Can Thompson take Reagan's mantle?

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By Laura Smith-Spark BBC News, Washington

The speculation is finally over. Fred Thompson, former senator and actor in the TV crime series Law & Order has said he is planning to run for president in 2008.

Fred Thompson has been keeping pundits guessing over his plans

The news is likely to have some Republican rivals running for their strategists.

Mr Thompson, who was senator for Tennessee from 1994 to 2002, is not only a credible political figure but has good name recognition and is already polling well.

In a crowded field of Republican hopefuls, he could draw some of the many voters in the party's conservative base who have so far been uninspired by the three main contenders.

Unlike Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney, he has always opposed abortion and favoured gun rights, and although he voted in 2002 to authorise the Iraq war, he is not as closely associated with it as John McCain.

And while Mr Thompson's intentions may only just have been made official, he has been laying the groundwork for a presidential bid for some months.

The 64-year-old has given speeches around the country, written columns, contributed to blogs and even taken on documentary maker Michael Moore in a video posted on the internet.

But given the early start to campaigning and the millions of dollars already raised by his rivals, has he left it too late to get in the game?

'Republican itch'

Not according to Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia.

DECLARED REPUBLICANS Sam BrownbackJim GilmoreRudy GiulianiMike HuckabeeDuncan HunterJohn McCainRon PaulMitt RomneyTom TancredoTommy Thompson

He says Mr Thompson "will undoubtedly become a member of the top four, that's pretty clear" - and suggests that the late start could even help him.

"He hasn't been damaged yet and he has not had to spend the money the other candidates have," he tells the BBC News website. "The question is, will he satisfy the current Republican itch - the itch being the dissatisfaction with the current field?"

Mr Thompson himself says there are "certain advantages" to his late start, and points to the internet as his key weapon, telling USA Today it "has allowed me to be in the hunt, so to speak, without spending a dime".

He is expected to set up a "testing the waters" committee shortly, after which he may formally declare his candidacy within weeks. It is rumoured he may use 4 July celebrations as a backdrop.

With the party's nomination likely to be decided early next year, he will need to start making inroads on the support for the other main contenders soon.

Reagan's 'heir'

Political scientist John Sides says Mr Thompson will certainly suffer from not having as much money in the bank as his rivals, both as a signal of how much support he has and in terms of how much he can spend on advertising.

The actor is leaving his Hollywood job to focus on campaigning

But at the same time, he must be confident he has identified a gap he can fill, says Mr Sides, assistant professor of political science at George Washington University.

"He's pitching himself as a real conservative and, relative to the frontrunners in the Republican nomination, he feels that he has had a consistent history of support for conservative issues," he says.

Mr Thompson may also hope to capitalise on the inevitable comparisons drawn with Ronald Reagan, another actor-cum-politician, Mr Sides suggests.

"He claims to be the natural heir of Reagan, based on his beliefs, but I think that's somewhat debatable," he says.

"But they are both actors so maybe what people are hoping when they think of him is that he will have the right mix of gravitas and charisma, and the ability to communicate with the voters that Reagan was so famous for."

Damage control

Of course, what many observers are keen to see is which of his rivals will lose most support to him.

"You could make an argument that he hurts all of the other three. When a major candidate comes in he takes something from everyone, and that's what he will do," says Mr Sabato.

It's not as if the Republicans are running Brad Pitt John Sides, political scientist

"It's impossible to say over time which one he will hurt the most - and if he's the nominee, he will hurt all of them."

His rivals for the Republican nomination can be expected to attack him any way they can. He will also have to dispel a perception that he was "lazy" during his eight years in the Senate, Mr Sabato says.

Another possible obstacle relates to his disclosure in April this year that he is in remission from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, a form of cancer, which was diagnosed in 2004.

And Mr Sabato sounds a note of caution in relation to his political message. "The voters don't know him, 95% have no clue who he is other than in his Hollywood role.

"They don't think of him politically at all, so he will have to transform himself before his opponents transform him into what they want."

Mr Sides agrees Mr Thompson has a long way to go to make an impact on the wider electorate.

"Potentially people are more familiar with him but there's an over-estimation of how much fame Law & Order has brought him," he says. "It's not as if the Republicans are running Brad Pitt."