fall off some in July and August and have a great September,” Thompson said, boasting he “would compare what we’ve been able to do in a few months with what others have done in their first few months, whenever that was.”

Thompson’s plunge into the race, which aides once indicated would happen around the Fourth of July and is now planned for after Labor Day, comes amid increasingly public hand-wringing by supporters over whether he has waited too long to capitalize on the surge of interest that accompanied reports of a potential candidacy more than five months ago.

Beyond the mere anxiety of the waiting game, he has suffered through a summer of stumbles. In a short period of time, Thompson has already been hit with the sort of problems that it takes most campaigns months longer -- not to mention a full-blown candidacy -- to accrue.

And some operatives close to the Thompson campaign continue to express concern about staff turmoil and organizational shortcomings. The rumblings are raising questions more broadly among Republican insiders about whether Thompson has the discipline and zeal to wage a winning campaign -- much less craft a message that can distinguish himself from the current crop of GOP contenders.

People will start to remember that Fred Thompson has very little executive experience and start to wonder that, if he can't run a pre-campaign, how is he going to manage the bigger campaign much less the White House. He's starting to seem more like the Robert Redford character in The Candidate, not as good-looking but as an appealing and well-meaning cipher.

He still has time to recover, but the repeated delays in announcing, the reported flaccid fundraising, the unimpressive appearance don't justify all the excitement that people have been trying to generate about his possible candidacy.