Politico: Thompson May Drop Out If He Finishes Poorly In Iowa

He’s running out of money and support and everything is basically on the line in Iowa:

Several Republican officials close to Fred Thompson’s presidential campaign said they expect the candidate will drop out of the race within days if he finishes poorly in Thursday’s Iowa caucus.

Thompson’s campaign, which last spring and summer was generating fevered anticipation in the media and with some Republican activists, has never ignited nationally, and there are no signs of a late spark happening here in Iowa, where even a third-place finish is far from assured.

This reality—combined with a fundraising drought—left well-connected friends and advisers of Thompson Wednesday evening predicting that he will pull the plug on hype and hope before the Jan. 8 New Hampshire primary.

Thompson’s departure could shake up the race more than his continued presence. Friends and advisers said they have long considered it likely that if the lobbyist-actor is forced from the race he would endorse John McCain his former Senate colleague who lately has been staging a political revival in New Hampshire.

“Without a solid third-place finish, there’s no point in going on,” a Thompson adviser said Wednesday. “It was an honorable race, and he turned out to be a good candidate. The moment had just passed.”

A Thompson campaign source said there is “a strong likelihood” that if Thompson comes in a distant third in Iowa, with less than 15 percent of the vote, he would drop out soon—most likely before this weekend’s New Hampshire presidential debates.

Thompson has gotten two distinct types of coverage in this election: Editorials declaring him unequivocally the best conservative choice in the field, and editorials (and press stories) chronicling how lazy of a campaign he has run.

But being out of money … and having to beg for it just to run a single ad … well, not a good sign. He has plenty of online conservative support, but unlike Ron Paul, it hasn’t provided him with much money at all.

Honestly, if Thompson would have gotten in before Huckabee got hot and really pressed his advantage instead of waiting until December to focus on the state, he and Huckabee could be in opposite positions. Whether being lazy or unfocused - that’s not my point - Thompson’s biggest problem is Thompson, not the press or whoever else some of his partisans might blame.